Lake Eola

Infobox lake
lake_name = Lake Eola
image_lake = Lakeeola 09232006 trees.jpg
caption_lake = View from the park site (2006)
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location = Downtown Orlando, Florida
coords = coord|28|32|37|N|81|22|22|W|type:waterbody_region:US-FL|display=inline,title
type = Sinkhole
inflow =
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basin_countries = United States
length =
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area = convert|23|acre|abbr=on|lk=on
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Lake Eola is a small lake in Downtown Orlando, Florida, located at coord|28|32|37|N|81|22|22|W|type:waterbody_region:US-FL in Summerlin Park (commonly, yet mistakenly, called Lake Eola Park). The lake is actually a sinkhole and it is famous for its fountain. The sinkhole is located north of the fountain and goes to a depth of approximately 80 feet. The fountain changes colors at night like a light show and in the daytime it looks like a UFO landed in the pond. The lake is 4,529 feet in circumference and 23 acres large. A convert|0.85|mi|km|sing=on multi-use sidewalk circles the water.

The lake is surrounded by four streets:

* East Robinson Street (State Road 526)
* Rosalind Avenue (SR 527)
* East Central Boulevard
* North Eola Drive

History

The park and pond were established in 1888 when the first parcel of land, the first of many that were donated to the City of Orlando by several different families. The area was officially declared as a park in 1892. Oddly, at times, the park was a zoo, a horse race track, tennis courts, a pier with a dance area, and music broadcast by a local radio station. The fountain was installed in 1912 with a cost of $10,000 dollars. A replacement, originally dubbed the "Millennium Fountain," was installed in 1957 with a cost of $350,000 dollars.

Hours

6:00 am to midnight (12:00 am)

Events

"Spin City Classic": March - Spring time sanctioned professional and amateur bicycle racing on the streets around the park.

"Fiesta in the Park": (Hours 10:00 am - 5:00 pm both days) - First full weekend in November and in April - (600) Booth Arts/Crafts Show, entertainment and food, It's a great time to obtain hand made gifts for the holidays.

"Fire Works Over the Fountain": July 4th celebration entertainment and food start 4:00 pm and fire works after dark.

Drought

In 2007, Lake Eola seemed to be experiencing a drought, where the water level drastically decreased. This is confirmed as the small rental boats cannot be taken out on the lake and the underside of the fountain can be seen. Service crews had to partially drain the lake that year to perform maintenance on the drainage surrounding systems. The lake has since returned to normal levels via rainwater runoff.

ee also

*Downtown Orlando
*Orlando, Florida
*Pond