As published on palmbeachpost.com

By LINDA HAASE | Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Canyon Town Center is still under construction, but already it's being touted as a model for other marketplaces.

The 200,000-square-foot center at the southeast corner of Lyons Road and Boynton Beach Boulevard will include a town square with an amphitheater, green space and a splash fountain, shops, restaurants, offices, a ballfield and a 54,000-square-foot Publix.

"This marketplace is going to be different and very special. It is superb and we believe it will be a model for all traditional marketplaces to follow," said Barbara Katz, president of the Coalition of Boynton West Residential Associations.

"It will be more than a shopping center. It will be the heart of the community, a place where people will stroll along the pathways, shop, dine, drink coffee and eat ice cream at the outdoor cafes, enjoy performances at the amphitheater, shop in the supermarket and let their children play in the spray fountain."

The Publix, which should be finished by December, will include a pharmacy. "This is one of our larger stores and will offer a good variety of natural and organic products, including our GreenWise private label brand," Publix spokeswoman Kimberly Jaeger said.

Other tenants in the center, which is expected to be complete by the end of the year, include AmTrust bank, Panera Bread, Dry Clean USA, a U.S. Post Office, Conte Salon, Rossano's Italian Restaurant, Massage Envy, Hair Cuttery, a nail salon, Bank of America, Wachovia and Walgreens.

Although some of the shops can be found at other centers, the atmosphere at Canyon Town Center, which is in Palm Beach County's Agricultural Reserve, will be much different, according to the developer.

"Canyon Town Center will be a village/town center. It will be a true mixed-use project with a 'main street' with retailers and restaurants along it and office and work-live (lofts) above the retail," said Michael Friedman, president of GL Commercial, which is developing the project. "It will not have the typical South Florida uniform stucco look. It will have a series of buildings with an elevation that changes in color, texture and dimension. There will be brick, stacked stone, stucco, awnings and covered areas. "

It will be a boon for the adjacent communities of Canyon Lakes, Canyon Isles and Canyon Springs, which will have walking paths that connect to the center.

But it is expected to draw other residents who live west of Boynton Beach, said Sam Hershkowitz, co-chair of COBWRA's growth management committee.

"We were very much in favor of this project. We were there when it was just a dream ... It's something that is definitely needed."

Future plans call for a library and a park, Katz said, which she said will make it even more inviting.

"It is all we envisioned: an open look, lakes, fountains, beautiful landscaping with lots of greenery, a main street with a central plaza and much more than a shopping center. We hope it will be the heart of the community."