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Miami Beach Votes Down Big Real Estate Projects

Miami Beach voters on Tuesday nixed three major real estate projects proposed by industry heavyweights Stephen RossBarry Sternlicht, and Don Peebles.

Some 53.4 percent of voters rejectedRoss bid to exceed the current building-size regulations, effectively halting his plans to redevelop the historic Deauville Beach Resort, a MiMo-style property.

The New York-based developer wanted to increase the floor-area ratio, a method of regulating a building’s size, for the Deauville lot at 6701 Collins Avenue and two adjacent parcels. Had the ballot measure passed, Related would have developed an Equinox-branded complex with two luxury towers, featuring 125 condos and 175 hotel rooms. (Related owns Equinox.)

The development seemed like a passion project for Ross, who partly grew up in town.

“As a native of Miami Beach, this project is personal to me. I know what this site means to the people of Miami Beach,” Ross said when announcing his purchase bid in May. 

The billionaire developer enlisted world-renowned architect Frank Gehry to design the new complex. In July, Ross also spoke at a Miami Beach city commission meeting, where he mapped out his plans for “a world-class project.” Yes For A Safe and Strong Future, a political action committee tied to Related Companies, spent over $1 million in favor of the referendum.

Ross’ plans for the Deauville site are unclear following the defeat. The sale was contingent on voters approving the height increase. When reached for comment, Ross and Related representatives provided a statement from Yes For A Safe and Strong Future.

“While we are disappointed with the outcome, we know North Beach deserves an economic engine, not an eyesore. We appreciate the tremendous support we received from thousands who backed a real vision for a better North Beach and still believe there’s a brighter future ahead,” the statement reads. 

Regardless of Tuesday’s vote, the Deauville property will be demolished. The resort has been closed since 2017, following an electrical fire. It fell into such disrepair that a Miami Beach official deemed the resort structurally unsafe and ordered it to be knocked down last January. A Miami-Dade circuit judge later upheld the order. The demolition is scheduled for this Sunday.

No More Offices on Lincoln Road

Ross wasn’t the only developer to lose in Miami Beach.

Ventures led by Sternlicht’s Starwood Capital and Peebles’ Peebles Corporation both sought 99-year leases to build competing office-heavy, mixed-use projects on city-owned land near Lincoln Road, a pedestrian shopping street in Miami Beach. As with Ross, voters rejected each of the proposed leases by 53 percent.

Had they been approved, the leases together would have generated $355 million for the city over 99 years, as stated on ballots. Developers saw an opportunity to build boutique offices in Miami Beach in part to serve billionaires, who relocated to the island town during the pandemic and now seek offices near their residences.

At 1688 Lenox Avenue and 1080 Lincoln Lane North, Starwood’s plans with partners Integra Investments and The Comras Company called for a 100-foot-tall structure that would feature office space, ground-floor retail (including 1,000 square feet leased to a nonprofit rent-free) and a public parking lot to replace the existing surface lot.

Just three blocks east, at 1664 Meridian Avenue, Peebles — along with two partners, local developer Scott Robins and former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine — wanted to develop a six-story building with Class A office space, 43 market-rate residential apartments, ground-floor retail space, and public parking to replace the existing 151 spots.

“We will consider working with the city to make some adjustments to our proposal and consider presenting it to the voters again without such a crowded and controversial group of ballot questions. That would give the voters the opportunity to focus on the many public benefits from our proposal,” Peebles said in a statement.

The Ones That Passed 

Miami Beach residents did approve some referendums related to real estate — those which weren’t directly tied to developers.

Voters agreed to boost the floor-area ratio for oceanfront hotels in the South of Fifth neighborhood that want to convert to residential buildings. Residents also greenlighted a floor-area ratio hike for certain office and residential properties east of Washington Avenue between First and Second streets if the owner agrees to prohibit hotels and short-term rentals on the property.

Residents also passed a ballot initiative that asked voters whether the municipality should seek voter approval before selling or leasing city-owned properties for over 10 years. The measure affects properties between West 43rd Street and West 40th Street, and from Pine Tree Drive on the east to Alton Road on the west.

