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Fort Lauderdale is a yachter’s heaven if they wish to retire with their vessel. Now, though, a surge of new construction is expanding the city to accommodate younger people who (gasp!) may not even own a boat.
The managing partner of Miami-based Moderno Development Company, Doron Broman, told The Post that 99 percent of his projects are in Fort Lauderdale.
“In 2013, I fell in love with Fort Lauderdale,” he remarked. “When nothing was happening there.”
There’s a lot going on right now. According to the Fort Lauderdale Downtown Development Authority (DDA), more than 50 projects, some of which are already underway, are in the planning stages and will deliver more than 8,500 new residential units and 725,800 square feet of new restaurant and retail space. Prominent players include Property Markets Group, Related Companies, Reliable Equities, and Kushner Co. of New York, as well as Hines and Aimco of Houston and Denver, respectively.
The Tarpon River Entertainment and Design District (TREDD), a former business neighborhood south of the New River, is one of Broman’s interests.
We converted warehouses into commercial premises and installed a coffee shop, wine shop, bar, tattoo parlor, hair salon, and nail salon. All local transactions,” he stated. A trendy neighborhood? You could refer to it as such, he replied.
The Rivr Lofts, a 28-story apartment building, and 501 Urban, a proposed $300 million project in Broward County that would add two 30-story rental towers, are the next two projects in the pipeline.
Broman stated, “It is not affordable housing, but instead of $2,700 for an apartment, rents will be closer to $2,000.”
“Most cities benefit from employers moving there and workers following,” said DDA board member and Baron Real Estate entrepreneur Charles Ladd. “But for us, the situation is reversed. Individuals desire to live in the area, and employers follow.
West Marine, Future Tech, Icon International, Solomon Partners, Reveneer, BelHealth Investment Partners, and Hong Kong-based TTI are among the companies that are contributing to the growth of the city’s employment sector.
Ladd stated that he earlier had difficulty attracting high-end businesses to his commercial real estate ventures; he now cites the Henry restaurant in Beverly Hills as a tenant.
“For years, chefs knew nothing except Miami. I struggled to bring them here,” he continued. When I moved here in 1984, it resembled a small village. Two buildings existed downtown. Currently, 35 million passengers come through our airport annually, which is similar to Orlando.”
Ladd is also developing the Whitfield, a “ultra-luxurious boutique hotel” scheduled to open by the end of 2024, according to the developer.
The luxury hotel brands Omni and Edition have set their sights on Fort Lauderdale. The 800-room Omni Fort Lauderdale will open in early 2026 near to the Broward County Convention Center.
Nonetheless, Edition Residences Fort Lauderdale is the brand’s first non-hotel development, adding to the more than 3,600 residential units acquired in the past five years.
Asi Cymbal, chairman of Cymbal DLT Companies, which is building 6 acres of waterfront including the Nautica Hotel and Residences, stated, “Fort Lauderdale is coming into its own.” Fort Lauderdale is becoming one of the world’s greatest cities.
Instead of removing a 100-year-old rain tree on its proposed waterfront building site, Cymbal DLT made national headlines by relocating it.
He insisted, “This is who we are as a company.” We wish to maintain the waterfront’s quality and history.
In order to make way for five high-rise structures, containing residences, a branded luxury hotel and restaurant, a private yacht club, a spa, and a yacht valet, the quaint local favorite Pirate Republic restaurant will also be relocated.
Cymbal stated, “We are developing a nautical district with its own marina.” “Just pressing a button on your phone, your yacht will be ready for you. We hope to attract day-trippers and permanent residents.
It’s all about preserving Fort Lauderdale’s identity.
“We achieved a downtown that people enjoy,” he remarked. It is walking and safe. We got it correctly.”
»Downtown Fort Lauderdale’s luxury development boom«