Coral Gables city officials have extended the lease held by operators of the Coral Gables Art Cinema, clearing a path for a long-delayed second theater that has been years in the making. The move comes as the city commission weighs which construction firm should build the project, with commissioners recently directing staff to pursue a bidder other than the one city procurement officials had recommended.
According to Miami Today, the Coral Gables City Commission directed staff to seek a contract with West Construction Inc., the second-lowest bidder on the project, even though the city's chief procurement officer had recommended awarding the job to Hycon Investments as the most responsive and responsible bidder. Mayor Vince Lago suggested pursuing West Construction because the city had worked with the firm before. Per Lago, West Construction previously completed Fire Station 4 on schedule, with cost savings, few change orders and a returned contingency.
City Manager Peter Iglesias told commissioners the price difference between the two bidders amounted to roughly $6,000, and that West Construction indicated it was willing to match or slightly reduce its price relative to Hycon's offer. The potential for West Construction to match or slightly reduce its price relative to Hycon's offer also figured in the discussion. West Construction's estimated award for the project stands at $1,239,900 to build out and convert a storefront retail space into the new theater, per the same account.
Lease Extended Through 2035
Alongside the construction decision, city officials extended the cinema operators' lease by five years, pushing its expiration to September 2035, Miami Today reports. Iglesias also said the city has provided the cinema with $450,000 and is supplying construction management services at no charge. Lago described the expansion as a critical project that should be delivered on time and within budget.
The funding commitment builds on action the city took in May, when officials approved allocating additional money toward the expansion. The city approved $350,000 in funding at that time, with the cinema set to receive an additional $100,000 to cover a funding cap it had experienced since its 2019 expansion, according to Miami Today.
A Storefront Transformed Into a Second Screen
The project site sits at 240 Aragon Ave., where the plan calls for converting a storefront retail space into a theater with 92 seats, a large lobby, a curated café and administrative offices. A Miami Herald report, however, described the planned expansion as including a 90-seat auditorium, a discrepancy that remains unresolved between the two accounts. The re-envisioned storefront is also expected to feature cinema museum artifacts spanning the late 19th and 20th centuries, and the new auditorium is planned to host more sensory-friendly screenings, curated conversations with arts and film experts, and programming for underserved children.
As of September, the cinema had applied for building permits and was working with the city's Development Services Department to clear permit corrections, according to a report from citizenportal.ai. The cinema also reported that an asbestos inspection had been conducted at the site, and city staff said it was clear. The expansion has been a long time coming: it was initially scheduled to break ground back in February 2022, per an earlier Miami Today report.
Demand Has Kept Climbing Since 2019
The existing 141-seat auditorium at the nonprofit cinema, founded in 2010, already includes 4K digital projection, 35mm reel-to-reel capability, 3D and the only dedicated 70mm projectors in South Florida, according to the City of Coral Gables. The theater's own case statement for the expansion projects that a second screen would push annual attendance to 80,000 and generate an estimated $3 million in economic impact, though a separate Miami New Times report put projected attendance for the year at 54,000, a figure that has not been reconciled with the higher estimate.
Membership has grown 63 percent in two years and now exceeds 2,500, according to Miami New Times. The cinema hosted 1,145 screenings in 2024, up from 976 the year before, the outlet reported. Nationally, the theater was among the participating venues in Art House Convergence's 2026 National Audience Survey, which found that 88 percent of respondents consider their preferred art house a cultural hub of their community, according to a press release from Art House Convergence. Nearly a quarter of respondents said they had started attending their preferred art house within just the last three years.
Not the Only Screen Getting an Upgrade
Coral Gables Art Cinema isn't the only local screen investing in itself. The Bill Cosford Cinema at the University of Miami recently upgraded its screen to nearly 80 feet and added new curtains, new carpet and a 7.1 Dolby Digital Sound system, according to the Miami Herald. The Art Cinema competes with seven other cinemas within a three-mile radius, the Herald noted, underscoring the stakes for the Aragon Avenue project as it works through permitting, procurement and now a freshly extended lease.
