Mahaffey Theater, facing millions in deferred maintenance, will open a restaurant this fall
By Breanne Williams
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Oct 20, 2023

The city-owned Mahaffey Theater in downtown St. Petersburg is facing a multimillion-dollar list of maintenance issues, but its management company has come up with a way to keep patrons on-site longer: opening a restaurant.

Bill Edwards, chairman and CEO of Big 3 Entertainment Group, told St. Petersburg City Council on Thursday that Sonata will open this fall. The restaurant will serve coastal cuisine that is “rooted in southern hospitality,” according to information presented to council.

Ted Dorsey, who was previously the chef at The Mill, is the chef behind Sonata. The Mill closed in downtown St. Petersburg in January as it was facing unpaid tax liens.

“It’s going to be a restaurant you can go to for lunch or dinner whether you have a show or not,” Edwards told city council. “You can go before the show or after the show, and it’ll be open to the public. You’re sitting in a restaurant that’s surrounded by amazing art that’s been provided by the Imagination Museum.”

Edwards said it was a “major coup” for the theater and the city to have three different art forms — visual, performing and culinary arts — in one place. Edwards told the Tampa Bay Business Journal the restaurant at first will be upstairs on the balcony and will seat roughly 180 patrons. Later, it will expand to the lower level and seat a total of approximately 325 people.

The theater has a kitchen for banquets and events, but it is not used every day. Edwards said people usually grab dinner before or after a show, and he thought, “Why don’t they just come here?”

The banquet hall will remain part of the Mahaffey.

Council members expressed excitement for the new restaurant, and some praised Edwards for bringing Dorsey onto the team. During the conversation, Councilmember Ed Montanari, however, pointed out a looming concern: extensive maintenance costs. Montanari pointed out a growing list of repairs and maintenance that must be addressed immediately.

Edwards has invested $10 million of personal funds into the theater since Big 3 Entertainment took over the theater’s management. He told city council that it was time for St. Pete to take care of its real estate.

“I’ve put in a lot of my own money to fix these things, and I can’t keep doing that,” Edwards told city council. “It’s about time that somewhere in the city’s budget, there should be money set aside to take care of their own real estate. I’ve put $10 million into somebody else’s real estate, more than $10 (million), and as of this week, in this year, I’ve put in over a quarter of a million dollars to make things work. It’s about time the city realizes they have to take care of their own real estate.”

Edwards said several things total up to around $6 million that need to be repaired. Chris Ballestra, managing director for city development administration, told the council there is a study underway to identify the total amount required to address the concerns.

The theater averages approximately 250,000 visitors a year, Edwards said. He said the Mahaffey has “grown up” and is now a major waterfront asset to the city. But the city needs to address the looming repairs. He said the theater blew a fuse two years ago, and it’s still “working at half power.”

They’ve already booked shows in 2025. If a maintenance issue causes the theater to be offline, Edwards said his company would go bankrupt as it wouldn’t be able to put on the shows but would still have to pay for them.

“We need them to put the pedal to the metal because we never know when something’s going to blow and we’re out of business,” Edwards said. “I’ve already booked shows through 2025, so you can imagine how much money we’ve got on the street in regards to reserving all that.”