Oscar’s signs new 20-year lease with Grit Development for downtown Palm Springs property

A popular Palm Springs restaurant, bar and entertainment venue is here to stay for a while.

Dan Gore, owner of Oscar's Palm Springs, says he reached an agreement with the owners of the property, Grit Development, for a 20-year lease that involves a massive expansion into several of the building's vacant storefronts.

"We've just created a lot of a lot of happy events here and exciting events," Gore said. "The uniqueness of it, I think, because it is downtown, and it represents what Palm Springs is all about."

Oscar's is situated in a prime location on the corner of Plaza Las Flores, a shopping center at the corner of Tahquitz Canyon Way and Indian Canyon Drive.

The venue is a hot-spot for local entertainers and the weekly hit: Sunday "T-Dance."

Gore's new two-decade lease means Grit Development halted earlier plans to convert the shopping center into a hotel.

"It wasn't making money for them; they wanted to relocate Oscar's," Gore said. "Oscars itself was going to be the pool area."

The new plans include demolishing the bar structure on the corner of the property. Instead, Oscar's will enclose the expanded courtyard with a wall, and build a new bar in the former Cafe Jasmine unit next door.

5,000 sq. ft. on the second level of the shopping center will be reworked as an event area.

Oscar's plans also include working closely with the Plaza Theatre, which is connected to the restaurant, allowing for joint events once the theater's renovation is complete.

Gore said the expansion plans and new long-term lease are made possible by community support.

"Oscar's is going to move forward and it's because of the love and support the community – is why Oscar's got the lease, I believe," Gore said.