The former Howard Johnson’s hotel on Fort Lauderdale Beach has been demolished to make way for the luxury Paramount Fort Lauderdale Beach condo project.
Severely damaged during Hurricane Wilma nine years ago, the hotel was razed Wednesday morning, according to a project spokesperson. Paramount developers Art Falcone, Daniel Kodsi and Nitin Motwani joined construction crews on-site for the demolition. A Motwani-managed company paid $20 million for the two-acre property at 700 State Road A1A last spring.
Plans for Paramount Fort Lauderdale Beach include 95 condos priced from $1 million. Construction of the condo building is expected to start during the third quarter of 2014, with completion projected in the winter of 2016. The developers are requiring buyers to make down payments in three installments: 10 percent to reserve a unit, 10 percent to go under contract and 10 percent at groundbreaking. — Eric Kalis