New hotels sprout on South Beach

Even with the real estate downturn, hotels on Miami Beach continue to
pop up, especially smaller, boutique accommodations. The trend is not
limited to South Beach, however, as hotels have been opening in Fort
Lauderdale and downtown Miami. One newcomer is the Prime Hotel, owned
by Myles Chefetz, who owns, with four other restaurants, the
high-priced Prime One Twelve restaurant on Ocean Drive. Two other small
hotels will open on the island soon, including Sense and Villa Italia,
each of which has less than 20 rooms. All three hotels, including
Prime, were designed by Luigi Vitalini, of Coral Gables-based Vitalini
Corazzini Architects. [Miami Herald]