Unlike in Miami Beach, Developers Win in Miami

Across the bay in Miami, developers had better luck Tuesday. Sixty-four percent of voters approved a 99-year lease extension for a waterfront site in Downtown Miami, paving the way for a $1.5 billion development.

Hyatt Hotels and Miami-based developer Gencom plan to tear down the James L. Knight Center and build three skyscrapers. Called Miami Riverbridge, the development would include 1,542 rental apartments in total, along with 615 hotel rooms and 264 serviced apartments. The annual rent will jump from $250,000 to at least $2.5 million. The joint venture has also vowed to make a $25 million contribution to affordable housing initiatives, the details of which have not yet been released.

“Miami Riverbridge will improve access to and from the Hyatt Regency Miami site, activate the Miami riverfront, and meet growing demand for housing, hotel rooms and more meeting space in our downtown,” James Francque, global head of transactions for Hyatt, and Phil Keb, executive vice president of development for Gencom, said in a joint statement.

 

Source:  Commercial Observer

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Billionaire Stephen Ross’ Deauville Resort Redevelopment Plan Could Soon Be Up For A Vote

Miami Beach voters will likely decide Nov. 8 whether billionaire Miami Dolphins owner Stephen M. Ross can redevelop the site of the shuttered Deauville Beach Resort with the height increase he wants.

The City Commission on Wednesday approved putting the item on the ballot on first reading. It would take a second vote by the same body to officially put it on the ballot. Ross’ plan would create a “North Beach Oceanside FAR Overlay” district to raise the maximum height on the Deauville site to 375 feet, and permit more building density.

The resolution doesn’t mention the exact size of the project the developer would build.

Ross, the chairman of New York-based Related Cos., and New York-based architect Frank Gehry presented the Commission with preliminary plans for a 175-room hotel tower and a 150-unit condo tower.

Built at 6701 Collins Ave. in 1957, the 540-room Deauville closed in 2017 following an electrical fire and never reopened.

It’s usually difficult to demolish properties with a rich history in Miami Beach, but this hotel fell into disrepair following the fire and a judge ordered its demolition.

The hotel is currently in the process of being torn down after Miami Beach officials cited it for numerous code violations related to the deteriorating condition of the building.

 

Source:  SFBJ

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Continuing Interest In Miami Beach Leads To New Wave Of Luxury Hotels

If there’s one U.S. destination that’s remained remarkably hot throughout much of the pandemic, it’s Miami Beach.

And luxury hotel developers have taken note: The market is awash with major hotel upgrades and new development.

One of the marquee projects is a revamp of the Raleigh Hotel at 1775 Collins Ave., which will join the Rosewood Hotels & Resorts brand by 2025.

Up the road, preliminary plans from Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross call to acquire and redevelop the site of the former Deauville Beach Resort at 6701 Collins Ave.

A major rebuild and restoration of the storied Shore Club at 1901 Collins Ave. into a boutique hotel and residences is also in the works, with new owners planning to tear down the newer structures on the site and restore the original, circa-1950s art deco buildings.

Similarly on track for a refresh is the Delano South Beach at 1685 Collins Ave., part of Accor’s Ennismore arm, which like the Shore Club has been shuttered since the early days of the pandemic. Acquired by Cain International in late 2020, the real estate investment firm announced plans for a “strategic repositioning” of the property.

Whether it will remain flagged under the Delano name remains unknown, however, with Ennismore telling Travel Weekly that it has no information “as to what ownership intends to do with the asset.”

Meanwhile, Developer OKO Group revealed plans for an Aman property at the site of the former Versailles Hotel at 3425 Collins Ave. Also planting a flag is luxury player Bulgari Hotels & Resorts, whose planned Miami Beach outpost, set to open at 100 21st St. in 2024, will also be the brand’s first in the U.S.

Miami Beach’s continued upscaling has helped spur a flurry of additional renovation projects, said Steve Adkins, chairman of the Miami Beach Visitor and Convention Authority.

“I think you’re going to see more remodeling and scaling up taking place across the beach, because if you’re not the best in your class, it’s going to be tough for you to retain that traveler when they have other options,” he said.

