The Palm Beach Post from West Palm Beach, Florida • Page 8

THE PALM BEACH POST FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2000 Whatever you do, don't call it a mall What's open at CityPlace One restaurant and 31 stores will open this weekend. The rest will Frank Cerabino It's not a mall. It's not a mall. It's not a mall. Oh, hi.

I was just getting ready to begin my column about CityPlace, that big, beautiful ma. of shopping, apartment living, dining, and shopping in West Palm Beach. It's like Boca Raton's Mizner Park. On steroids. Today, CityPlace will open to the general public.

Thursday night, I was part of the specific public who got to gawk at this spectacular project which looks like a m- but is really well, it's really more of a theme park. RetailWorld. Everything's so perfect, you wonder if the place is actually real, or if maybe you're going to round the corner and find out this is just one big movie set for the sequel to Tlte Truman Show. Every so often, the clock on the top of FAO Schwarz bongs, and breaks into Munchkin-like song. "Welcome to our world of toys," it Absolutely love it And that's not the free hors d'oeuvres talking.

The last time I was in that neighborhood, it was to do a story about immigrants learning to speak English in the upstairs classrooms of the First United Methodist Church. The big church is still there. But it doesn't look old and neglected now. It looks perfect. Just beautiful, and almost real.

It's much better than the old church. The new church has been transformed into a performance space. And it's got a Starbucks and a Godiva chocolates shop on the ground floor. Hallelujah! Give me that old time mocha latte. "I look at this now as the center of Palm Beach County," the project's developer Ken Himmel said Thursday while explaining the significance of the project.

CityPlace, he said, will have echoing effects, spreading its influence wider and wider. I imagined this ever-expanding ma. project sweeping over landscape, spreading with it, its blending of Italian-inspired architecture with good, old-fashion American marketing. I came. I saw.

I used my credit card. Veni. Vidi. Visa. Thursday night, as we gathered around the south side of the church, the' big fountain splashed, the music swelled, and a bunch of spray-painted human statues men who didn't quite look real, either stood on pedestals, posing and preening in tiny bathing suits.

It's the future of America. And I say we all hop on board. Even if there are no roller coasters yet Let us browse together in the 78 stores, take in a movie, and eat at a fine restaurant Let us applaud the urban pio-t neers who will come to live in its shadow. The new urbanism. Or whatever it's called.

Just don't call it a m-. frankcerabinopbpost.com sings. Suddenly, I knew what was missing. A monorail. Maybe a few roller coasters, too.

Might as well go all the way. The Fern Street flume. The Sapodilla Scrambler. As I stood there on Rosemary Avenue, I could almost imagine fake cowboys having a pretend gun battle Frontierland-style, as they traded shots on the quaint balconies over Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn. Did I mention that the balcony plants come with automatic sprinklers installed? Don't get me wrong.

I love the place. It'll be one of the great areas in America' JENNIFER PODISStaff Photographer Part of the festivities the night before the grand ciniak, from Las Vegas, performed acrobatic bal-opening of CityPlace included a performance by ancing maneuvers on a platform in front of the Duo Design. Dariusz Wronski and Jaroslow Mar- fountain and The Harriet Himmel Gilman Theater. 3,025 free spaces in 3 public garages CityPlace shoppers should have no problem parking, with 3,025 free spaces available in the three public garages, organizers say. On Monday, 400 paid street parking spaces will be available with the opening of Rosemary Avenue, which will be closed this weekend for grand opening festivities.

