ECONOMY OVERVIEW
Greater Fort Lauderdale 2019 An in-depth review of the key issues facing Broward’s economy featuring the exclusive insights of prominent industry leaders
$159.00 ISBN 978-0-9988966-1-8
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City of Lauderhill: At the heart of Broward County, the City of Lauderhill is well positioned to enjoy the oerings of Fort Lauderdale and Miami. Despite its humble beginnings as an agricultural outpost, Lauderhill has matured into a diverse city, home to myriad small businesses and industries, cultural attractions, renowned cuisine and the only ICCsanctioned cricket stadium on North American soil. The city’s high quality of life is a major draw for young families or anyone looking for a slower pace while maintaining access to big-city amenities.
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Vibrant city: The City of Lauderhill has evolved from humble beginnings into a thriving and diverse hotspot for the live-work-play lifestyle The City of Lauderhill occupies one of the most strategic and beautiful locations in southeastern Florida. The city is in the heart of Broward County, roughly seven miles northwest of Fort Lauderdale and 35 miles north of Miami. Three international airports are all within an hour’s drive: Fort LauderdaleHollywood International Airport is about 13 miles away, Miami International Airport is about 25 miles away and Palm Beach International Airport is about 56 miles away. This central location gives individuals and businesses in Lauderhill easy access to everything the region has to offer and has earned the city the nickname “Crossroads of Broward County.” Within the city itself, internationally renowned cuisine and small, independent businesses attract tourists from across the state, the country and the world, while Lauderhill’s affordable real estate, lovely parks and numerous other attractions make it a place where a growing number of families are choosing to settle down. From dairy to development Lauderhill was incorporated on June 20, 1959, with a real estate developer by the name of Herbert Sadkin 106 | Invest: Greater Fort Lauderdale 2019
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credited as the city’s founding father. The origin of the name Lauderhill lies in a bit of playful banter between Sadkin and one of his friends, William Safire. When he originally envisioned the city, Sadkin had planned to name it Sunnydale; however, Safire, who was a journalist for the New York Times, pointed out that the name was too similar to that of a neighborhood in Brooklyn. When discussing alternatives, Safire mentioned that he liked the wordplay between “hill” and “dale,” to which Sadkin responded that there were no hills in his new city. Safire’s rejoinder was that he doubted there were any dales in Lauderdale either, and from that backand-forth the name Lauderhill was born. Once Lauderhill was named and incorporated, the next step was filling it with people. Unfortunately, it was difficult to entice people to what was then seen as “dairy farm country.” Indeed, Lauderhill was originally home to more dairy cows than people. To remedy this, the neighborhood of Inverrary was built as a revolutionary planned urban development. This meant that the entire community was fully planned before any building began in order to maximize its appeal and convenience. This neighborhood is ( )
CITY OF LAUDERHILL INTERVIEW
Live, work, play How the City of Lauderhill is investing in strategic plans to position itself as a hotspot destination for residents and tourists alike
Kenneth Raymond Thurston Mayor Elect – City of Lauderhill What is the city doing to attract business to the area? The City of Lauderhill Office of Economic Development recently completed a market analysis and developed a retail business attraction plan. The plan identifies our market potential and outlines the strategies we will be focusing on over the next few years to attract new restaurants, breweries and distilleries, retail shops, entrepreneurs, credit tenants, target industries and even a hotel. Some of the recent grand openings and business attraction projects we’re excited about are Lallo’s Roti and the Economic Development Office’s new business attraction event series. Lallo’s Roti is an 8,500-squarefoot restaurant, club and event venue located on State Road 7, just a short walk from the new Lauderhill Performing Arts Center and the Central Broward Regional Park. This restaurant is the first of what we anticipate will become a hotspot destination along the State Road 7 corridor in our arts and entertainment district. How can Lauderhill build on the success of its cricket pitch and performing arts center to bring more culture and tourism into the area? Lauderhill is in an exceptional position to capitalize on the South Florida visitor market. Our Lauderhill Performing Arts Center (LPAC) recently partnered with Stage Door Theatre company and is drawing record crowds from around the region. We’re tracking our visitors and will continue to engage our current cultural audience before, during and after their visit to Lauderhill. Our approach is to also attract new audiences, increase the number of visits by our current audience and increase the amount of time and money visitors spend in Lauderhill. The cricket stadium, coupled with all the activities held at the Central Broward Regional Park, present an exceptionally exciting opportunity. We have a strong, committed tourism committee that is currently developing a strategic marketing plan that
