Westcourt site Credit: Courtesy Turner

The developers behind Westcourt Orlando, the ambitious mixed-use project slated for West Church Street in downtown Orlando, announced Wednesday, April 22, that Turner Construction is officially their construction partner.

Todd Chapman, president of San Francisco-based JMA Ventures, tells Orlando Weekly that one early meeting helped solidify the choice.

Turner’s team was walking through its recent work, project by project, when Chapman noticed a pattern. Several members had been involved in complex builds along Florida’s Space Coast, coordinating with engineers and infrastructure tied to rocket launches.

“If you guys can send things into space,” Chapman recalled telling them, “I’m pretty sure you can work with us and build this project.”

The announcement formalizes a relationship that has been in place for roughly two years. Turner has been involved in pre-construction for Westcourt since 2022, working alongside JMA Ventures and Machete Group as the project’s design, budgeting and logistics took shape.

Now, the developers say the project is beginning to move into its next phase.

Turner recently commenced early site activity, according to the team, including work intended to prepare the Church Street property for future construction. That activity, while not yet visible as vertical building, is being described as an early indicator of forward momentum.

“We recently have started some early enabling work on site,” says Jeff Justen, vice president and general manager of Turner’s Orlando Business Unit. “That includes utility mapping, surveying, laying out test piles for the deep foundation program. These initial activities set the project up for success as we move toward full mobilization.”

The update comes as the project has faced questions about delays and timing.

Westcourt, a roughly 900,000-square-foot mixed-use development planned just north of the Kia Center, was previously expected to break ground earlier. However, the timeline shifted as developers worked through financing and broader market conditions, including volatility in construction pricing and lending environments.

For Chapman, bringing Turner into the process early was intentional.

Rather than finalize a design and then hand it off to a builder, the development team engaged a small group of contractors at the outset, seeking input as decisions were being made.

“We don’t want to design in a vacuum,” Chapman says. “We want people who have been through building these kinds of projects at the table as we’re thinking about design and business planning.”

Turner entered the process under a pre-construction agreement, with the understanding that the firm would need to earn the general contractor role over time, says Chapman.

“They rolled up their sleeves,” Chapman says. “They helped us think through decisions on what is a very complex, multi-layered project. And ultimately, they earned the right to be our contractor.”

The decision, he says, came down to the team.

“It’s not the brand on the door,” Chapman says. “It’s the people who are actually going to execute. We felt really good about Jeff and the entire group.”

Turner brings experience from large-scale mixed-use and sports-adjacent developments across the country, including projects tied to major arenas and entertainment districts. In Orlando, the company has operated for more than 40 years.

The scope of Westcourt is significant. The $500 million development is expected to include a hotel, residential units, office space, retail and a live entertainment venue, forming a new district directly adjacent to the city’s primary arena, the Kia Center.

During construction, Justen says the project could support roughly 800 workers on site at peak, or about 1,600 direct construction jobs over the life of the project, with additional impact across suppliers and related industries. Many subcontractors are expected to come from the Central Florida market, he added, with work packages structured to allow participation across different project components.

For Chapman, the scale and complexity of Westcourt are part of what drew his firm to the opportunity. A former attorney, he describes his approach as rooted in problem-solving.

“We are drawn to complexity,” he says. “We like putting these puzzles together.”

That perspective, he says, informed both the development strategy and the choice of partners.

Chapman and Justen did not share details about a definitive groundbreaking date.

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