A state legislator has abandoned his effort, for now, to force Miami-Dade County to give up control of the Coconut Grove Playhouse project.
Florida State Rep. Fabian Basabe (R-106) has given up on his quest this year to wrest control of the Coconut Grove Playhouse away from Miami-Dade County and hand it over to a tiny two-island community of 6,000 residents in northern Biscayne Bay.
Basabe, who contends the county has mismanaged the historic renovation project, introduced legislation in the Florida House on Jan. 9 to transfer control of the state-owned property to Bay Harbor Islands.
The move was embraced by critics of the county’s plan to reopen the playhouse as a smaller theater with shops, restaurants, and parking, but the bill (House Bill 1559) never advanced during the current legislative session in Tallahassee.
The legislation was assigned to the Intergovernmental Affairs Subcommittee on Jan. 15, where it sat until Basabe announced its withdrawal last week.
Read more: A Tallahassee Twist in the Never-Ending Playhouse Drama
In announcing the withdrawal, Basabe vowed to return next session with broader legislation to protect historic state-owned properties like the 100-year-old playhouse.
“This is not a setback. It is a reset,” Basabe said in a statement. “This effort is not ending. It is beginning in a more structured and powerful way.”
In the meantime, the county is moving forward with its plan to build a smaller 300-seat theater behind the three-story playhouse façade and re-open the cultural icon, perhaps as early as 2027, the venue’s 100th anniversary.
The playhouse, which first opened as a silent movie house in January 1927, has been closed since 2006.
In recent weeks, the county’s contractor has installed additional bracing to support the exterior walls of the original 1926 building.
The county’s revival plan still faces a legal hurdle, however. Critics are battling in court to stop the project.
Read more: Grove Playhouse: The Battle Continues
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for later this month
The latest projected trial date: December 2026.
Your characterization that I “gave up” on the Coconut Grove Playhouse is incorrect.
On July 28, 2025, the Division of Historical Resources and DEP formally determined the project constitutes an adverse effect to a National Register historic property under Chapter 267, Florida Statutes. That finding triggered required mitigation measures. This is state-owned property held in trust. Statutory obligations apply.
In response, I filed legislation creating Section 267.24, Florida Statutes, establishing a statewide stewardship framework for state-owned historic cultural properties. It requires preservation standards, protects primary cultural use, and mandates a formal DEP stewardship review before any material lease action. That is structural reform. The issue did not end. It expanded.
And it’s the first bill I’m filing next session.