will establish specific objectives for capitalizing on opportunities within our current market and expansion of that market. We believe all of our efforts to make Lauderhill a great place to live, work, learn, play and invest work in concert together to reach our goals. What is your outlook for the city for the rest of 2018 and into 2019? The outlook for the rest of 2018 and into 2019 is positive. Overall, property values in Lauderhill continue to increase. The city is carefully spending the $44.5 million General Obligation Bond Issue, which was approved by voters in 2016. This bond issue is increasing safety and making the city more attractive for business relocation and development. Additionally, the city will co-sponsor events in 2019 that will showcase the ethnically diverse population and the many unique restaurants in our city’s borders. www.capitalanalyticsassociates.com
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( ) home to the Inverrary Country Club, the former home of the Jackie Gleason Inverrary Golf Classic. Another key piece of the city’s history is the Lauderhill Mall, which opened in 1966 and was the first enclosed, air-conditioned shopping mall in the southeastern United States. Finally, the northwestern part of the city was developed as a single-family housing plan in the 1970s to accommodate the influx of families to the area. Diverse economy Lauderhill is an extremely diverse community, which has helped it to develop the robust economy that it enjoys today. Some of the city’s earliest residents were snowbirds who fled from cold northern winters to Lauderhill neighborhoods. As the city continued to develop throughout the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s, however, the community quickly diversified and began to attract people of many different ages and ethnicities. Thanks to an increasing number of young professionals and families moving to the area, the average age of Lauderhill residents is a youthful 35.9. Of the city’s estimated 71,970 year-round residents in 2018, 77.7 percent are black, 16.8 percent are white, 2.2 percent are two or more races, 1.5 percent are Asian and the remaining 1.4 percent are some other race. A particularly strong Caribbean community also exists within this melting pot, with many residents hailing from island nations like the Bahamas, Jamaica, Haiti and Trinidad and Tobago. The average household income in Lauderhill is $51,081, and the value of an average residential home is $115,300, 63.6 percent of which are owner-occupied. “My family and I have a long history with the City of Lauderhill,” Jason Ho, owner at Lobster Seafood & Warehouse, told Invest:. “I was actually born and raised in the city, and my family opened the first Chinese buffet in Broward County in 1979, which was also located in the city. You can say Lauderhill is special to us. We decided to place our headquarters in Lauderhill because it provides easy access for logistics with proximity to the port and airport. Elsewhere in the county either wasn’t zoned for our purposes or the rent was not affordable for a small to medium-sized business. Lauderhill provided for both.” In order to maintain the growth of Lauderhill’s economy, as well as its diverse population, on August 30, 2016, the city’s residents approved a referendum that allows the city to issue $44.5 million in general obligation bonds to fund 30 capital improvement 108 | Invest: Greater Fort Lauderdale 2019
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The Lauderhill Performing Arts Center (LPAC) provides diverse, quality performing arts programming to residents and visitors.
projects that were supported by residents in a series of public meetings with city officials. The projects involve upgrades to parks, public safety systems and general infrastructure improvements. Some notable examples include adding lights and security cameras throughout the city; making improvements to various community centers; acquiring land to construct new parks; and repairing and improving roadways citywide. Many of the projects are well underway, with construction contracts already awarded and work in progress. The city also uses its $118 million budget to carry out frequent capital improvement projects to make Lauderhill an even more desirable place to live, including the construction of the 1,200-seat, 47,585-square-foot performing arts theater and Broward County Public Library; replacing the 50th Street culvert; resurfacing Inverarry Boulevard; resurfacing 55th Avenue; modifying Ilene Lieberman Park to include updated landscaping and
CONSTRUCTION ECONOMY OVERVIEW
Charles Faranda City Manager City of Lauderhill
How has Lauderhill’s past helped to evolve the city into what it is today? Lauderhill’s history is the foundation, or DNA, of who we are and continue to be today. We began as a fabulous community known as a winter vacation and retirement destination and have grown into a thriving and diverse city that is still a fantastic place to live, work, visit and enjoy. From the first enclosed mall in the Southeast built in 1966 and the Jackie Gleason Inverrary Golf Classic of the 1970s, to the more recent opening of the Lauderhill Performing Arts Center and being home to the only International Cricket Council (ICC) certified cricket stadium in the U.S. — all of this illustrates how our original leaders’ passion for entertainment and sports can still be experienced today.
