The Old Hawthorne Has a Second Act, and Swampscott Has It Until 2028

On the night of September 5, guests walked a red carpet into the former Hawthorne by the Sea while the sun set over the water. Inside, a brand-new band called Fats Arnold and His Midnight Hot Dogs played its first show. Partway through, the sound system started to feed back, and several local sound engineers stepped in to fix it. One of them, Jeremy Kovac, told the Swampscott Tides that the goal at any show is simple: "If the talent is happy and the owner is happy, that's the most important thing." The band, led by husband and wife Matthew Arnold and Holly Cameron, both trained opera singers, played from 8:30 to 11:30 p.m.

That was the opening of the Swampscott Center for the Performing Arts at 153 Humphrey St. Only a month later, the town-owned building is open from 6 a.m. until well after dark. Its current form also comes with an end date. The lease runs through June 2028, and the town's long-term plan for the site is already taking a different direction. So the version you can walk into this fall is a bridge, with a schedule worth learning.

Six in the Morning at 149 Humphrey

The day starts at Maria's Gourmet Cafe, which is attached to the Center at 149 Humphrey St. It held an unannounced soft opening one weekend and a grand opening on Sunday, September 13, with face painting and balloon animals until rain slowed things down later in the day. Hours are 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday.

Marblehead readers may know the name. Maria Torres runs Maria's Gourmet in Marblehead, and she bought and opened the Driftwood restaurant there over the summer. Her daughter, Emily Figueroa, manages the Swampscott cafe and designed its interior. Torres and Figueroa pictured an elevated, European-style cafe where people stay after they order. "Here we just want a place for people to come and interact offline," Torres said.

What's on the menu:

• Breakfast and lunch sandwiches served on buttered croissants unless you ask for another bread, with gluten-free options
• A full espresso bar for macchiatos and lattes, plus tea, refreshers and fresh-fruit smoothies
• Muffins, which Torres says customers have especially liked

The cafe welcomes families and dogs. Its mascot is George, a 9-year-old miniature golden retriever who was rescued from Puerto Rico, and he has already been named employee of the month.

Five O'Clock Belongs to Renzo's

When the cafe closes, the pizza ovens start. Renzo's Pizza used to sit across the street from the high school. It now operates inside the Center, serving 16-inch New York-style thin crust Tuesday through Sunday from 5 p.m. until close.

The move happened almost by accident. Owner Mike Gajewski told the Swampscott Tides that Renzo's had three choices: find a new home for its ovens, store them or sell them. Then Johnny Ray, the Center's owner and operator, offered him a spot. Gajewski and his son Brendan, "the pizza guy," first worked at Renzo's in Revere before opening their own shop in Salem. They later moved to Essex Street, and they reopened inside the Center a few weeks before the Oct. 2 report. They still make their own sauce and dough and mix their own cheese. "I used to come here for dinner and a drink," Gajewski said. "People can come here for pizza and a view."

Gajewski hopes to expand the menu and hours as the space gets established. For now, takeout orders go through 781-595-0001.

After Dark, The Dory Takes Over

The evening side of the building has two rooms. The Flamingo Lounge is a pastel pink-and-blue cocktail and piano bar. On opening night, cocktails were $15 and wines and spritzes ran $11 to $14. Past it, The Dory has colorful couches, a darker blue dining room, a large carpeted stage and a buffet along one side. The venue lists Tuesday through Sunday as its operating days. Its website does not post daily opening and closing times.

The fall calendar matters more than usual this year. Swamptoberfest is taking 2026 off, and the town administrator cited staff capacity. Several of the season's community events are moving to Humphrey Street instead.

Confirm the dueling pianos date before you go. The Swampscott Tides calendar lists October 9, but a poster on the venue's own entertainment page says October 29. The venue's ticket page doesn't show prices or a general cover policy, so check each event when you buy. Private parties can be requested through the venue's "Book Your Event" form.

Ray has bigger plans for the room. "Five years from now we have national and international acts who are seeking an intimate music venue to entertain," he said on opening night. The current lease is less than half that long.

Parking Is Still Unsettled

Parking at the old Hawthorne became free for residents in December 2025. Before the July 3 Fourth of July events, the Center put up a sign charging $5 on weekdays, $10 on weekends and $40 for July 3. Town Administrator Nick Connors then told the Select Board:

"It's something that by both our agreement and by zoning is not an acceptable use of the property."

Connors said the tenant understood the town's position. Even so, a June 27 sign said the lot "will become private parking again." The Center's membership program now includes a parking sticker for free daily lot parking from 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. No public source we found says whether non-members can park there today. If you plan to drive, call ahead.

This matters beyond one lot. Back in March, Lilly Tapper, owner of Three Hundred Fifty bakery, told the Select Board that Humphrey Street businesses depend on "a very small number of parking spots." Every new reason to visit the Center adds to the demand for those same spaces.

The Clock Behind the Calendar

The Center exists because the town didn't want the building to sit empty while it worked out a permanent plan. The Athanas family announced Hawthorne by the Sea's closure in November 2025, and that December, Town Meeting approved a lease of up to 30 months, ending June 2028. Here's how the long-term plan has moved since then:

1. February 2025: The Select Board forms the Hawthorne Re-Use Advisory Committee.
2. November 2025: The committee picks Plan G1. It calls for two rows of buildings, about 28 parking spaces, a courtyard and a possible residential component.
3. June 17, 2026: The Select Board starts planning a long-term request for proposals and aims to issue it in fall 2026.
4. August 4, 2026: The board votes 3-2 to keep residential proposals out of the RFP. MaryEllen Fletcher, Danielle Leonard and Wayne Spritz vote yes. Ted Dooley and Katie Phelan vote no.
5. Since then: Town staff are drafting the RFP, and the board expects to review it at least twice. Patch reported that the RFP will favor open space without setting a percentage, and that it takes no position on keeping or tearing down the current building.

The town is also still looking at buying the St. John's Church parking lot next door. Officials say that purchase could "unlock the full potential of the site." As of the Select Board's September 23 agenda, the Hawthorne wasn't on it. That meeting proposed opening the warrant for the December 7 Annual Town Meeting. We found no public record that the RFP has been issued as of October 4.

So the building where George greets you at 6 a.m. and Fats Arnold plays at night is guaranteed through June 2028. After that, it depends on proposals the town hasn't requested yet, under a plan that rules out housing and leans toward open space. It's unclear whether the building itself will stay.

The Hawthorne decision will also affect parking, foot traffic and the shops along Humphrey Street. If you'd like to talk through what it could mean for your block, North Shore and More follows every Select Board review of the RFP. Get a Free North Shore Market Consultation, and we'll walk you through what's on the table.