Also beginning Monday, shoppers can use valet parking for $4 at the cultural center or take a free trolley ride that loops from the east end of Clematis Street to the center of CityPlace. open within the next few weeks, or, at the latest, by mid-December, when the movie theater debuts. STORES TO OPEN Tins WEEKEND Anchors Barnes Noble JMacy's Restaurants 'Hie Cheesecake Factory Children's wear (Jymboree Jacadi Grftscards Caswell Massey Celebrations 2 jouglas Cosmetics Uome furnishings Ahava Gallery Hal Harbour Gallery Kreiss Collection pottery Barn Williams-Sonoma Jewelry landau Collection Men's wear St uart Norman Menswear Optical te Shoes Kenneth Cole Specialty stores Rrookstone (Iliirardelli Soda Fountain and Chocolate Shop Godiva Toysgames h'AO Schwarz t'jisex clothing AX Armani Exchange Cutter Buck 1 iligues wear Ann Taylor Cache Flirt i ranceska Deux Micole Miller 'aim Produce iiwim 'N Sport STORES TO OPEN LATER Anchors Ivluvico CityPlace: 20-screen movie theater Wild Oats Gourmet Market restaurants 'Angelo Maxie's Steakhouse Dellagio Martini City Cellar Wine Bar and Grill Ixgal Sea Foods CityPlace Mezzanotte amayo lsunami Anthropologic 3 destination Palm Beach illuminations J.ome furnishings Hardware Jewelry City Gems Jiliblue Mayor's Jewelers lilver Edge "Men's wear Joggi -Hugo Boss Optical jyetems Sunglasses of Palm Beach Sfcoes Specialty stores Bang Olufsen "JJolufe Leather Starbucks Sporting goods k'tietton Sportsystems Toysgames Discovery Channel Unisex clothing Rhythm Clothiers Women's wear A Nose for Clothes J1CBG 5etsey Johnson Deborah James Grand Chase Boutique Lisa Todd Next Authentic White HouseBlack Market CITYPLACE From 1A who attended with her husband, Jack. "We've been to Paris. We've been to Munich.

We've never seen anything like this place." Laura Zung, who lives in the nearby El Cid neighborhood, watched CityPlace go up for nearly two years, keeping abreast of new details from a security guard. For her, CityPlace means an end to trips to The Gardens mall. This is where I live," she said. Palm Beach Gardens residents Ed and Victoria Dooley won't give up their hometown mall. But they said they'll come to CityPlace a couple of times a year.

Christmas at CityPlace Christmas at CityPlace already has Lisa Poe changing her plans. "We won't have to go to Fifth Avenue in New York anymore," she said. For Arvo Katajisto, CityPlace is home. He's glad hell be moving in when his townhome is ready in January. This is what this town has needed.

It's better than anything Boca has," he said. Thirty-one stores and one restaurant The Cheesecake Factory open this weekend, with restaurants Legal Sea Foods and Tamayo expected to follow next week. By the time Muvico's 20-screen movie theater debuts in mid-December, the number of stores and restaurants is expected to reach 70. Construction workers, who had worked through the night to finish on time, disappeared from the site Thursday. Work continued behind boarded storefronts.

The developers said they could have pushed the opening back a month, but it still would have been a rush to get done. The earlier deadline forced tenants to move more quickly. Bruce Macleod, who oversaw construction for developer Palladium, led off 20 minutes of speeches with "Welcome to City-Place. You can't believe how happy I am to see you standing there. This is the first quiet mo ment of the last few months.

For the developers New Yorkers Ken Himmel, lerrv O'Connor and Stephen Ross; and Miami builder Jorge Perez Thursday's party was a time to celebrate and give credit. Earlier, they recalled the nay- sayers. When Koss greeted former West Palm Beach Mayor Nancy Graham, he told her: Only you and I believed this could happen." Many locals doubted the de velopers could draw nationally known stores and restaurants to a mid-sized downtown like West Palm Beach. But the developers, who started work in October 1996, liked the area's economics, especially its spot as a gateway to Palm Beach. And they believed they could deliver something that had Retail Residential What they're saying about CityPlace This is not a mall.

I get so bristled when I hear people say I that. In America, we have been for so long mailed to death we: can't talk about our cities as real places. What we are about1 here is city HOWARD ELKUS CityPlace architect 'For the first time; walking around tonight, I felt like this might be a city and not just another, mall. This just might SUSAN CHANCE West Palm Beach resident 'Every time you turn a corner, you see something new. It didn't happen by accident' KEN HIMMEL CityPlace partner The word that comes to mind is We wanted people to walk around a corner and just go NANCY GRAHAM Former mayor, West Palm Beach This is the most important urban development in Florida in the last 50 JORGE PEREZ CityPlace partner 'Everything they've done is absolutely Cadillac and JOEL DAVES Mayor, West Palm Beach 'It looks just like a city, only it's JAMES YOUNG Teacher at the Dreyfoos School of the Arts I IE jo ee Fern St.