more comfortable seating to encourage increased attendance of live performances; and constructing an additional fire station at NW 31st Avenue and 12th Street. Of course, the City of Lauderhill is not only dedicated to being a great place to live; it is also a prime location to do business. Most recently, Lauderhill was recognized as one of the best small cities to start a small business, ranking 13th nationally. Over the past five years, citywide sales volumes have increased, commercial real estate prices per square foot have climbed and commercial vacancy rates have dropped. Some of the biggest sectors in Lauderhill are healthcare, retail and professional, scientific and technical services. Healthcare accounts for 22 percent of total jobs in the city; retail represents 15.7 percent of jobs; and professional, scientific and technical services makes up 15.5 percent of jobs. Lauderhill is also a noteworthy logistics hub, with an abundance of federal post
What makes Lauderhill such a great place to do business? Lauderhill is experiencing an excellent season for growth and opportunity right now, and we’re getting noticed. In August of this year, we received recognition by Fios, Verizon Business Resource Center, for being number 13 among the 50 best small cities in the U.S. to start a small business. The cities were evaluated “by the numbers” based on population, education, travel time to work, income per capita, broadband access, loans per capita and tax scores. We have a collective vision, a progressive elected body and an exceptional team of professionals who are dedicated and passionate about furthering the city’s goals, which include being business friendly and forward thinking. Our new campaign, which we recently launched at the International Council of Shopping Centers Regional Conference, is “Experience Our Culture, Elevate Your Potential, Explore Lauderhill.” We’re absolutely committed to helping entrepreneurs elevate their potential, and we’re actively highlighting the exceptional opportunities emerging due to our economic development and redevelopment efforts. www.capitalanalyticsassociates.com
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offices, a large UPS shipping and distribution center, and several international shipping companies located in the City’s Industrial Park. The city has convenient access to all major Florida highways; the Florida Turnpike, Interstates 75, 95 and 595, and the Sawgrass Expressway all within 5 miles, making it an ideal location for businesses that need to do a lot of shipping of goods and materials. It really is the Crossroads of Broward County. Hot market Given its origins as an expertly planned community founded by a successful property developer, it’s not surprising that Lauderhill continues to be a hotspot for real estate deals. One major transaction that took place in 2018 was the $28.5 million sale of Summit Palms, a 352-unit, multifamily community located at 4491 NW 19th Street. The luxury units feature upgraded kitchens and baths, private balconies and come in one-, two- or threebedroom floorplans. The community also has easy access to major roadways and is expected to attract increasing numbers of young professionals as demand continues to outweigh supply in Lauderhill. Another ambitious development project that is proposed will result in the construction of a 127bed assisted living facility directly east of the Synagogue of Inverrary Chabad. The synagogue plans to build the 100,000-square-foot facility, including a Glatt Kosher kitchen, at 6700 NW 44th
Street and then turn it over to be managed by New York-based assisted living operator MJM Associates. The facility will be named Aishel House and will cater to Jewish Orthodox seniors suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. Another big deal that closed in 2017 was D.R. Horton’s $4.8 million acquisition of a large townhouse project in Lauderhill from Cricket Club Lauderhill, LLC, which purchased the property for $2.5 million at a foreclosure sale in 2015. Known as the Cricket Club, the 10.35-acre development at the corner of Sunrise Boulevard and U.S. 441 was approved in 2016 and contains 155 townhouses. The development is conveniently located near Lauderhill’s acclaimed international cricket stadium and Central Broward Regional Park, which sees over 500,000 visitors annually. Residential development firm Behar Font Partners has chosen Lauderhill as the new location for its high-end, multifamily apartment complex. The 307 posh units will be offered in a range of floor plans, from one-, two- and three-bedroom units. The amenities will feature a bliss-inducing pool, state-of-the-art gym and spectacular clubhouse suited for work and play. Construction of the upscale housing project is set for the first quarter of 2019. Acquired by GranVita 2, LLC, the famous Inverrary Resort Hotel was purchased in a 2017 auction. Under the vision of Luis Navas, the site is undergoing major
Lauderhill has convenient access to all major Florida highways, making it an ideal location for businesses that ship a lot of goods and materials.
