Marathon City Commission Meeting on Beach Condo Project Ends Without a Vote

COMMUNITY NEWS

Marathon City Commission Meeting on Beach Condo Project Ends Without a Vote

The City of Hollywood is working with developer Related Group to build a condominium tower and new ocean-front community center on Hollywood Beach. The development would be located on a city-owned 3.5-acre beach-front parcel currently home to the City of Hollywood Beach Culture and Community Center, Harry Berry Park, and two parking lots.

The proposal has generated significant community engagement, with many opposing the proposal. Community members opposing the development raised several concerns including the height of the proposed tower, the use of public land for private development, and increased density on Hollywood Beach.

The Proposal

On January 21, 2020, Related Group submitted an unsolicited proposal to the city to develop the property, which is currently a public park and community center. The City Commission subsequently discussed the condition of the current community center and development interest in this site in a public Commission Real Estate Workshop. Following that meeting, the city decided to broadly market any opportunity to redevelop the site. Their stated objective was to achieve the best possible proposals for the benefit of Hollywood residents. The City of Hollywood released a Request for Proposal (RFP) to solicit other developers to bid on the property. After about a year-long process, the city selected the original developer, Related Group’s proposal on February 18, 2021. The recommendation was subsequently approved by the City Commission on March 17, 2021.

City negotiators have been working with Related Group since then to agree upon terms for the proposed development. They developed a Comprehensive Agreement and Ground Lease Agreement with the hopes of attaining a vote of approval at the City Commission meeting on February 2.

The proposal would be a boon to Hollywood’s balance sheet. The city would enter into a 99-year land lease and receive 14% of the developer’s gross condominium sales, which is estimated to be more than $50 million. In addition, ongoing tax and rental revenue are estimated to total more than $3 million a year.

Controversy

The City Commission meeting to discuss and vote on the proposal lasted from 5:00 pm until 3:00 am and ended without a vote. More than 100 people signed up to speak at the meeting. The majority of speakers were against the plan, with most referencing the elimination of the open space and new levels of building height on that end of the beach.

“Three acres were deeded to the city for parks and recreation, open space and public purpose, and one acre was bought with water, land and conservation money for a public park,” said Susan Caruso during public comments, “this proposal is not a public use.”

Vice Mayor Caryl Shuham raised a motion against the development. The motion was seconded but not approved. Following her motion, Shuham gave a lengthy speech detailing her view of the plan.

“None of the calculations that you are relying on to think that these big dollars are coming our way are set in stone, like they were in the Margaritaville deal,” Shuham commented. She later added, “You may not like that building (Margaritaville) but it has transformed our city. The reason we did it was for economic development. We have a much more lucrative boardwalk because of Margaritaville. This project does nothing for our city’s economic development. It only brings in revenue.” Shuham went on to criticize a number of the fine points in the proposed agreements.

“I have received over 2,000 outreaches from residents. There is not a single civic organization, volunteer group, city committee, task force, or civic association that has come out in favor of this project.”

Related Group founder, Chairman and CEO Jorge Perez also spoke at the meeting, indicating the project is a “very, very good deal for the city of Hollywood… We’ve been here for 42 years. We [are] now getting close to 120,000 units that we built mostly in South Florida. We have a deep, deep commitment to the South Florida community.”

The Hollywood Commission decided to table the issue until a March 16th meeting where the Commission will again consider the proposal. The time for the meeting has not been release at the time of publication. It will be held at Hollywood City Hall.