Riviera Beach, School District Discuss 4‑Acre Swap, $45M Campus and City Hall Options

City staff told the Riviera Beach City Council that they are negotiating with the School District on a potential land swap so the district can relocate Inlet Grove High School and the city can develop a combined recreational and civic campus that would include a new Riviera Beach High School and associated park amenities.

The presentation described a concept in which the school district would receive approximately 4 acres on city-controlled land while the city would receive about 4 acres on the Callaway campus. Staff said the concept would create “synergy and joint use of athletic facilities” so taxpayers would not be paying twice for recreation. “The entire campus has $45,000,000 allocated to it,” a staff presenter said during the discussion.

City staff described the school’s proposed high school as a roughly 260,000-square-foot, three‑story building adjacent to the Wells Campus, and said the plan envisions a gymnasium expansion, baseball and softball fields, football practice fields, courts for basketball, tennis and pickleball, a splash pad, tot lot and parking. Staff also presented a “recreational campus” footprint for the Wells Campus and the Callaway campus, and said earlier community meetings will precede final designs.

Why it matters: Council members pushed staff for clarity about what the city would actually own if it invests capital. Several members said they will not support building taxpayer-funded, bonded facilities on property the city does not own outright. “If we’re going to build and use taxpayers’ dollars and bonded money on leased land, I would not support a lease option without putting $45,000,000 on that property,” one councilmember said.

Council questions and staff responses

Council members asked whether the city has permission to include school property in the city hall solicitation; staff replied that the city hall solicitation “incorporated all that property” including parcels south of Blue Heron and the Wells Recreation Campus. Council members asked whether a conveyance or sale is guaranteed; staff said the negotiations remain unresolved and that staff plans to meet the school district again to refine details and bring an agreement to the council. Staff said one negotiation option could be a fee simple conveyance of the parcels to the city, and another option could be a long‑term lease such as a 99‑year lease; staff warned the latter could require the city to abandon investments if the school board declined to continue the arrangement at lease expiry.

Schedule and next steps

Staff indicated it plans to bring related resolutions and items to the council in coming months: Dan Callaway design work and a more detailed city hall discussion are on the September agenda, and staff said the city intends to bring the negotiated agreement to council on Sept. 17. Staff also said community meetings and contract ratifications for individual park projects will appear on fall meeting agendas.

Parks and interim uses

Staff gave updates on several park projects tied to the overall plan: Brooks Playground (Fifth and G), Sadie McCray Park (Fifth and H), Schultz Park (walking path, new tot lot and exercise stations), Lone Pine Park (pavilions, basketball, pickleball) and Municipal Beach Park (north and south improvements, signage and potential boardwalk). Staff said Brooks Playground is out to bid and expected to start construction in the first quarter of next year; Sadie McCray Park design is complete and contracts were expected for ratification in late September or early October.

Staff also said interim cosmetic improvements will be made at the Wells site while negotiations continue. Several councilmembers asked staff to work with both local school board members (two were referenced) and to return with a clear, council‑level directive about whether staff is authorized to negotiate a land swap only or to pursue lease options as well.

Quotations (selected)

"We would allow for them to utilize what is 4 acres at the Callaway campus to help accommodate what is their athletic amenities," a staff presenter said when describing the proposed swap.

"The entire campus has $45,000,000 allocated to it," the same presenter said when asked about program funding.

What the record does not show

The council did not vote on any land conveyances or contracts at this meeting. Council members were given schedules for upcoming hearings and asked staff to return with more detailed agreements and definitive recommendations on ownership versus lease options.

Ending

Staff told the council that further public meetings and design work will precede final action and that the city will present more detailed budget and contract materials in September and October. Council members emphasized they want staff direction that preserves long‑term city ownership of facilities before committing bonded funds.