Phipps Ocean Park in Palm Beach will close May 1 as a $31 million redevelopment project gets underway.

The Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach, which is spearheading the park's redesign and paying for the bulk of the work, announced the project timeline in a release.

The park will be closed to the public through Oct. 1, 2026, the foundation said. The Phipps Ocean Park Tennis Center and adjacent parking facilities will reopen Nov. 1.

Public parking and beach access will be unavailable during construction, Carolyn Stone, deputy town manager for Business Enterprise and Culture, told the Daily News. Midtown Beach will remain open and under lifeguard supervision. Public parking for Midtown Beach is along South Ocean Avenue and surrounding streets.

The long-planned redevelopment project will restore the park’s natural beauty while adding new amenities for play, learning, and community gathering, Betsy Shiverick, chairman of the Preservation Foundation, said in a statement.

She noted that the project fulfills the vision set forth by the Phipps family, which donated the 18-acre park on Palm Beach's South End in 1948. The park has not undergone a significant redesign since it opened, foundation officials said.

“We’re proud to help bring the Phipps family’s vision to life,” Shiverick said in a statement. “This project celebrates Palm Beach’s natural heritage and creates exciting opportunities for outdoor learning and leisure.”

"This project will be transformational," Mayor Danielle Moore said during the Town Council's meeting April 8. "Special thanks to the Preservation Foundation for their donation and vision for this park. I think it's going to be an amazing addition. "

Design work on the park's redevelopment began in 2021, and the Landmarks Preservation Commission issued a certificate of appropriateness in November 2022. The Town Council approved the project's site plan in February 2023, while variances related to the addition of two pickleball courts and the lifeguard station were approved in April of that year.

In January 2024, council members approved modifications to the site plan after cost-saving and scope reduction items were included.

In March of that year, the council conditionally approved a $30 guaranteed maximum price (GMP) contract to Burkhardt Construction Inc. for construction-related services, and a groundbreaking for the park was held the following month .

But construction did not begin last summer as planned, with The Preservation Foundation and its partners on the project agreeing to re-bid the project's GMP contract in an effort to obtain more competitive responses from a broader group of subcontractors.

That process took seven months to complete, and in February, council members signed off on a revised contract to Burkhardt Construction valued at $31 million . The new contract includes $29.7 million for the Phipps Ocean Park redevelopment, $392,000 for tennis court renovations, $674,000 for lifeguard station renovations, and $67,000 for electrical panel replacement.

The majority of the project’s funding will come from the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach. The town's recreation department will pay for the tennis center renovations, and improvements to the lifeguard station and electrical panel replacement will come from the town's capital improvement fund. The town also will contribute $2 million toward the park renovation.

At their February meeting, council members voted to establish a project budget of $34.5 million — which includes contingency costs — and approved waivers to allow for extended work hours Saturday and nighttime work hours as necessary.

The town's Public Works department will manage the work hours.

While the tennis center is closed, residents and visitors are encouraged to take advantage of the facilities at Seaview Park Tennis Center, the town said. Courts will be available for lessons and social play, and reservations can be made through the PlayByPoint app .

For more information and updates on the renovation, visit the Town of Palm Beach Recreation Department’s website at www.palmbeachrecreation.com/tennis , or call 561-838-5404.

Jodie Wagner is a journalist at the Palm Beach Daily News , part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at .