WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — CityPlace, the center of entertainment in downtown West Palm Beach for almost two decades, is getting a new name: Rosemary Square.
According to a news release, a five-year, $550 million investment will "transform CityPlace from a retail and entertainment center to a vibrant community and destination known as Rosemary Square."
The 72-acre Rosemary Square neighborhood transformation is set to offer more residences, retail, a new hotel and more arts and cultural programs.
"There are residents, there are workers, and then there are tourists that come to town and we want all of them to come here," said Gopal Rajegowda, Senior Vice President of Related Companies. "And we think with the new streetscape improvements with the landscaping and public art elements more people will want to come here."
On Saturday, the new "Main Street" of the neighborhood debuted on Rosemary Avenue between Okeechobee Boulevard and Hibiscus Street. The area now features wider, curbless sidewalks along with new landscaping.
This summer, a 300,000 square-foot office building called "360 Rosemary" will break ground, creating 6 million square feet of office space.
Over the next five years, Rosemary Square developers say they will also add a 21-story, mixed-use tower to include luxury residences and commercial space, along with a second hotel adjacent to the Hilton West Palm Beach.
New restaurants and retail will open in 2019 including:
- Sur La Table will unveil a retail and cooking school in the winter of 2019
- 6,000 square-foot, True Food Kitchen with seasonally-inspired fare
- Tacos & Hip Hop, a food and music taqueria
- High Dive, a seafood restaurant featuring locally-sourced fish and produce
- A new location will be unveiled for The Shack by Field of Greens, a healthy food option that first debuted on the square in 2017
- Barrio Sangria Bar, a sangria and tapas restaurant
But some businesses downtown worry all the construction will hurt their bottom lines.
"Pretty soon they are going to tear down the Macy's, and when they tear down Macy's all that dust will be flying around and fly in people's food, and I don't think my customers will like that," said Belinda Tam with Sweet Ginger Asian Bistro.
Construction is expected to be completed by 2021, but Tam questions if her business will be able to stay afloat.
"We can't lose money every month, 12 months out of the year," said Tam. "We need to make some money to cover what we loss in the Summer."
CityPlace opened in 2000, revitalizing an area of downtown West Palm Beach that had been a center of high crime.