The Confidante Miami Beach, a midbeach resort located at 4041 Collins Ave., for example, is currently undergoing a roughly $60 million refresh and is on track to relaunch under Hyatt’s luxury Andaz flag by 2024.

“These types of hotels are going to help propel Miami and [cater to] clients that typically travel overseas to find that ultraluxury product,” said Albert Andrew Valera, founder of Miami-based agency Everything Travel Guy. “If someone tells you that it’s $2,000 a night for a junior suite, people won’t bat an eye anymore, because the level of product that’s coming in is going to warrant $3,000 a night.”

 

Source:  Travel Weekly

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Dolphins Owner Stephen Ross To Buy Deauville Hotel, Plans Luxury Complex In Miami Beach

Related Companies’ Stephen Ross is buying the historic Deauville Beach Resort in Miami Beach, enlisting star architect Frank Gehry to redesign the property.

The hotel, originally built in 1957, was the set of the famed Beatles performance for “The Ed Sullivan Show” in 1964. It’s said to have hosted President John F. Kennedy and Frank Sinatra.

The MiMo-style hotel has remained vacant following an electrical fire in 2017. The property fell into such disrepair that a Miami Beach official issued a demolition order in January, deeming the building structurally unsafe. A last-ditch effort to save the property, launched by the Miami Design Preservation League, failed last week when a Miami-Dade County board upheld the order.

The oceanfront property sits on 3.8 acres at 6701 Collins Avenue in North Beach, a historically working-class neighborhood that’s been gentrifying, thanks to Miami Beach’s soaring residential market during the past two years.

Ross has not revealed specific plans for the site, only divulging his intention to develop a “six-star hotel and luxury residences” designed by Gehry. The Pritzker-winning architect has designed iconic structures such as the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain.

The Deauville project is “personal” for Ross, who partly grew up in Miami Beach and graduated from Miami Beach Senior High School.

“I know what this site means to the people of Miami Beach, and I know the potential to create a truly special development that honors the history of the Deauville while creating an iconic place for generations to come,” Ross said in a statement.

The Meruelo family bought the 540-room hotel for a mere $4 million in 2004, according to property records. After the 2017 fire, the property had been embroiled in a legal fight. In 2019, the Miami Beach government sued the Meruelos to maintain the 595,788-square-foot resort, as required for historically protected buildings. Some preservationists have accused the owners of letting the hotel decay on purpose, in hopes of tearing it down and building something new.

Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber said he would back a development project with Ross at the helm only because of Ross’ long-term vision.

“There are too many examples of folks buying and flipping parcels for quick payoffs, leaving the city with undeveloped and vacant properties for too many years,” the mayor wrote in an email to residents. “Steve is committed to making sure his design pays suitable homage to the original Deauville and wants to assure the entire neighborhood benefits.”

The developer is “not looking to increase density but needs more flexibility in the design possibilities,” Mayor Gelber added. It’s unclear whether Ross will retain parts of the original structure or move forward with a complete demolition.

Miami Beach residents will likely have a say. Mayor Gelber said he would ask the City Commission to put the development plans to a vote this November.

A number of questions remain unanswered, including whether Ross’ purchase has even closed. A representative for Related did not respond to a request for comment.

While the developer announced that he had bought the property — without providing a sale price — Mayor Gelber wrote that Ross had taken “the first steps to purchase the property” only last Friday by signing “documents that will allow him to acquire and control the parcel.”

It’s also unclear whether the project will be owned by Ross personally or his development firm, Related Companies, a powerhouse in New York’s real estate scene having built Hudson Yards and the Deutsche Bank Center, formerly known as the Time Warner Center.

Ross, who’s worth an estimated $8.2 billion, has a history of working outside of the firm he founded. After buying the Miami Dolphins in 2009, he renovated the Hard Rock Stadium, spending hundreds of millions out of pocket.

For Ross, the Deauville development represents another milestone in his growing South Florida real estate empire. Related Companies is in the early stages of developing an office tower in Brickell, one that could become Miami’s tallest. In West Palm Beach, Related has developed much of the city’s downtown, including a neighborhood-like shopping mall and an office building that nabbed Goldman Sachs as a tenant.

 

Source:  Commercial Observer

 

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