Boca could lose Mizner Amphitheater
Developer wants to make a land swap deal
One of Florida’s largest condo developers wants to replace Boca’s Mizner Park Amphitheater with 300 to 400 luxury apartments or condos, restaurants and a parking garage.
But in exchange, the Related Group is courting the city with an offer: The company would fund and build the city a 1,500-plus-seat performing arts center and parking garage near City Hall.
The Miami-based company wants a 3.6-acre portion of Mizner Park, including the 1.8-acre amphitheater lot, plus an empty lot to the east, according to their latest proposal.
“I think that’s something that works to the benefit of everyone,” said William Shewalter, Related’s vice president of development. “A nice performing arts center would be a positive for the community.”
The offer comes as the city considers the idea of building a new performing arts center as part of a planned overhaul to public facilities. The new place would be indoors and likely near City Hall, but plans are contingent on whether council members decide to rearrange their buildings.
The amphitheater has served as Boca’s main performance space since it opened in 2002.
Rock and Roll Hall of Famer John Mellencamp played there in June. Pop icon Boy George, singer Akon and a slew of tribute bands have taken the stage, too.
On any given week, residents can also catch movie nights, luncheons and charity events at the open-air stage that sits on the north end of Mizner Park.
“Our community loves our amphitheater, and I wouldn’t give that up lightly,” Boca Raton Mayor Susan Haynie said.
Without a replacement venue, Haynie said she can’t consider getting rid of the space, much less approving an apartment complex.
Still, a lack of a back-up plan did not stop City Council members last month from directing staff look into what Related was offering. Councilwoman Andrea O’Rourke said while she also approved that staff talk to Related, she’s hoping the city could have both a new performing arts hub and retain the “ambience” that the amphitheater brings to downtown.
“I don’t want to pass up any opportunity,” O’Rourke said.
Boca took over the facility in 2010 from the Schmidt Family Center for the Arts. A legal spat between the Center for the Arts and their contracted concert promoter Live Nation left the stage empty of shows for months and the facility soon fell into disrepair.
The proposed development would be Related’s first project in Boca. But it comes as at least a dozen other residential buildings crop up, or are upcoming, in the city’s downtown.
Haynie said while the city is nearing its decades-old goal of redeveloping 8 million square feet of downtown space, there could be space for another project.