Sean Henderson Director– Lauderhill CRA
The Lauderhill CRA is a TIF-less CRA in Broward County, so our main focus is guiding and connecting businesses and investors with available incentives through the county, state and federal governments. For example, with 8,700 opportunity zones currently designated in the U.S., we are thrilled that areas of Lauderhill received the designation. This additional incentive for investment, coupled with our commitment to and investment in these areas, simply creates a significant win-win scenario.
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LAUDERHILL OVERVIEW
World-class acts, such as Boyz II Men (seen here), perform at the Lauderhill Performing Arts Center, but the city is also home to various free classes, concerts and festivals throughout the year.
renovations to restore the locale to modern grandeur. Originally built in the 1970s, the resort featured a 23,573-square-foot clubhouse and 30 tennis courts for entertaining the patrons of the 207 deluxe rooms. Mr. Navas expects to offer future guests walking trails, recreational areas and a golf course that would meet the renowned Professional Golfers’ Association standards.
opportunity zones. This program is advantageous to savvy investors, as it allows them a chance to defer the tax burden of their capital gains by reinvesting those profits into a qualified opportunity fund. Statewide, the U.S. Treasury approved 417 total opportunity zones, of which 123 are located within South Florida’s tri-county region. Broward County claims 30 of those zones.
Opportunity zones In 2018, as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed by Congress in December 2017, Florida’s governor and the U.S. Treasury secretary recognized three of Lauderhill’s census tracts as opportunity zones. As part of the Opportunity Zone program, each state’s governor nominated up to 25 percent of its eligible census tracts to become
Pedestrian friendly City officials in Lauderhill noticed an increasing jaywalking problem in their community. In fact, Broward County is ranked second in the entire State of Florida for pedestrian and cyclist fatalities. The vast majority of these accidents are caused by the tendency of pedestrians in the region to cross mid-block rather than at the
In 2018, Florida’s governor and the U.S. Treasury secretary recognized three of Lauderhill’s census tracts as opportunity zones.
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Craig Gundry General Manager Fassmer Technical Projects
What is a recent or near-launch innovation developed by Fassmer in Lauderhill? One of our most exciting innovations is the seven-meter Fassmer Raptor, which is a boat that can be utilized as a fast detached craft for military, police patrol and the U.S. Coast Guard, as well as for rescue operations, whether it’s rescue boats on cruise ships, commercial vessels or oil and gas vessels. What makes it innovative is the design. The Raptor is designed in such a way that increases the safety of the people operating the boat due to its better handling and performance capabilities, even in rough seas. The ride is much smoother than typical. It also is also more environmentally friendly because you’re able to get the same amount of performance with less horsepower and with a dramatic increase in miles per gallon. Can you speak a little about Fassmer’s contributions to green technology? Fassmer Technical Projects just opened as a new division this year, but Fassmer as an organization out of Germany has been around for 168 years. It is a family-owned company in its fifth generation. One of the key things that Fassmer has always been involved in is innovation, and in particular innovation focused on environmental technology that includes LNG and wind power. One of our focuses here at Fassmer Technical Projects is to bring some of these new, innovative technologies that have been developed by our headquarters in Germany and produce them here, creating more jobs and more opportunity for the company in the U.S. and in Lauderhill. Where Fassmer Technical Projects has really started to contribute and provide an option to push forward the environmental equipment initiative is that we’re able to provide vessel owners with the ability to integrate green technologies on their vessels while minimizing cost impact and the amount of time their ships are out of service. This helps protect our atmosphere and oceans without significantly disrupting owners’ ability to gain revenue. 112 | Invest: Greater Fort Lauderdale 2019
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designated crosswalks. In response, the city passed a resolution endorsing Pedestrian Safety Through Environmental Design Principles (PEDSTED), which is a collection of guidelines designed to discourage people from crossing major roadways at dangerous and undesignated points. The capital improvement projects discussed earlier, among others, are being implemented with PEDSTED in mind. Lauderhill is simultaneously taking proactive measures to enforce and fine repeat jaywalking offenders. This heightened vigilance is funded by a $100,000 grant from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) and the University of South Florida Center for Urban Transportation, which was used to pay the overtime of officers monitoring jaywalkers. Expectedly, PEDSTED and the stricter enforcement of anti-jaywalking laws will keep Lauderhill’s pedestrians safer. Educating minds One of the most important things to young families with children when they are looking for a place to live is high-quality schools. Fortunately, Lauderhill’s leadership understands this and is making concerted efforts to improve its educational facilities, both private and public. Among the schools that service Lauderhill residents is Lauderhill 6-12 STEM-MED, a Broward CountyPublic School with the mission of preparing students to succeed in college and life. In order to ensure the excellence of all of its schools, Broward County Public Schools implemented the School Improvement Plan system, which provides a mechanism to identify the needs of schools and students alike and to meet those needs at the individual school level. This is a living plan, meaning improvements are ongoing and revised as needed. This system operates in Broward County Public Schools throughout Lauderhill, including at Lauderhill 6-12 STEM-MED. Additionally, the City of Lauderhill is providing scholarships to Broward College for successful students to pursue a career in fire sciences. Arts, culture and cricket Lauderhill has grown from a small dairy farming community in the Everglades to a vibrant community that attracts visitors from throughout Florida and beyond thanks to its robust variety of cultural and entertainment venues. One prominent cultural institution is the Lauderhill Performing Arts Center (LPAC), which officially opened on January 20, 2016.
