Doc's All American, the chrome-trimmed walk-up burger and shake stand that has anchored Delray Beach's Old School Square corner since 1951, is getting a second act. The longtime favorite at Atlantic Avenue and Swinton Avenue is set to return as part of a new mixed-use project that keeps the original one-story diner in place while adding a three-story building with office, retail, and restaurant space behind it. Closed since 2021, Doc's is slated to reopen with a refreshed look under the City Center Delray plan.
What City Center Delray Will Include
Delray Beach-based Banyan Group has branded the project City Center Delray and says Doc's will be folded into a larger development intended to bring jobs and steady economic growth without steamrolling the character of the surrounding neighborhood. Plans to redevelop the prominent corner have been circulating since 2020, and the city has already approved designs to renovate and reopen Doc's, according to WPTV.
Design And Preservation
The design team describes a nearly 32,000-square-foot, three-story structure in an Art Moderne style that is meant to complement rather than overshadow the classic diner, according to LDG Florida Architects. Plans and renderings show Doc's staying in its original spot and functioning as part of the new restaurant amenities for the project.
The architectural materials highlight outdoor dining areas and updated facades that nod to Doc's mid-century roadside look. They also emphasize that the new construction is planned to meet city development rules while keeping the historic feel of the corner intact.
Historic Designation And Local Debate
Getting to this compromise took years of tug-of-war between preservationists and developers. City commissioners ultimately approved a plan that adds Doc's to the local historic register while allowing work on a smaller neighboring building, as reported by Boca Raton Magazine and in public notices posted by the City of Delray Beach.
Critics of earlier versions argued the proposed buildings were too tall and too bulky for Old School Square's scale. Supporters countered that the current compromise is the most realistic way to ensure Doc's is not erased in the name of progress. At one point, the Historic Preservation Board recommended denial, but city staff and commissioners later signed off on a revised plan and its related site documents.
Timeline And Next Steps
City site-plan materials and engineering drawings map out the new center's footprint and confirm that the existing Doc's structure is set to remain as part of the project, according to the City of Delray Beach. State licensing records show Doc's business license as closed, reflecting the 2021 shutdown, per the Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation. Even with approvals secured, the project still needs final sign-offs and building permits before construction crews can move in.
For longtime residents, Doc's is as much about memories as milkshakes, and the historic designation is seen by advocates as an essential safeguard. Skeptics, however, warn that even carefully styled new buildings can gradually change the feel of downtown. The back-and-forth captures the tightrope Delray Beach is walking between growth and preservation, a tension noted by The Coastal Star and also reported by Boca Raton Magazine.
