About Next Round

While we make room for the new and awe-inspiring DPPAC, we must also remember to embrace the memories and history of The City Beautiful. One way the City of Orlando is trying to save a small piece of Orlando history is by saving part of The Round Building, which is located on the corner of Orange Avenue and Anderson Street. The portion of the Round Building that we are working to save is called the Brise Soleil. The Brise Soleil is the decorative (honeycomb-shaped) band that spans the exterior perimeter of the Round Building.

Downtown Orlando is ever-changing. The citizens of Orlando and Orange County have approved the much-needed and highly anticipated 3 Venues projects, including the Orlando Events Center, The Citrus Bowl expansion and modernization, as well as the Dr. P. Phillips Performing Arts Center (DPPAC).

Because The American Federal Building (The Round Building) occupies the southwest corner of the site of the DPPAC, it is scheduled for complete demolition.

The mission of the title sponsor of Next Round, Nils M. Schweizer Fellows | Central Florida Modern, is to promote awareness and seek the preservation of Florida’s mid-century modern architecture. They are a non-profit corporation composed of design enthusiasts who have united to advance this cause.

To that end, we endeavor to raise private funds to save the Brise Soleil and use it in other locations, thus saving a part of Downtown Orlando’s History. The Brise Soleil may be used in sections in different ways in all different locations throughout the City or in one defined locale. For instance, some or all of it could be use as a sculpture or set into the ground as a decorative path or even as a sun screen (its originally intended purpose).

How and where we would use the Brise Soleil has yet to be determined. While the details are brought into focus, our fund-raising efforts must persist in order to save this piece of history, so it is not lost forever once The Round Building is demolished.