The popular pedestrian path on the beach side of Ocean Boulevard is set for a $3 million update, with new seating areas, lighting, showers and walkways to the sand.
The Delray Beach City Commission recently approved a contract with a Fort Lauderdale design firm, which plans to give the 1.3-mile promenade a contemporary appearance that planners hope will improve beachgoer access and decrease visitor confusion.
“We want to clean it up, reorganize it, and give it a fresh look,” said Jeff Suiter, a principal at EDSA architecture and planning firm. “We hope to get rid of the visual clutter and create more of a cohesive vision.”
The plan likely will include new gazebos for relaxation and ocean viewing, and new lighting, benches, trash receptacles, showers, parking meters and signs. Designers also are looking at widening the 9-foot sidewalk.
“The common thread (is that) all improvements will be understated to blend with the natural beauty,” Mayor Cary Glickstein said. “It would be nice to have people come back to town this season and think, ‘Wow, I’ve never seen the beach looking better,’ but not put their finger on what it is that’s so different.”
The city has set aside $3 million for the face-lift, which has been planned for about eight years. Trash cans along the promenade are at least 20 years old; showers are at least 30 years old, according to John Morgan, the city’s environmental services director.
The showers are undependable and often clogged with mushy sand from rinsed-off feet. Suiter said there are many ways to modernize the showers, including combining them with drinking fountains, water-bottle refills, a place for dogs to drink and hooks for hanging beach chairs.
Some beach-area residents, frustrated by the city’s lack of beach renovation money a few years ago, organized their own campaign and paid $60,000 to help replace the decaying beach pavilion at A1A and Atlantic Avenue in 2014. The pavilion is a replica of a city beach structure built in 1929. Two new gazebos that match the pavilion are set to be included in the renovation plan, paid for in part with a $40,000 donation received by beach property owners, said Bob Victorin, president of the Beach Property Owners Association.
Victorin said the beach has a sophisticated dune system that protects the city during storms. The association wants the sand and sea grapes to be highly visible to pedestrians as part of the proposed plan.
“We want the beach to be more open and natural-looking,” Victorin said. “We want lots of exposure to the ocean views that people clamor for.”
Victorin also said he hopes the plan improves signage along the walkway. Suiter agreed that better signs would help visitors figure out where the paths are in relation to the beach’s amenities, including parking, water fountains and benches.
If the commission approves the details of the plan in the coming weeks, construction is set to begin in July with completion planned for the end of 2016.
