Conway corner sees change after shooting

By Ryan Gillespie

After a January shooting that left two dead outside a Conway smoke shop, neighbors feared crime was gaining a grip on their community.

Some blamed the 407 Smoke Shop, which took over a gas station at Conway and Curry Ford roads in southeast Orlando, and a food truck that parked outside and operated until 4 a.m.

“We were very concerned about what Conway was becoming,” said Carol Cozad, who has lived in the area for more than two decades.

But after a second community meeting, and assurances from Orlando commissioners that change was on the way, some of the angst has subsided. Since the first January meeting, the Piñones en Orlando-Guaguita food truck has moved to a new location, which means fewer people hanging out late at night.

Commissioner Jim Gray, whose district includes the intersection, said he’s going to suggest amending an existing law to prohibit smoke shops that sell drug paraphernalia from the neighborhood and food trucks from operating between midnight and 6 a.m. City code already prohibits tattoo parlors, bail bondsmen and fortune tellers nearby.

“What we heard from the neighbors is the area had started to slip a bit,” he said. “We wanted to concentrate on the food truck and the smoke shop.”

Gray’s proposal will allow 407 Smoke Shop to remain in business, but if it ever shuts down, a new one couldn’t move in.

Several attempts to reach the shop’s owner by phone were unsuccessful, and an employee at the store declined to let a reporter speak with the owner. Inside the shop, patrons can purchase items such as bongs and rolling papers advertised for tobacco use, as well as beer and wine.

The plan came together with input from code enforcement, police and commissioners Patty Sheehan and Tony Ortiz, whose districts are near the intersection.

It must be approved by the City Council, and Gray said he could formally bring it forward within two months after a review by city staff and attorneys.

Late at night, residents reported that customers lined up for the food truck and at flea-marketstyle tables where trinkets were on sale in the parking lot.

“The owner of the food truck is a wonderful gentleman … the problem is, the parking space was too small,” said Ortiz, a retired police officer who used to patrol the area. “The second thing is, he couldn’t control what kind of clientele he was getting.”

Since the truck moved on, “it immediately was cleaned up,” Cozad said.

After the Jan. 3 shooting that left Ramon Rivera and Orlando Perez dead, police arrested Ray David Robles-Rivera and charged him with two counts of seconddegree murder. They have not released a motive.

Orlando Police Capt. Jose Velez, who oversees the department’s 88 sworn officers assigned to the east region, said a warrant has been issued for a second suspect who fled the country.

Since Jan. 1, 2017, police have responded to the business 15 times, including four calls report-