Last week, I took a ride to Jupiter to explore a few places. On July 16, 1999 the town of Jupiter bought themselves land from an abandoned hotel construction project located on Jupiter Island Park for $1.8 million. The hidden and uncompleted project sits just south of Burt Reynolds Park behind a cyclone fence. But explorers and locals know the spot as the “Jupiter Dungeon”.
On July 16, 1999 the town of Jupiter bought themselves land from an abandoned hotel construction project located on Jupiter Island Park for $1.8 million. The hidden and uncompleted project sits just south of Burt Reynolds Park. But explorers and locals know the spot as the “Jupiter Dungeon”.
The parking garage is the only part of the project left which was to be a hotel and retail project started in 1980. The spot is just gorgeous---looking through the chain link fence on the upper deck you see boats floating on the Loxahatchee River and gorgeous trees and swampland. The unfinished project was going to take 5 years to build and when it was completed there would be a hotel, restaurants, a large bar and 23,000 feet of retail stores and specialty boutiques right on the water. Construction was halted because of an outstanding debt and everything came to a stop.
Under the old footprint slab of the hotel sits a very large underground parking garage where nature and spray paint have taken possession. Standing right on US 1 you have no inclination of what awaits you.....everything around seems so normal. But, a short skip and a duck right off the sidewalk and you arrive at a place that seems like you walked down the wrong street and have entered another world.
When I entered, I was greeted by what I thought was someone sleeping but it was a dummy somebody built using a bucket for the head, clothing and pair of mix-matched sneakers. Scared the crap out of me because it is dark down there!!
Dirt pours into every outside door frame and trees have started growing in them. There are concrete squares up above that are open to let the light in below. They are like little lighted atriums for the plants inside. Scattered about the sandy floors are empty spray paint cans and beverage containers. The walls are covered in the most colorful graffiti.
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