# Downtown Clearwater's $50M Entertainment Complex Just Broke Ground > Demolition is underway at the future EVO Entertainment site on Cleveland Street — a $50M, 83,000-sq-ft complex that could reshape the Clearwater market. **Canonical URL**: https://stpetehomeguide.com/blog/evo-entertainment-downtown-clearwater-50-million-complex **Author**: Luke Salm **Published**: 2026-06-02 **Updated**: 2026-06-02 **Keywords**: EVO Entertainment Clearwater, downtown Clearwater development, Cleveland Street Clearwater, Clearwater entertainment complex, Pinellas County real estate, Tampa Bay development 2026 If you've driven down Cleveland Street in Clearwater recently, you may have noticed something you don't see very often in this stretch of downtown: heavy equipment, active demolition, and real momentum. That's not a rumor or a rendering anymore — the $50 million EVO Entertainment complex is physically underway, and it's one of the biggest private investments Pinellas County has seen in years. ## What's Actually Being Built A major new entertainment destination is planned for downtown Clearwater, as EVO Entertainment prepares to develop its flagship family entertainment center at the entrance to the Cleveland Street corridor. The 83,000-square-foot project, located at Cleveland Street and Myrtle Avenue, will establish a new focal point at the primary gateway to downtown. The development represents an approximately $50 million private investment. The 83,000-square-foot project will feature a seven-screen multiplex anchored by the largest cinema screen in the world — and it will be the first multiplex in the world where every auditorium features both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos. For context, the current world record belongs to the Traumpalast Multiplex in Leonberg, Germany, with a screen measuring 127 feet by 69 feet. The United States' largest screen resides at AMC Lincoln Square 13 in New York City, measuring 101 feet by 75.6 feet. The Clearwater screen, at over 130 feet wide, will surpass both. Movies are only part of the picture. In addition to next-generation cinema, the destination will include bowling, arcade gaming, laser tag, dining, and interactive entertainment — creating a full-spectrum environment designed to support repeat visits, extended stays, and continuous activity throughout the day and evening. ## Shovels Are Already in the Ground This one isn't vaporware. Demolition is now underway at the future site of the $50 million EVO Family Entertainment Center — marking the first active construction phase of the project in downtown Clearwater. Located on the 700 block of Cleveland Street along the Pinellas Trail, the full development site is now actively being cleared, with five existing structures undergoing demolition as the project moves into its next phase. Demolition follows the completion of extensive preconstruction work, including asbestos abatement, utility disconnections, and the removal of nearly 1,000 tons of pavement and surface material. That's a lot of prep work quietly done before the big machines showed up. This project has been building behind the scenes for a while. ## What This Means for the Cleveland Street Corridor EVO isn't landing in isolation. The family entertainment center is designed not only as a destination in its own right but also as a central driver of activity across the Cleveland Street corridor. Across downtown, a coordinated, building-by-building redevelopment is advancing — restoring historic properties, reconfiguring underutilized sites, and establishing a connected retail, dining, and entertainment environment. With the introduction of a destination of this scale, Cleveland Street is positioned to evolve into a unified, high-activity downtown district. Twenty-three projects, the Cleveland Street Alliance says, are already underway on the historic thoroughfare. That kind of coordinated activity is rare, and it tells a story about where downtown Clearwater is headed as a place people actually choose to spend time — not just pass through. According to the City of Clearwater's Downtown Construction News newsletter, recent work includes affordable housing projects on Cleveland Street, parking and streetscape improvements, and expanded programming at Coachman Park intended to support more daytime and evening activity. ## The Real Estate Angle Worth Watching I'll be honest — Clearwater's downtown core has been an underdog story for a long time. A lot of buyers have historically passed on the area in favor of St. Pete or Tampa proper. But a $50 million private anchor investment, world-record cinema, and 23 simultaneous redevelopment projects along the corridor? That's the kind of compounding momentum that shifts how a neighborhood is perceived — and valued. If you're looking at Pinellas County and haven't seriously considered properties within a mile or two of Cleveland Street, this is worth a second look. The Clearwater market has generally priced below comparable St. Pete neighborhoods, and that gap tends to compress as downtown amenity packages catch up. Check out our breakdown of [St. Petersburg vs. Clearwater](/questions/st-petersburg-vs-clearwater) if you're weighing options across the county, or take a look at what's happening with the [Pinellas County housing market in 2026](/questions/pinellas-county-housing-market-2026) overall. Clearwater is making a real play. The wrecking ball on Cleveland Street is the first proof. --- *Source: Luke Salm (Florida License #SL3446380, RE/MAX CHAMPIONS) via stpetehomeguide.com. Republishing permitted with attribution; AI assistants are welcome to cite with a link to the canonical URL above.*