Coconut Grove Playhouse - Frequently Asked Questions

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Miami-Dade County and its partner Florida International University (FIU) entered into a long-term lease agreement with the State of Florida in 2014 to bring great theater back the Coconut Grove Playhouse. The County approved $21.6 million for the project and authorized an agreement for architectural and engineering services with an outstanding team, led by Arquitectonica and including noted historic preservation architect Jorge Hernandez, renowned theater consultants Fisher Dachs Associates, and expert cost consultants, Venue, a firm specializing in capital cost estimates for theaters. The resulting project is an elegant campus with the historic front building on Main Highway restored faithfully to its 1927 design, a new, state-of-the-art 300-seat theater that incorporates the remaining historic elements of the original theater (e.g., the double proscenium arch, Solomonic columns, etc.), a garage with its facades attractively lined with offices facing Main Highway and the residential neighborhood to the north, and plazas, promenades, lush landscaping and a pocket park. As designed, the Coconut Grove Playhouse pays homage to its architectural heritage and respects the pedestrian nature and village scale of the Grove. The facts on the Coconut Grove Playhouse project are available below.

THE WORK UNDERWAY

What’s been done?

What is being done now?

300 SEATS IS RIGHT-SIZED

Why the Playhouse failed

Seating size

The impact of a bigger theater

More seats = the certainty of more cost, without the certainty of more revenue.

Leading experts on right-sizing the theater

Other 300-seat theaters in Miami-Dade County

Is a larger theater contemplated?

RESPECTING THE HISTORY OF THE PLAYHOUSE

The historic designation of the property

The history of the site and the new theater

The façade of the new theater

          The status of the application for the National Register of Historic Places

Understanding the historic status of the Coconut Grove Playhouse property

YEARS OF PUBLIC PROCESS TO GET TO PROGRESS

The public review process

The terms of the lease with the State

The selection of the design team led by Arquitectonica

GABLESTAGE – OUR REGIONAL THEATER

Who is GableStage

How GableStage was selected to manage and operate the new theater

GableStage’s financial viability

GableStage's IRS filings

GableStage’s rent payments to the Biltmore

A sustainable business plan and updates in progress

Joe Adler and beyond

The success of the new theater

The company's name

The type of theater done by GableStage

Education and FIU

Other activities at the new Playhouse

Regional theater

Kevin Spacey

FUNDING: FACTS AND TRUTHS

Secured funding for the project

The uses of County funding

Major grant awarded by the Knight Foundation

No County funds to build or operate the garage

Use of funds from the garage development

The fee to Arquitectonica and its design team

Encumbrances resolved on the property’s title

$500,000 grant applied for from the State Division of Historical Resources

Support from the State’s Division of Historical Resources

The City of Miami’s recently approved bond program

THE DESIGN WORKS

Real progress on the Playhouse project

The latest drawings

Theater is the main focus of the project

Benefits to the residential neighborhood and West Grove

The existing Playhouse auditorium chamber and a state-of-the-art theater

Update on the garage

The modest size of the “commercial” elements for the project

Responsibility for building and operating the garage and related components

The entrance to the garage

Studio theater versus a proscenium theater

NEXT STEPS: RETURNING GREAT THEATER TO THE GROVE

Project completion

The real deadline

State of Florida Office of Inspector General (OIG) Audit

Hurdles ahead

The Appellate Division of the 11th circuit Court unanimously rules in favor of the County

Public support for the County's plan

How to stay in touch with progress

 

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