Every fall, Worth Avenue seems to change all at once. Scaffolding comes down, papered windows open, and by mid-November the street looks like it has been ready for weeks. The timing isn't a coincidence or a merchant tradition. It comes from a Town of Palm Beach schedule that allows construction on the avenue only from May 1 through October 31, then lists the months from November 1 through April 30 with two words: "NO WORK."
This year the deadline falls on a Saturday, and the next nine days decide which storefronts open for the season and which stay unfinished into next summer.
The calendar behind the scaffolding
The town's construction and landscaping working-hours schedule gives Worth Avenue its own row, the C-WA zoning district, with tighter rules than the rest of the island. During the open months, weekday work runs from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays are limited to quiet interior work, and Sundays and holidays allow no work at all. Crews can't arrive before 7:30 a.m. on weekdays, and noisy work can't start before 9 a.m.
October 31, 2026 is a Saturday, so the last full day of noisy exterior work on the avenue is Friday, October 30. November 1 is a Sunday, and the closed season starts there.
Projects that run past the deadline have one way to keep going. As the Palm Beach Daily News reported, any Worth Avenue project not finished by October 31 has to ask the Town Council for approval to continue. If the council says no, the work stops for the season and picks up again in May. That same report described renovation and construction projects on every block of the avenue.
The rule sets a hard season edge, and a delay of a few weeks can turn into six months.
The jeweler that needed a few more weeks
Van Cleef & Arpels shows what the edge looks like when a project runs late. The jeweler is moving from its smaller shop at 202 Worth Ave. into a 4,171-square-foot space at 235 Worth Ave., in a $2.3 million renovation. The plans include a new open-air courtyard meant to feel like one of the avenue's vias. That courtyard is what slowed the job. Stormwater collection and drainage turned out to need more evaluation and engineering than planned, according to a letter from contractor Michael Sullivan of Sullivan Construction Co.
"The delays were not the result of inactivity, but rather the careful execution of the complex work necessary to ensure the project complies with engineering standards, protects the structural integrity of the building, and provides a durable drainage solution," Sullivan wrote, in a letter quoted by the Palm Beach Daily News.
At its September 9 development-review meeting, the Town Council approved a 15-day extension. The extension comes with conditions built around the season. After November 1, work has to stay inside the store, and workers have to come and go through the building's north entrance, away from Worth Avenue itself. The contractor asked for weekday hours of 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. In practice, the extension buys a short stretch of interior work while the storefront looks finished from the sidewalk.
A return, and the moves that made room for it
The other big November arrival depends on a chain of moves over the past two years. Vineyard Vines expects to open the first week of November at 330 Worth Ave., the former home of furniture and decorative arts dealer The Silver Fund, according to the Palm Beach Daily News.
The brand isn't new to the avenue. It ran a store at 305 Worth Ave. from August 2013 until April 2024, and Italian menswear brand Isaia now occupies that 2,800-square-foot space. The Silver Fund had been at 330 Worth Ave. since late 2013 and left when its lease ended. The building belongs to The Everglades Club Inc. Batten Construction is the contractor and Bartholomew + Partners is the architect.
The project also shows why some jobs fit inside the window more easily than others. The permit covers 750 square feet of work valued at $116,000: refinishing walls and ceilings, new nonstructural partitions, and wood doors and window frames. A spokesperson said the finished store will be about 2,700 square feet. The town approved it through administrative review, and Architectural Commission Chairman Jeffery Smith signed off without a full commission hearing. The awning Vineyard Vines also asked for was left out of that approval and would need to go to the Architectural Commission.
"Clearly they have a following here, and they wanted to come back," Michael Maus, treasurer of the Worth Avenue Association, told the Palm Beach Daily News.
Another move along the avenue happened earlier. Cavalier Galleries moved to 313 ½ Worth Ave. in Via Bice in June, well inside the open months.
Where each project stands this week
| Address | Business | Status as of October 22, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 330 Worth Ave. | Vineyard Vines | Expected to open the first week of November |
| 235 Worth Ave. | Van Cleef & Arpels | 15-day extension; interior work only after November 1 |
| 305 Worth Ave. | Isaia | Open in Vineyard Vines' former space |
| 313 ½ Worth Ave., Via Bice | Cavalier Galleries | Moved in June 2026 |
| 151 Worth Ave. | Room Service by Stephen Starr | Planned; plans advanced in early October |
| 151 N. County Road | Green's Pharmacy and Luncheonette | New retail and pharmacy operator due during the season |
Changes that happen inside the season
A change of operator needs no exterior construction, so it can happen in the middle of winter.
At Green's Pharmacy and Luncheonette, 151 N. County Road, Hamptons-based White's Apothecary is set to take over the pharmacy and retail side during this coming season, the Palm Beach Daily News reported. The Green's name stays. So do the green-and-white awnings and the breakfast-and-lunch counter. "Green's is not closing, and the luncheonette isn't going anywhere," said Spencer Schlager, co-founder of CS Ventures, which bought the building and business in May 2025. Shoppers should see the retail selection shift toward more upscale brands as White's moves in. Green's opened in 1938, and members of the Green family have joined the new owners as investors.
Bigger projects are still at the planning stage. Restaurateur Stephen Starr's plans for Room Service at 151 Worth Ave., the former Neiman Marcus building, moved forward in early October. Early plans for The Esplanade on Worth Avenue picture a makeover in the style of London's Burlington Arcade, with private clubs, a bakery and luxury retail. If either needs construction on the avenue, the town schedule puts that work between May 1 and October 31.
Off the avenue, the Town Council approved site plans for George x Avenue 31, a two-floor Mediterranean restaurant and nightclub at 380 S. County Road, the former Le Bar a Vin building.
On the island calendar around the deadline
The weeks on either side of the deadline fill up quickly:
- Friday, October 23, 6 to 8 p.m.: The town's Halloween Happenings at the Morton and Barbara Mandel Recreation Center, 340 Seaview Ave., with registration open in advance.
- Wednesday, November 4, 10:30 a.m.: The Worth Avenue Association's weekly historical walking tours start from Via Amore, 256 Worth Ave., and run through May 5, 2027.
- December 10 to 13: The Palm Beach Food & Wine Festival, with opening-night events at island restaurants including Buccan, Stage Kitchen & Bar, Florie's and Oceano.
Getting to the avenue may take a different route this week. A town road closure alert scheduled South Ocean Boulevard to close to through traffic between South County Road and Southern Boulevard starting October 16, and said the closure would last until further notice. On the north end, North County Road between Wells Road and Miraflores Drive reopened to through traffic in both directions on October 14.
Island timing affects more than storefronts. When owners schedule renovations, list a property or line up seasonal tenants, the calendar often matters as much as the plan. If you'd like to talk about timing a sale, a lease or a move around the Palm Beach season, Stefanie Bauer is glad to help you build a plan that fits. Schedule a Consultation.
