RIVIERA BEACH, Fla. — The city of Riviera Beach is working on upgrading its Marina Village. It is a vision that has been in the works for years.
"This dates back to February 2018 the city of Riviera Beach has been working to look to create a destination place here in Riviera Beach," City Manager Jonathan Evans said.
Evans said it's a $200 million project at the core of his city's future, a catalyst for growth.
"We're looking at restaurants. We're looking at housing. We're looking at destination retail," he said.
The Riviera Beach Community Redevelopment Agency met Wednesday to map out what's next for the marina project, giving the developer clear direction.
"Now we're going to look into subsequent phases, looking at a parking study, how much parking would be needed," he said.
That's in addition to a housing study on what mix of housing is useful to the community.
"It's wonderful. It gives jobs. It's a beautiful thing," said Patrick McGowen, who has a business down the road.
He said he's all for the project making the area a waterfront destination.
"I like building anything, yeah build," he said.
Evans said once the studies are finished, they'll begin to structure the deal. He's hoping to have shovels breaking ground in eight to 12 months.