A divided Town Council has approved a revised plan to renovate the historic Paramount Theatre building for use as a private club with a large single-family residence, a cafe, church and retail space.
Council members Lew Crampton, Ted Cooney and Bridget Moran were in the majority in the 3-2 vote of approval at the council’s development review meeting on Wednesday, January 14.
The decision occurred roughly 18 months after the council initially voted to deny WEG Paramount’s application to open a much larger version of the club in the landmarked building at 139 N. County Road.
Building owner Lester Woerner scaled back the original plan in the face of objections from the council and residents concerned about noise, site density, parking and traffic congestion in the neighborhood.
The plan before the council at Wednesday’s meeting reduces the club from 475 members to 175, limits the hours the club will be open, and adds a public café and a single-family residence on the second and third floors of the building. It also includes a church and retail uses. The club will be limited to the first floor.
Council member Lew Crampton said Woerner has demonstrated a willingness to work with the town to address concerns about the density of use in his redevelopment plans.
Crampton also noted that the aging building needs renovation.
“This proposal has changed radically,” Crampton said. “We beat this man up to get from an underground parking garage and a club with 475 members to where we are today. A major compromise has been made.”
Council President Bobbie Lindsay and council member Julie Araskog voted in the minority, citing concerns about impacts to the neighborhood.
Lindsay said the council was faced with a difficult decision, and that she leaned toward preserving the peace and quiet of the neighborhood.
Lindsay said a private club does not fit the intended purpose of the zoning district, which calls for small-scale retail and offices like those that are there now.
“The congestion and traffic, particularly in this neighborhood, has intensified over the last few years,” she said.
Residents continued to object to the club, to traffic and parking impacts, and to the size of the residence, where some have expressed concern that there will be large parties and spillover from the club.
Resident Rob Spatt said the council was correct when it initially rejected the plan. He said the Paramount has not submitted a parking plan and continues to rely on “phantom parking spaces” to support the uses called for in Woerner’s plan.
“The right decision is to reject this proposal and preserve our neighborhood,” Spatt said.
James Crowley, the attorney representing Woerner, said the building will be “half residential” with a club that won’t be open during the day, including hours when traffic is at a peak.
“We’re listening to you all,” Crowley said. “We’ve presented a project that is scaled down. Lester [Woerner] has rights. He has constitutional rights and he has rights under your code.”
Crowley and Woerner have said they are offering a workable plan to renovate and preserve the century-old building that is one of the town’s historic and architectural treasures.
“If you want to have a viable business plan to save this building, we are doing it in the least intrusive way that we can,” Crowley said. “What we are presenting is better than what is there now.”
The town and Woerner still must hammer out terms of a declaration-of-use agreement that will spell out operational guidelines for the site. Terms of the agreement are expected to be considered by the council at its meeting on February 11.
One of the main issues to be addressed is the number of events the club will be permitted to host each month. Woerner proposes four per month, but some residents and council members said that is too many.
The use agreement is also expected to address consideration of a separate entrance for the single-family residence; safety measures for pedestrians and cars entering and leaving the property; and determination of a location for ride-sharing services to help mitigate traffic and parking impacts.
With a total of 35,992 square feet — including an extensive courtyard patio and rooftop decks — the Paramount stands on a 1.3-acre lot. Woerner and his son Trent Woerner bought the property in 2021 for $14 million.
The theater opened as a movie house in 1927 and closed in 1980. The auditorium was gutted and the building converted into an office and retail complex in the 1980s. The Palm Beach Civic Association and Palm Beach Police and Fire Foundation are among the building’s tenants.
Topped by a dome, the Paramount was designed in 1926 by Austrian architect Joseph Urban, who created scenery for Florence Ziegfeld’s stage productions in New York and later Hollywood film sets. In Palm Beach, he designed the original Bath & Tennis Club and contributed to the design of Mar-a-Lago.
The Paramount was designated a town landmark in 1982.
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