Commissioners back a major Coleman Park rebuild
Commissioners backed Coleman Park land transfers, waterfront and cemetery plans drew pushback, GreenMarket wraps, and Kravis has a busy week ahead.
Commissioners back a major Coleman Park rebuild
The city approved support for four land transfers tied to affordable housing and neighborhood investments.
West Palm Beach commissioners voted 5-0 this week to support a public-private partnership with Palm Beach Venture Philanthropy, a division of the Quantum Foundation, aimed at reshaping Coleman Park and the Tamarind Avenue corridor. The city is conveying four city-owned parcels to the nonprofit at no cost, with reverter protections that return the land if milestones are not met. The plan calls for three affordable and workforce housing projects, plus other community investments in one of the city's historic Black neighborhoods.
Raphael Clemente told commissioners the organization plans to return with a construction site plan within 18 months, followed by permitting and financing before any groundbreaking. The nonprofit says it has already put nearly $9 million into Coleman Park, including housing, health programs, building preservation and a $500,000 contribution to the planned African-American Museum and Research Library at the former Roosevelt High School site.
The longer-term plan is not just housing. The WLRN report says future pieces include a fresh market, shared office space, a cultural yard, community gathering space and the Taylor Moxey Library. That mix is what makes the vote larger than a routine land item: if the milestones hold, the city has started the clock on a multi-piece neighborhood rebuild rather than a single parcel deal.
Early waterfront mock-ups show the Lake Pavilion gone
The city says the visuals are early-stage and no decision has been made on the event center.
A downtown waterfront redevelopment proposal would remove the city-owned Lake Pavilion, according to mock-ups the city published and records WPTV obtained. The broader vision shown in those materials includes a large park, pier restaurant, children's playground, sand volleyball courts, a waterfront promenade and a sloped lawn with an integrated amphitheater. It would also remove Flagler Drive between Banyan Boulevard and Fern Street.
The city is not treating the mock-ups as a final plan. A spokesperson told WPTV there was no decision regarding the event center and that it would be premature to draw conclusions from early-stage visuals; the city has paused the proposal to collect more community feedback. The concern is practical as much as sentimental: WPTV noted the Lake Pavilion is one of the few affordable event venues downtown, with the city website listing capacity around 250 people and a resident rental rate of about $300 an hour plus fees.
Woodlawn Cemetery plan draws pushback
Families and Commissioner Gregg Weiss objected to an event-space concept; the city says no complete application has been filed.
A proposal to revitalize Woodlawn Cemetery, including a proposed event space, has drawn criticism from County Commissioner Gregg Weiss and families with relatives buried there. Weiss said his office had received concerns, questioned the event-space concept and new access points described on the project website, and asked West Palm Beach leaders to take a formal stance against the plan.
Friends of Woodlawn told WPTV it would shift toward beautifying the cemetery and away from entertainment plans after resistance at a community meeting. The city said nothing official has been filed, no complete application has been submitted and the concept remains outside its formal review process. That is the clean read for now: the pushback is real, but there is not yet a filed city application for residents to track through normal agenda channels.
The last GreenMarket of the season is Saturday
The season closes May 30 at Waterfront Commons after its largest and longest run.
The final West Palm Beach GreenMarket of the season runs Saturday, May 30, from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at Waterfront Commons. DowntownWPB calls this the largest and longest season in the market's 31-year history, with more than 150 vendors: 45 new additions, more than 100 returning vendors and 14 legacy vendors.
That makes this weekend less of a routine market stop and more of a seasonal cutoff. If you have been using the market for produce, prepared foods or a Saturday downtown loop, this is the last listed date before the summer break.
A big week at the Kravis Center
Dream Awards closes the local high school musical theater season, then Beetlejuice opens a six-day run.
The Kravis Center Dream Awards take place May 31 at 7 p.m. in the Alexander W. Dreyfoos Concert Hall, celebrating Palm Beach County high school musical theater and closing with a public showcase. Two students from the program will be nominated for the Jimmy Awards in New York City, which gives the evening a county-to-national pipeline beyond the usual awards-night format.
A few days later, Beetlejuice opens at the Kravis Center for a limited run from June 2 through June 7, with the first listed performance June 2 at 7:30 p.m. in Dreyfoos Hall. The musical is based on Tim Burton's film and follows Lydia Deetz after she meets a recently deceased couple and a striped demon. The useful planning detail is the run length: this is not a one-night stop, so check the Kravis schedule before picking a date.
A world-premiere thriller and two outdoor gatherings
Vineland Place closes May 31, while Blue Moon and Que Bacano add waterfront and downtown options.
Palm Beach Dramaworks' world premiere of Vineland Place runs through May 31. Written by Steven Dietz and directed by J. Barry Lewis, it is billed as an intimate thriller, with tickets listed at $75, $95 and $115. The closing date is the useful part: if it is on your list, the window is almost shut.
Outdoors, the Blue Moon Experience comes to Palm Beach Post Park at 315 S. Flagler Drive on May 31, with registration at 4:30 p.m. and the program from 5 to 8:30 p.m. The listing describes an open-air gathering centered on mindfulness, with movement, dance, breathwork, meditation, a closing circle and a mingle. Then on June 5, Que Bacano takes over Downtown West Palm Beach from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. for Latin dance and culture.
Two health-minded food names are on the coming-soon board
Naked Farmer lists a Tanger location for fall 2026; Garden Butcher lists West Palm Beach without an address or opening date.
Two healthy-eating names are pointing toward West Palm Beach, though neither should be treated as open yet. Naked Farmer lists a West Palm Beach location at Tanger, 1751 Palm Beach Lakes Blvd., marked Coming Fall '26, with a sign-up for opening updates. The company describes its food as chef-driven, farm-to-table plates built from seasonal ingredients sourced from nearby farms.
Garden Butcher also lists West Palm Beach as "Coming Soon," but the public page does not give a West Palm address or an opening date. That means it belongs in the watch-now, plan-later category. The concept centers on prepared foods and an all-day cafe built around clean, organic, local and seasonal ingredients, with grab-and-go options and catering listed as part of the model.