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Impact Update for Thursday, January 20

Each week, we will distribute our Impact Update newsletter on Thursdays. We encourage you to share this information with friends, families, and business owners who may be able to take advantage of the resources, programming options, local highlights and industry news below.

Jason Siegel

President & CEO

Greater Orlando Sports Commission

“We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”

- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Local Resources.

Visit these pages for the most critical local health and government updates:
City of Orlando: COVID-19 Homepage | Testing Sites | Vaccine Sites
Orange County: COVID-19 Homepage | Testing Sites | Vaccine Sites
Osceola County: COVID-19 Homepage | Testing Sites | Vaccine Sites
Seminole County: COVID-19 Homepage | Testing Sites | Vaccine Sites
Lake County: Homepage
City of Orlando:
The Downtown Development Board is now accepting applications to support events located in the Community Redevelopment Area of Orlando. Click here for more information, applications close on Tuesday, Feb. 1 at 11:59pm.
The Downtown Development Board (DDB) and Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) created a webpage to assist with identifying grants and incentives that may be available to downtown businesses.
Orange County:
The #IGotMyShot mobile vaccination trailer continues to visit neighborhoods and businesses throughout Orange County. For next week’s schedule, or for more information about the #IGotMyShot campaign, visit ocfl.net/IGotMyShot.
Orange County’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program remains open for individuals who are behind on rent or at risk of being evicted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. To date, more than $15.3 million have been approved to keep 2,635 families in their homes. Recently, the City of Orlando announced it has depleted its current federal funds dedicated to its Emergency Rental Assistance Program. Orange County is stepping in to bridge the gap and will temporarily offer assistance to Orlando residents, effective now until further notice. Eligible residents include those living in unincorporated Orange County, Apopka, Bay Lake, Belle Isle, Eatonville, Edgewood, Lake Buena Vista, Maitland, Oakland, Ocoee, Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden and Winter Park. Residents can visit ocfl.net/RentalAssistance to review program details and to check if their address is eligible.
CareerSource Central Florida is helping career seekers and displaced workers apply for the Reemployment Assistance program through the Department of Economic Opportunity.
The Orange County Library System offers Right Service at the Right Time, a free online tool and public resource that is particularly useful to those who have had their income affected by COVID-19. The service provides a platform to easily find information on government-assistance and community-support programs.
Osceola County:
Osceola County is currently accepting applications for emergency utility assistance for households impacted by COVID19. Funding is available for electric, gas, and water utilities only. If you reside in Osceola County and your household is impacted, please click here to complete the application.
Lake County:
For Lake County residents, United Way of Lake and Sumter Counties is able to assist with CARES/ERA/SHIP Federal funds for rent and utilities. For more information on eligibility and documents needed, or to make an appointment, please visit their Family Stability Services page.
Seminole County:
If you have been impacted by the COVID-19 crisis and live in Seminole County, The Sharing Center is currently accepting applications for rent/mortgage and utilities assistance. Click here for program criteria and to learn how to apply.
Additional Resources:
The US Small Business Association has compiled a database of private funding options to help small businesses. Browse the options available nationally, or input a zip code to explore location-specific funding.

Stay Engaged.

The Amway Center is planning to host several job fairs this winter. Job openings include positions in guest services, security, food and beverage and cleaning. The first job fair is on Jan. 25 and the second will be on Feb. 15. Both events will be hosted on the East Terrace Level concourse within the Amway Center, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.
The Downtown Arts District announced the expansion of its free Third Thursday event series in downtown Orlando, in partnership with City District Main Street, Orange County Regional History Center, and Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. The series, which takes place on the third Thursday of every month from 6-9 p.m., will now include live entertainment and performances, a makers market, admission to the Orange County History Center, and more.
Trash 2 Trends: An Evening of Recycled Fashion on Feb. 5 is not only a fundraiser for Keep Orlando Beautiful 501(c)3, but a night that brings the fashion and art world together alongside the environmental community to promote and inspire sustainability. This event is part of the City’s continued efforts to be one of the most sustainable cities in America to ensure Orlando’s natural resources and amenities are protected for residents and future generations to come.
Two towering new attractions are elevating folks high into the air above International Drive. Here’s what to know before you go up at Orlando FreeFall and Orlando SlingShot, recent additions to Icon Park.
From ice cream to ice chalk, celebrate the winter solstice with some (literally) cool sensory STEM experiments from the Orlando Science Center! Explore the chemistry behind some ice-citing concoctions, learn a trick to make your friends think you can freeze time, and more.
The Orange County Regional History Center’s exhibition highlighting the achievements of the Downtown Development Board is open until Jan. 30. Through a timeline of important events and photographs, visitors have the chance to see the growth of the City Beautiful.
Florida residents can save big while visiting Walt Disney World Resort theme parks. Click here to view the current list of special offers.
Universal Orlando's Florida resident specials include discounts on vacation packages.

“We are excited to be back at Exploria Stadium. This city and these fans have been a huge advantage to us throughout the years. In our last home game of the octagonal we look forward to another special night of soccer.”

