The Delray Beach Community Redevelopment Agency on Sept. 30 heard a formal request from organizers of the Concours d'Elegance to expand use of Old School Square for a private event on April 18, 2026, and discussed whether the expansion would force cancellation of the city-run Green Market that ordinarily occupies portions of the campus.

The board did not take a vote to cancel the market. Instead, CRA staff and city event reviewers agreed to explore alternatives, including submitting an application to the city’s Community Technical Advisory Committee (CTAC) and measuring potential alternative sites, and to return with findings before any final decision is made.

Why it matters: The Green Market supports roughly 70 vendors during the season and provides weekly income for small entrepreneurs, while the Concours d'Elegance draws high-value collectors and has a broader tourism impact. Organizers say the two can coexist if the CRA and city approve a temporary site plan; the board and staff raised logistics, turf damage and safety concerns that must be resolved in permitting.

Max Zengage, representing the Delray Concord Foundation, presented the Concours request and said the organizers had prepared a CTAC application and offered to cover any extra city fees and to secure private frontage to help route visitors. “We are proposing to pay for any differences in the city fees, so that it truly costs you $0,” Zengage said, asking the CRA to direct staff to submit a relocation/alternative-site application to CTAC so the matter can appear on CTAC’s Oct. 16 agenda.

CRA Executive Director Renee Jaddison said staff has long explored relocation options for the Green Market and that many alternatives present logistical obstacles: limited staging space, trash handling, required lane closures and a condominium parking area on part of the campus that needs owner permission. “When we submit our CTAC application to the city, we submit it with two site plans,” Jaddison explained; she told the board staff can measure proposed sites and bring the matter to CTAC but could not commit at the meeting to filing by Oct. 9.

Board members sought compromise options for the coming year rather than an outright cancellation. Deputy Vice Chair Julie Cassell urged caution about disrupting vendors who “rely on this” for income, and said staff and organizers should “start working on your plan for next year” if the Concours cannot be accommodated this April. Mayor Carney (Commissioner Carney) and several members said they favored trying a one-year test or altered load-in times rather than removing the market entirely.

City and parks staff told the board the Old School Square front lawn is especially fragile and that repeated heavy use can leave the turf “bald” for months; that concern weighed against approving large-scale vehicle displays on the front lawn without mitigation. Staff also noted that portions of the private “Docks” property offered by the Concours are slated for possible demolition and thus cannot be relied on now.

The board directed staff to continue coordination with city permitting (CTAC) and to return with site measurements, CTAC guidance and specific logistics so the board can consider an informed recommendation. No final action to cancel or relocate the Green Market was approved by the CRA at the Sept. 30 meeting.

Looking ahead: Staff said a CTAC application or applications could be filed and modified as details are measured; staff did not commit at the meeting to a specific filing date but indicated it would follow CTAC’s process and report back to the CRA board before any cancellation of the market.