LAKE WORTH’S STUDIO 205 GETS NEW ADDRESS
LAKE WORTH — Studio 205, the gift and novelty shop off Lake Ave., is getting a new address.
The shop, owned by Vice Mayor Andy Amoroso, has been at 600 Lake Ave. for 24 years. Today it moves to an 800-square foot space at 410 N. Second Ave., home of the old Mother Earth Sanctuary and The Art Studio Cafe.
“I’m very excited, very stressed,” Amoroso said at Tuesday’s Lake Worth Commission meeting. “But it’ll be a great thing.”
Amoroso didn’t answer several calls from The Palm Beach Post to talk more about his relocation.
Patti Sheldon, Amoroso’s new landlord, said she’s looking forward to the move.
“It’ll be good for the northeast corner of Lake Worth,” Sheldon said. “That corner is a gateway into downtown.”
Amoroso told The Post this year he’s moving because his rent is increasing about 60 percent.
His former landlord, Ariana Peters, a managing partner at Peters Development, a company that owns more than 40 downtown Lake Worth properties, raised Amoroso’s rent from $2,400 a month to $3,850 a month. The total rent will be $4,200 when sales taxes are added.
In June, Doug Peters, Ariana’s father, called Amoroso a great tenant but added he was stuck in the past on his old rent after Peters Development paid $675,000 for the site in 2016, according to the Palm Beach County Property Appraiser’s website.
“When we moved in, we honored his rent.” Doug said. “We didn’t want to shock him, but now the girls are renting spaces all around him ... and they’re paying the current value. It’s really unfair to us and it’s unfair to everyone for him to be paying a rate you can’t get in Kansas.”
Amoroso told The Post this year there was nothing he could do about the increase.
“The landlord owns the building, but I’m not happy,” he said.
Sheldon did not say how much rent Amoroso will be paying at his new location.
Amoroso has said downtown is changing, citing his relocation and Starbucks moving to North Dixie Highway and Second Avenue North.
Since that time, Callaro’s Steak House was sold for $1.4 million and shut down for the summer; Blue Front closed July 4 and became a catering business; and Saito’s Restaurant closed its doors.
“We’re the eyes on the street,” he said. “We’re (Studio 205 and Starbucks) two large anchors downtown. The move is going to change the whole look of downtown.”
But two new business recently opened in Lake Worth, Solid Image Tattoo Co. at 603 Lake Ave., and NoDoSo, an art gallery and event space that opened at 609 Lake Ave.
But Amoroso said he’s looking forward to Monday.
“It does truly take a community, and hopefully, you’ll come visit,” he said.