Downtown Bonita's New Season Opens at the Bars Before the Bandshell
The banyan tree on Old 41 Road has stood across from Riverside Park since 1921. That was the year pioneer Cordell Smith carried it up from the Imperial River as a small tree, according to Bonita Springs Historical Society information reported by The News-Press. This fall the tree sits beside a construction site. The city is building a splash park, plaza, shade pavilions and a restroom building on the Banyan Lot, a $2.1 million project in the 2025-26 capital plan. Riverside Park is across the street and also fenced off, partway through a $3.5 million second phase.
Across the road from both sites, new bars have been pouring since summer.
The privately owned bars and cafes on Old 41 are open now. The city's park and splash pad, where the winter events are booked, are scheduled to finish "by winter," with no date posted. HoneyHole Downtown and Imperial 41 are set for 2027. For a drive up from Bonita Bay this season, that means the bars, cafes and breweries are what's open, and the park is due to reopen sometime this winter.
Riverside Park closed in April 2026 for phase two. The city reopened it briefly for its Star Spangled Bonita event on July 4th, then closed it again. The work covers lighting, electrical, artificial turf, landscaping, irrigation, pavers, site furnishings and exterior improvements to the bandshell.
The city gives the finish date two ways. The Riverside Park page says the bandshell is closed for renovations and plans to reopen in "late fall." The city's downtown projects page lists phase two as running April through November 2026 and expects it to be complete "by winter 2026." The Banyan Lot splash pad has the same winter target. An April 8 city update said the downtown projects were on track for a winter 2026 grand opening. The city has not posted a ribbon-cutting date.
The timing matters because the winter calendar is already booked around the park. The city's approved special events list puts the season's first big outdoor shows at Riverside Park in December.
The concert band's own season page lists the February concert at Estero High School and shows several other dates as either Riverside Park or Estero High School. Check that page for the venue before you go.
Arts Bonita's Bonita Springs National Art Festivals return to Riverside Park on Jan. 9 and 10, Feb. 6 and 7, and March 6 and 7, 2027. Arts Bonita lists Saturday hours of 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and a 4 p.m. close on Sunday. The city's events list gives 5 p.m. for both days, so confirm Sunday hours with Arts Bonita before you make a late afternoon trip.
As October ends, the Dec. 8 big band night is about six weeks away. The city's downtown page is the place to watch for a reopening date.
While the park is closed, the newest downtown rooms are small, owner-run and already open.
Hide-A-Wai Mojito Bar at 27306 Old 41 Road sits across from the Banyan Lot, near Rooftop at Riverside and Chartreuse. The News-Press tied it to Alligator Bay Distillers. A SWFL.life feature says brothers Ben and Alex Voss run it with partner Matt Slaughter. The bar presses sugarcane for its mojitos, distills rum on-site and holds 45 seats, with a capacity of 62 people. Expect a small room on busy nights.
Lovr Boys Cafe & Roastery turned its pop-up into a permanent spot on Old 41. The Naples Daily News reported in September that it was the brand's first permanent cafe in Bonita Springs. The brand's website still lists an address on Bernpine Court, so look for the Old 41 storefront by name rather than relying on a map pin.
These newcomers join an established row. Ceremony Brewing is still serving craft drafts near the Bonita Beach Road end of the corridor. SugarShack is on Old 41, and For Heavens Shakes is at the Ragsdale Street roundabout. The team behind Downtown Coffee and Wine Company, The Bohemian and Canary Club recently opened the Wichcraft sandwich shop in the Entrada plaza at the Bonita Beach Road intersection.
Naples Press reported that Cheesesteaks.com added Bar 218 next to its U.S. 41 location in Bonita in September. The same roundup covered the arrival of Philly's Famous Cheesesteaks & Hoagies in Beach Road Plaza. Closer to home, Yonutz Donuts and Ice Cream opened in Suite 162 at The Promenade at Bonita Bay. Owner Ted Fitzpatrick brought the franchise to Bonita Springs, and it is open daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The two city parks are due this winter. The private projects that will change the shape of downtown come later, most of them in 2027. Here is where each one stands as of late October 2026.
| Project | Location | What it is | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riverside Park, phase two | Old 41 at the Imperial River | Bandshell, turf, lighting, pavers | "Late fall" to "winter 2026," no date posted |
| Banyan Lot | Across Old 41 from Riverside Park | Splash pad, plaza, pavilions, restrooms | "By winter 2026" |
| HoneyHole Downtown | Ragsdale Street roundabout | Live-music restaurant from SugarShack owner Kyle Moran | Early 2027 |
| Telephone North and South | 27550 Old 41 Road | Two full-scale restaurant buildings | Tenants not yet named |
| Imperial 41 | Former Bamboo Lot, Old 41 at Goodwin Street | 120 apartments, about 19,000 sq ft of commercial space | Tenant buildouts from summer 2027 |
WINK News reported that Moran sees HoneyHole as a live-music restaurant and community hub. Mayor Mike Gibson told the station the corridor is filling in, and he stressed keeping a balance between adult and family-friendly options. WINK described Telephone North and South as full-scale restaurants with indoor and outdoor dining. In June, the News-Press reported that the shell of the first Telephone building was nearly finished. The site sits next to Downtown Coffee and Wine Company, where a 1950s telecom building once stood.
Imperial 41 is the longest-awaited of the group. The riverfront land across from the Everglades Wonder Gardens sat vacant for more than two decades. It was once Bamboo Village, and a 2008 redevelopment attempt stalled during the housing crisis. Barron Collier Companies and CAPREIT are building it on land the city leased to them for 99 years. The south building, near Old 41, will have shops, restaurants and offices on the ground floor. The city's plans include two public parks, public restrooms, a fire pit, free public parking and a kayak launch on the Imperial River. In June, Barron Collier named the first commercial tenants: Oberweis Ice Cream and Dairy, Simple Beauty Studio, Old Bonita Surf Shop and The Brass Alligator. A riverfront restaurant space was still available, and units are expected to go to tenants for buildout in summer 2027.
Some of downtown's construction already affects a weekend visit. The Bamboo Lot, where Imperial 41 is going up, stopped offering public parking on Dec. 1, 2025. On-street parking and the Felts Avenue lot are the remaining public options, and the city has posted a downtown parking map. The city has not set a date for the project's public parking to open. On a December concert night with a Kris Kringle weekend nearby, plan for a walk from wherever you park.
The Liles Hotel also has an unresolved corner next to it. On May 20, the Bonita Springs City Council voted to allow demolition of what remains of the century-old Goodbread Grocery Store and Dixie Moon Café building, overriding the Planning and Zoning Board. Gulf Coast News reported that no demolition date had been set at the time of the vote. Plans for the adjacent Liles Hotel Plaza are in the works but have not been published in detail.
For now, an evening downtown means one of the new rooms on Old 41 with the fenced park across the street. Hide-A-Wai, Lovr Boys, Ceremony Brewing and SugarShack are already open. The first show booked for Riverside Park is the Stardust Memories Big Band on Dec. 8.
I follow Old 41 closely because what opens there shapes life just up the road from Bonita Bay. As the park, the splash pad and Imperial 41 open over the next year, I'm glad to talk through what those changes may mean for a Bonita Bay home's value. Holly Fagan can put together a picture built on current local sales. Request Your Personalized Home Valuation.
Let Holly guide you through your home buying journey, contact me today!