-Gregg Berhalter, USMNT Head Coach

See USMNT story below...

Around The Horn.

Orlando's Exploria Stadium will host the final home game of the USMNT's 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying schedule when the United States takes on Panama on March 27, U.S. Soccer announced on Wednesday.
Two-time World Cup champion and Olympic Gold medalist Michelle Akers officially joined Amanda Cromwell’s coaching staff on Wednesday, joining fellow assistants Sam Green and Seb Hines as part of the Orlando Pride’s technical staff. Akers has long been familiar with the Central Florida soccer scene, and played for the UCF Knights from 1984-1989.
Blocking shots and making 3-pointers are Mo Bamba’s specialties. On Wednesday in Philadelphia, the Orlando Magic center showcased both those attributes with three blocks and seven triples as part of his career-best 32-point performance.
UCF head women's soccer coach Tiffany Roberts Sahaydak has joined the United State Women's National Team as an assistant coach this week for the team's first training camp of 2022. Roberts Sahaydak is one of three assistant coaches on head coach Vlatko Andonovski's staff, as the team begins preparation for the SheBelieves Cup in February.
Talking in front of a group of reporters, Alexandre Pato stopped for a moment and looked over to his right side, and noticed his father, Geraldo, making his way onto the Orlando City training grounds for the first training session of the year. For Pato, after a 2021 season plagued with injuries, returning to Orlando for one more year means a second chance to meet unfulfilled expectations.
The UCF Women’s Basketball Team has been on a tear so far this season and is beginning to receive national recognition for its effort on the court. Following back-to-back home wins over over Houston and then-No. 24 South Florida, the Knights (12-2, 4-0 AAC) were named the NCAA.com women’s basketball Team of the Week on Tuesday.
Danielle Kang, 2021 runner-up at the LPGA Tournament of Champions is among 28 winners from the past two seasons expected to tee it up Thursday-Sunday during this year's event at Lake Nona Golf & Country Club.
The Orlando Solar Bears announced that the Tampa Bay Lightning have reassigned forward Odeen Tufto from Orlando to the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League (AHL).
For the first set, Naomi Osaka’s rediscovered love of the game meant it was anything but fun for Madison Brengle in the second round of the Australian Open. The defending champion conceded only four points in the first four games Wednesday and rifled forehand winners seemingly at will as she breezed to 6-0 in a mere 20 minutes.
Nine student-athletes across the boys and girls basketball teams from Montverde Academy received McDonald’s All American nominations this past Tuesday.
Steven Stamkos received the popular vote. The Tampa Bay Lightning captain was selected by fans to participate in his seventh All-Star Game, surpassing Hall of Famer Martin St. Louis for most appearances in franchise history.
The NHL will stop testing asymptomatic players, coaches and staff who are fully vaccinated after the All-Star break in early February, saying coronavirus cases continue to decline across the league.
The Premier Hockey Federation is more than doubling each teams’ salary cap to $750,000 and adding two expansion franchises next season in a bid to capitalize on the wave of attention women’s hockey traditionally enjoys following the Winter Olympics.

In The News.

It should have been a slow Monday morning in January, but at the Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando the donations started rolling in early. By 9:45 a.m., Central Floridians had already chipped in nearly $9,000 in support of the Betty White Challenge — a social-media appeal to contribute to animal welfare groups on what would have been the beloved actress’s 100th birthday. By day’s end, it was a stunning $50,500.
The City of Orlando was just awarded $6.8 million in COVID-19 Relief Funds from the U.S. Department of the Treasury to provide Emergency Rental Assistance for households that were financially impacted by the pandemic. City residents will be able to apply for relief funds again starting February 1, 2022.
The Florida Department of Transportation has partnered with Orlando Magic to launch extended SunRail service on select game nights when the Magic have home games at the Amway Center this season. All Magic ticket holders can ride SunRail for free to and from the games just by showing a hard copy or electronic copy of their ticket to SunRail conductors.
The Orlando Economic Partnership’s award-winning Leadership Orlando program has just announced the launch of a new program to help grow a talent pipeline of Black leaders for local nonprofit boards in the Orlando region. According to a release from OEP, the Black Boardroom Leadership Institute is meant to address a “significant gap amongst Orlando’s nonprofit board of directors.”
Brightline is preparing to get conductors acquainted with a portion of its Central Florida expansion. The Miami-based intercity rail system will start running trains on a 130-mile portion of track between West Palm Beach and Cocoa. The trains will be without passengers and run at 60 miles per hour for one roundtrip a day.
Congrats to our partners at the Southern Group, who recently purchased the historic Tinker Building in downtown Orlando. The Southern Group is now seeking an “interesting tenant for the first floor, either office, retail, tech, or coworking.”
Walt Disney World has released the bulk of the lineup for the 2022 edition of Garden Rocks, the concert series during the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival. Among the big names: Rick Springfield, TobyMac and A Flock of Seagulls.
From the Orlando Sentinel, By The Numbers: Year-over-year median home sale prices up more than 18% across Central Florida.

Fun & Games.

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