Updated plan for Paramount Theatre in Palm Beach fails to win over neighbors

The yearslong effort to redevelop the historic Paramount Theatre in Palm Beach remains stuck in neutral.

At its development review meeting Wednesday, the Town Council agreed for a second time to delay consideration of the project following discussion that ran for more than five hours and included dozens of comments from residents who oppose or support it.

In a unanimous vote, council members told the project's development team to return next month with modified plans that would incorporate suggestions that were made throughout the meeting, which grew testy at times as attorneys for property owner Lester Woerner and nearby neighbors sparred over competing traffic studies, occupancy numbers and other elements of the controversial project.

Council Member Julie Araskog urged the attorneys to meet before next month's meeting to try and find common ground.

"I'm hoping that all of you will come back together, find a compromise, and bring it to us," she said. "And I know that's both sides."

Redevelopment plans presented Wednesday were heavily modified from those submitted previously to the Landmarks Preservation Commission and the Town Council, which voted in January to defer a decision on the project after voicing concerns about traffic, building heights, proposed uses and more.

Woerner, who along with his son, Trent, bought the nearly century-old Paramount property in 2021, eliminated the most controversial elements of the project, including four, multi-story townhomes that were to be built on the current parking lot, and an underground parking garage with 162 spaces.

Woerner also dropped 18 of the previously requested 20 variances, leaving in place one for a roof-top generator, and one for mechanical screening to exceed the height permitted by town code.

There is no retail component in the new plans, which originally called for two public-facing restaurants, a 250-seat event space, and retail on the first floor of the three houses that would face North County Road.

Currently, the Paramount counts 16 tenants, including offices that house the Palm Beach Police & Fire Foundation and the Palm Beach Civic Association.

Changes to the plans were made because of objections raised by residents and neighbors, said James Crowley, an attorney with the Gunster law firm and a representative of the project's development team.

"We got so much pushback from the neighborhood on traffic and parking that we are proposing the bare minimum of what is allowed under the code without creating any additional traffic impacts," he told council members. "When we were here last time, we heard some people coming up and asking why this would be approved if we can't come in and use it. We made every effort to try and get additional uses approved. At this time, no one wants those uses to be approved, from what we've heard in the neighborhood."

While redevelopment of the property's parking lot was nixed in the new plans, the restoration of the former 1,250-seat Paramount Theatre remained mostly intact, though its use will change.

The 40,000-square-foot building on the southeast corner of North County Road and Sunrise Avenue is proposed to be used as a private social club with a membership of 475, according to plans. Members would be selected to ensure that more than 50% are residents to satisfy the island's "town-serving" requirement. The maximum occupancy at any given time would not exceed 412 people.

The renovated theater area also would continue to host Sunday morning church services for up to 200 attendees.

Many residents who spoke at Wednesday's meeting voiced support for Woerner's efforts to redevelop the nearly century-old theater, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and once hosted performers such as George Gershwin, Al Jolson, Will Rogers and Billie Burke.

"It's a stunning, re-adaptive use of a building that needs it," said Martin Klein, a longtime Palm Beach resident and former chairman of the town's Planning and Zoning Commission. "Rarely do we see a project that comes before this council with no variances, or in this case two de minimus variances. I commend them for doing that. I strive to preserve our heritage, because I want to pass it along to my child. I think this does that."

Others spoke against the plans, saying the proposed application was a 'clear and obvious' intensification of the property's use and would strain nearby street and parking resources.

"This project is fraught with peril for the safety and tranquility of our quiet residential neighborhood," said Jerry Zaro, president of the Sun and Surf 100 building's association. The Sun and Surf buildings are directly to the east of the Paramount.

While council members expressed similar concerns, noting that it was important to be able to control traffic in the area, they also voiced support for reinstating a retail component to the plans as well as a small restaurant.

"We'd like to produce something that makes sense for the community, for the town, that poses the least amount of disruption to the neighborhood," council member Bobbie Lindsay said. "I'm … concerned about the fact that the way this is currently configured, the whole building is cut off."

Another sticking point for the council was the number of members proposed for the private club. Council members balked at the current proposal of 475, citing potential impacts on traffic and parking.

Council member Lew Crampton said he would be willing to consider a 300-member private club, noting that the council approved 225 members in its declaration of use agreement with the Carriage House social club after its operators asked for 350.

"We said that they were going to operate the Carriage House according to the declaration of use that set some pretty strict standards on regulating and modifying the impacts of that facility or on the neighborhood," Crampton said. "And, we added a number of other things there so that the impact of that club would not create a major problem. In fact, it hasn't."

Other council members went further in advocating for reductions in club membership, suggesting numbers as low as 200. Woerner expressed frustration with those proposals and urged the council to be reasonable in its consideration of the project.

"This property is three times the size of the Carriage House," he said. "Three times. And it's a $35 to $40 million investment to stand it back up. Are we going to let the thing fall?"

Though she had reservations about traffic, parking and other potential impacts of redevelopment, Mayor Danielle Moore agreed with Woerner that it was critical to begin work soon before the building deteriorated further.

"We've sat here, and we watched the North Fire Station and we've watched the Playhouse," she said, referencing two major redevelopment projects that required far more demolition than expected. "And I have to tell you, I see the same thing happening with the Paramount. It's older. It's in worse condition, and I have some concerns that if something doesn't start happening soon, that whole place is going to fall apart and the town may have egg on their faces."

Jodie Wagner is a journalist at the Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at jwagner@pbdailynews.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: New plan for Paramount Theatre in Palm Beach fails to sway neighbors