The repaired Atlantic Dunes pavilion is now in use, providing beachgoers a shady place to take a break. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
By Jane Smith
More than two years after the Atlantic Dunes Pavilion burned to the ground, the Delray Beach setting is ready for weddings, birthdays and other celebrations.
Its metal roof matches that of the main pavilion at State Road A1A and Atlantic Avenue and of those at nearby beach gazebos. The Atlantic Dunes Pavilion provides a southern entrance to the city beach, just north of Linton Boulevard.
“The day is finally here,” Mayor Shelly Petrolia said at the mid-September ribbon-cutting ceremony. “I expect to receive far fewer emails about when the pavilion will be finished.”
Arsonists burned the pavilion sometime in the overnight of June 27-28, 2016. “No one was arrested,” said Dani Moschella, police spokeswoman. The case is no longer active, she said.
The pavilion reconstruction was delayed by the police investigation and insurance negotiations. It also was delayed because the city could not pound pilings in the sand during the March to November turtle-nesting season, said city engineer and project manager Isaac Kovner. It cost $320,000 to replace the pavilion, built in 1977.
“It provides a quiet respite,” Petrolia said. The roof provides shelter from the rain and sun. From the pavilion, visitors have a vista of the ocean.
The city also lost a revenue source for more than 26 months. The pavilion, rented by the Parks and Recreation Department, was a popular venue for weddings and other special occasions. Make reservations via the city’s Parks and Recreation Department.
The pavilion is just the beginning of improvements planned for Atlantic Dunes, said City Manager Mark Lauzier. Soon, the beach will have Mobi-Mats so wheelchair users can roll down to the ocean. The main pavilion at Atlantic Avenue also has mats.
Other plans call for an upgraded nature trail with a raised boardwalk and educational signs, and renovated public restrooms.
The improvements will be designed during the financial year that began Oct. 1, said Missie Barletto, assistant public works director. The actual work will be done in the following year.
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