Category: Lakeland, FL

Dixieland- Lakeland’s first “Suburb”

Dixieland like East Lake Morton and South Lake Morton, also contains a historic district that was designated in 1994. The Dixieland neighborhood was originally an area of 160 acres developed by Henry Bascum Carter and C. W. Deen in 1907. IT was referred to by the local press as a fashionable Lakeland suburb. The neighborhood really started filling in during the Florida housing boom of the 1920s with development ending around WWII.

For Lakeland standards, this is a solid inner city district. But East Lake Morton and South Lake Morton are much better urban districts. Dixieland’s best assets are its proximity to Dwtn, housing affordability, decent retail and cultural amenities thanks to Florida Avenue, and low levels of crime and vacancy. Dixieland has even lower density than East Lake/South Lake Morton, mediocre transit access, limited rental housing, hit or miss sidewalk and ADA infrastructure, limited bike lanes, and few walkable schools. Like East Lake/South Morton, Dixieland would greatly benefit from increased density but a change in mindset towards less car dependency would also greatly benefit the district.

Click here to view my Dixieland Album on Flickr

URBAN STRENGTHS:

* Solid historic residential buildings from the early 20th century. Some decent historic commercial architecture too.
*  Decent tree canopy.
* Most residents are only 1 mile from Dwtn.
* While there are really no 1-beds available plenty of 2 & 3 bedrooms with a good amount of affordable options ranging btwn 100K-350K. 3 & 4 beds sell for btwn 200K-600K.
* Solid park amenities including a couple medium sized parks and a nice rec trail along Lake Hunter.
* Solid historic residential buildings from the early 20th century. Some decent historic commercial architecture too.
* Decent tree canopy.
* Ok cultural amenities including several restaurants & bars, a couple cafes and the Pink Piano Bar. Also convenient access to Dwtn’s cultural amenities.
* Decent Retail amenities include a drug store, some boutiques & gift stores, an antique store, a local bookstore, a couple dessert joints, a local gym & church, and a couple health centers.
* Some low level crime issues but overall a pretty safe community with limited vacancy.

URBAN WEAKNESSES:

* Ok public transit access. Better the closer one gets to Dwtn.
* Decent amount of rentals. Only a handful of 1-beds the rent around 1K. More 2-beds that lease in the 1Ks. 3-beds lease for around 2K. Really no dedicated affordable housing options in the district.
* 6.0 Sidewalk and ADA curb cuts are hit or miss with pedestrian infrastructure deteriorating the further west you go in the district.
* Bike infrastructure largely doesn’t exist.
* Not great walkable schools. Several elementary/middle schools but all located on the edge of the district with mixed rating. No walkable high school.
* Population density is more on par with a post WWII suburb. 

East Lake Morton & South Lake Morton Historic Districts- Lakeland’s best Urban Neighborhoods

Both the East Lake Morton and South Lake Morton neighborhoods were designated as historic districts helping to preserved limited early 20th century residential architecture mostly consisting of bungalows and Arts & Crafts from the 1920s & 1930s. There are also examples of Victorian, Queen Anne, and Spanish Revival homes These neighborhoods by far, contain the best concentration of early 20th century architecture in Lakeland. From an urban perspective the density of the districts isn’t great but the neighborhoods are no more than 1.5 miles from Dwtn Lakeland with solid public transit and walking paths. The districts also boast decent housing diversity & affordability, good cultural amenities, solid tree canopy and high levels of safety.

Florida Ave forms the only consistent urban business district on the western edge of the South Lake Morton Historic District and it is a mixture of quality urban form and semi-auto centric form. Some mixed-use streets in East Lake Morton but no solid urban biz district here. At least the neighborhood is super convenient to Downtown. The neighborhood could use much better bike infrastructure, more walkable schools, better retail amenities, and a lot more density (which would make the aforementioned items more feasible). 

Click to view my East Lake Morton and South Lake Morton Historic District on Flickr

URBAN STRENGTHS:

* Excellent sidewalks and ADA curb in East Lake Morton. More hit or missing in Southern Lake Morton with some streets even without sidewalks.
* Downtown is no more than 1.5 miles away from the furthest points of the district and a very comfortable walk from Easter Lake Morton.
* The parts of the district closest to Dwtn have great public transit but this quickly drops off the further dwtn one is.
* Overall very safe communities esp. Southern Lake Morton.
* Attractive early 20th century architecture with a lot of variety in styles.
* Solid urban canopy esp. in Southern Lake Morton.
* Medium Income is a bit on the higher end but still a decent amount of income diversity.
* Decent rental options with a fair amount a 1-beds lease btwn 1K-1.5K, 2-beds btwn 1.5K-2K but 3-beds are limited. Some affordable rentals concentrated in East Lake Morton.
* Limited small condo options but decent amount of  2 beds sell btwn 200K-550K. Very diverse price point for 3 & 4 bedroom homes running anywhere from 200K-800K and some options for around 1 M
* Cultural amenities including a decent amount of restaurants, bars, cafes, and a couple breweries. The district also includes several museums (mostly art), a handful of theaters and live music, and the cultural amenities from Florida Southern College. Good access to the cultural amenities of Dwtn as well.

URBAN WEAKNESSES:

* So so density but not bad for a Florida urban district.
* Bike infrastructure is essentially non-existent.
* So so pedestrian activity.
* Decent residential infill but some unattractive autocentric bldgs along Florida Ave & S. Ingraham.
* Urban massing is hit or miss along Florida Ave. Urban massing is solid along residential streets.
* Decent diversity in East Lake Morton with sizable Hispanic and Black populations but Southern Lake Morton is mostly White.
* Parks are a bit limited but residents do have convenient access to three lakes (i.e. Morton, Mirror, and Hollingsworth. Nice recreation path surrounding Lakes Hollingsworth and Morton. Barnett Family Park is an excellent more formal park in East Lake Morton.
* Ok access to schools including several small elementary schools of mixed ratings. Now walkable high schools.
* So so retail amenities including some boutiques  & gift stores, a couple antiques, banks, a pharmacy, a couple bookstores, several dessert stores, a couple gyms, a handful of churches