The Miami-Dade Commission voted unanimously Tuesday to take title to the Coconut Grove Playhouse, which closed five years ago mired in debt and controversy. The Playhouse is owned by the City of Miami, but the cash-strapped city is not in a position to rescue the legendary theater. When it closed, the Coconut Grove Playhouse owned about $4 million to various creditors.
“So now they want Miami-Dade to assume the responsibility for the Playhouse and its debts?” Commissioner Rebecca Sosa said Tuesday. “Yes,” said Miami-Dade Cultural Affairs Director Michael Spring, who put the amount owed by the Playhouse now at “approximately $2 million.”
Miami-Dade has set aside $5 million from tourist taxes plus $15 million from a voter-approved General Obligation Bond that will be used to build a new, smaller Coconut Grove Playhouse behind the historic façade of the old one. A private, non-profit board will assume the operating and maintenance costs, Spring said.
“I think it is important for the Coconut Grove neighborhood,” said Comm. Dennis Moss, “and important to the entire community.”