CITY OF LAUDERHILL OVERVIEW
Jammin’ in the Park is presented in conjunction wtih LT’s Throwback Golf Tournament, and proceeds benefit Fore Life. This free festival includes live music, art, raffles and lots of tasty food and drink options.
The LPAC enriches Lauderhill and its neighboring communities through the provision of diverse and high-quality performing arts, including music, theater, dance, cinema, visual arts and more. Most recently, the LPAC has expanded its offerings by partnering with Stage Door as its resident theater company. The highly regarded theater group will produce more than 175 shows per year. Along with being a hub of community involvement and general artistic expression, the LPAC is a magnet for economic growth. The building is a LEED Silver structure and was built with $5.8 million from the City’s 2005 General Obligation Bond and matching funds from the Broward County Park Bond.
Lauderhill is also home to the only cricket stadium in North America that is officially recognized by the ICC. The stadium was opened in 2007, and the whole park cost $70 million to build. It is a significant cultural and economic benefit to Lauderhill and Broward County, attracting fans of the sport from all over the world. In addition to cricket, the stadium hosts Australian Rules football, American football, rugby, soccer and concerts in order to augment its revenue beyond the money brought in by cricket alone. Finally, Lauderhill is home to various free classes, festivals and concerts, such as the Green Series,
Jo Mini Manager– Tate’s Comics Inc.
Our biggest concern with serving the community is to make sure we are actually a part of the community. We hold many events year round that are open for all to come and are geared to a large swath of the community. Be it Tate’s Not at Comic-con, our twice yearly sales or Star Wars Day, all of these are community focused and aimed at getting the people of Lauderhill not only into our store but also together to talk, have fun and maybe even make a new friend.
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The City of Lauderhilll has made an effort to partner with local businesses on new and creative events that help bring people to both the stores and the city.
Jammin’ in the Park & Art Fest and the new Pork, Pints & Palettes Beer-B-Q event. Growing pains The primary challenges facing the City of Lauderhill are not unlike those confronting other growing cities across the United States. With regard to real estate, Lauderhill’s original period of development throughout the 1960s and ’70s means that many of its existing properties are older and in need of retrofitting or replacement. On the one hand, this situation has kept the median property values relatively low despite the intense demand, but it could also be deterring young professionals and their families from buying property, as these demographics often prefer more modern accommodations. Fortunately, there are many real estate development projects underway that will help to address the shortfall in state-of-theart housing. The city is also proactively addressing the related problem of dated infrastructure and utilities by replacing and improving various roads and water systems.
Bright future Lauderhill has come a long way since its humble beginnings as a small community in dairy country. Today, it is a diverse and thriving city of young professionals, with alluring cultural attractions, a stateof-the-art performing arts center, numerous small businesses, an array of authentic international cuisine and the only certified international cricket stadium on North American soil. As it continues to grow along with the rest of Broward, it will attract new residents and become home to a wider mix of businesses and attractions. Thanks to the efforts currently being made by city officials, the Lauderhill of the future promises to be an even more vibrant and livable community than even Herbert Sadkin and his co-founders could have hoped for when they incorporated the city all those years ago.
Today, Lauderhill is a diverse and thriving city of young families and professionals.
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Capital Analytics would like to thank the City of Lauderhill for its contribution in compiling this chapter. To learn more, visit their website: www.lauderhill-fl.gov.