Joel EngelhardtOutdoors giant wants 80,000 square feet in Oakbrook Square on U.S. 1 at PGA Boulevard.
Internationally known retailer Bass Pro Shops has proposed a two-story hunting and fishing superstore on U.S. 1 in Palm Beach Gardens, a third of a mile from a location it ditched eight years ago.
The destination outdoors outfitter would be built in the Oakbrook Square Shopping Center at U.S. 1 and PGA Boulevard, taking over the site once occupied by the upscale Jacobson’s department store and later Stein Mart and Tuesday Morning.
The proposal, submitted April 6 by the local land planning firm Urban Design Studio, calls for an 80,000-square-foot store on the north end of the center that features Publix, Duffy’s and Berry Fresh Cafe.
The site, also known as Shoppes of Oakbrook, is about a third of a mile south of the Carl’s Furniture Plaza property that Bass Pro Outdoor World bought for $5.5 million in 2014, announcing plans for a World Wide Sportsman store emphasizing saltwater tackle and boats.
Bass Pro sold the site for $7 million in 2018. It didn’t say why it never got built.
Its nearest stores are about 40 miles north in Port St. Lucie and 60 miles south in Dania Beach.
Avid angler Johnny Morris founded Bass Pro in Springfield, Mo., in 1972. It has since grown to 200 stores nationwide drawing an estimated 200 million visitors a year.
In his 2014 announcement, Morris expressed excitement over building a store “fronting U.S. 1 in an area that has long been recognized for its world-famous fishing.”
“This location will allow us to serve local sportsmen as well as the many visitors to this area each year,” he said.
In May 2023, Bass Pro announced its 13th Florida location, in St. Augustine.
Company officials could not be reached Monday for comment. The plans became public when the city placed them on a web page devoted to development projects under review.
Since Bass Pro’s first look at the area, Seattle-based REI Co-op has built an outdoors store in Downtown Palm Beach Gardens, and Dick’s Sporting Goods has proposed taking over the vacant Sears location in The Gardens Mall.
A Coastal Key West style
The two-story building that used to house Jacobson’s would be torn down. That store has been vacant since Tuesday Morning went out of business in 2023. Stein Mart closed in late 2020. Jacobson’s went out of business and closed its north county store in 2002.
The proposed design reflects a Coastal Key West style. Architectural features include metal shutters, a standing seam metal roof, coquina coral stone column bases, wood trim detailing, pine hall brick accents and louvered awnings.
The store would occupy 45,737 square feet on the first floor and 34,693 square feet on the second floor.
Parking lots would be reconfigured, with an emphasis on the large unused parking lot north of the store. In all, the shopping plaza will have 1,071 parking spots.
The property’s owners, Jacksonville-based Regency Centers, also want to add a 5,700-square-foot outparcel building next to an existing Starbucks and Chipotle.
They are asking for two waivers to the city’s code, one to allow more signs and the other to allow a 70-foot flagpole, rather than 25 feet.
The city’s planning staff typically reviews such proposals, offering suggestions over months or even years. Once the proposal meets city standards, it will be reviewed by the city’s Planning, Zoning and Appeals Board before going before the City Council for final consideration.