I I Old Garage entrance STAFF GRAPHIC "If I l.liiM'il'iti.lM MARTIN CO. 1 PALM bRORDCaf I 1 Gardenia St. raining i garage: 1 I i ii i i if I so: 1 I I I fa I i 0 V. 111 I never been done before. "It will look like it will belong here forever," Ross said.

"And the impact on the Palm Beaches will be great. It will be one of the great areas in America." Still, they didn't get everything they wanted. Himmel, who headed leasing efforts, aimed high when he tried to convince retailers to build stores with three levels. It didn't sell, but several stores, such as Barnes Noble, FAO Schwarz and Restoration Hardware, are on two levels. Developers were persistent The developers persisted despite an inconsistent political climate that led to years of negotiations to find a home for the Palm Beach Opera which ultimately bought land nearby and over the design of a $75 million county convention center.

At one time, Himmel envisioned an "entertainment department store" built around the movie theater on three levels of a single city block. Negotiations to draw a Virgin Megastore coupled with a Virgin theater failed. The movie theater block now is more subdued, with ground floor stores and three second-level restaurants. Himmel also gave up on a hotel just a short walk from the project agreeing to county demands that it be built next to the convention center, south of Okeechobee Boulevard. Thursday, he said he is in negotiations for a 400-room hotel.

His early negotiations brought Neiman Marcus to the area, resulting in the luxury department store's decision to build on Worth Avenue in Palm Beach. Neiman's opens next month. Staff Writers Paul Owen, Linda Rawls and Thorn Smith contributed to this story. joelengelhardtpbpost.com I Jl: 475 ftn Parking garage 725 spaces The J' Cheesecake Factory If in Mm 1 AJj I Okeechobee Blvd. I I I Okeechobee Blvd.

i ItJ .1 fj- I spaces i 1 II 4 Barnes Noble 1 iNewLj entry road I I Schedule of opening events through Sunday at CityPlace CityPlace, the $550 million mix of stores, apartments and offices, opens today. Here's a schedule of events: TODAY 1 9:30 a.m.: The nublic is invito marks bv CitvPlace and elertpH offiriak 10 a.m.: Ribbon is cut and stores open. tures trendy prints, pleats, plaids and skins. 6 p.m.: Music by Paris. 8 p.m.

Moonfest on Clematis Street. Starts with Freaky Float Parade; features two stages of live music. SUNDAY 12:05 p.m.: '50s music by The Taffettas. 1 p.m.: Performance by Dreyfoos High School of the Arts Chorus. 2 p.m.: United Methodist Church of the Palm Beaches Choir performs.

2:30 p.m.: Swimwear fashion at Macy's. Designers include Jantzen, I.N.C, Anne Cole, Polo and Nautica. 3:30 p.m.: Lefty performs. 7 to 10 p.m.: Private shopping to benefit Ballet Florida, Horticultural Society of South Florida and Boca Pops. show, featuring designs by Bisou Bisou, Laundry, French Connection and Maxx Studio.

Singer Debelah Morgan will perform Dance With Me and sign autographs. 5 p.m.: Macy's Young at Heart fashion show presented by Seventeen magazine, with designs from Tommy Jeans, Calvin Klein, Rampage, XOXO and Guess. 5 p.m.: Eric Allison and his Wonderland Band performs. 6 p.m.: Miami Dolphins linebacker Robert Jones signs autographs at Macy's in men's fragrances. SATURDAY 1 p.m.: Cameron Mathison, who plays Ryan Lavery on ABC's All My Children, signs autographs at Macy's.

2 p.m.: I.N.C. fashion show at Macy's fea- i fountain pertorms every hour on the hour. Noon: Macv's offers Charter Clnh fahinn show of business and casual apparel. Noon to 3 a.m.. through Sunday- Marv'e of tn hpar re npmnn- will talk fashion fers kitchen aooliance and cookinir strations on its second level.

1 p.m.: Tennis coach Nick Boliteri tennis at Macy's. 12 p.m.: Macys presents Impulse.