Palm Beach’s famed Worth Avenue will host three commercial photo and video shoots after the Town Council approved applications clearing the way for the work.
But the filmmakers won’t have as much leeway as they had sought, beacuse the council imposed tight restrictions on crew sizes, filming hours and production equipment.
At their meeting Aug. 11 at Town Hall, council members approved applications from apparel brand Vineyard Vines and Citizens Bank, while deferring a request from fashion brand Mac Duggal until Aug. 12. The council then approved the Mac Duggal application for one day instead of the two days requested.
The town adopted an ordinance in December 2024 requiring council approval for commercial filming operations, including still photography and videography, and its code limits such filming to seven days per month.
Vineyard Vines initially sought to bring as many as 35 crew members to Worth Avenue for a four-hour photo shoot on Sept. 9 or 10. That request drew concerns from council members about the size of the crew and the potential disruption to pedestrians, shops and residents.
Company representatives told the council they could reduce the crew to eight and eliminate a motorhome, pop-up tent and other production equipment. They also agreed to avoid blocking pedestrian traffic or capturing passersby in the commercial images.
“We are happy to be flexible,” Vineyard Vines representative Alicia Eddy-Quintana told the council. “We understand that the thirty-five head count was probably a little jarring and scary at first.”
The council approved the shoot for up to eight people for four hours between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., with handheld equipment only, and no tent for changing clothes. The company also agreed to use a single shuttle van.
Vineyard Vines representatives said the shoot would focus on the seawall near the Worth Avenue Clock Tower. The company plans to open a Worth Avenue store later this year, they added.
Citizens Bank, which operates a private-banking branch on Royal Palm Way, initially sought to film on Worth Avenue and South Lake Drive, but the South Lake Drive portion of the request was rejected because the street is in a residential zoning district, according to town documents.
The bank’s seven-person crew will focus on architecture, including exterior views of Via Mizner and the palm trees along Royal Palm Way, according to Allan Ramos, a location scout for the project. Ramos initially requested two days of filming and said the crew would use a handheld camera and would not obstruct traffic or capture pedestrians in the images.
Council members questioned the need for two days and ultimately limited the shoot to one day on Sept. 9, with up to four hours of filming between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. The seven-person crew will be allowed to use a handheld camera, bounce board and small battery-operated light.
Mac Duggal, an Illinois-based women’s fashion brand, initially requested two days of photography and video on the 200 and 300 blocks of Worth Avenue, with a crew of up to 15 people. The production would include a trailer for hair and makeup, wardrobe and other production needs.
Council members questioned the number of people, the length of the proposed shoot, the production’s size and the proposed filming area. They also expressed concerns about the impact of filming on pedestrians, storefronts and traffic along Worth Avenue.
“I have a problem with that, because I find it’s intrusive to our residents and our shops,” council member Nicki McDonald said.
The company returned to Town Hall the next day with a revised request for a crew of eight and agreed to stage its production trailer at the private Apollo lot rather than on a town street.
The council approved the application for one day of filming, on either Oct. 12 or 13, for four hours between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., with still photography permitted on the 200 and 300 blocks of Worth Avenue. Filming will be limited to the intersection of Worth Avenue and Cocoanut Row.
Jodie Wagner is a journalist at the Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at jwagner@pbdailynews.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Palm Beach sets tighter limits for commercial shoots along Worth Avenue
Reporting by Jodie Wagner, Palm Beach Daily News / Palm Beach Daily News
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By Jodie Wagner, Palm Beach Daily News | USA TODAY Network
