The Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show is set to remain at the Bahia Mar resort through 2050.
The announcement from the Marine Industries Association of South Florida for the boat show’s 30-year lease extension on Tuesday also prompted city commissioners to cast votes allowing developer Jimmy Tate and Rahn Bahia Mar LLC to submit a new proposal to redevelop the site, according to a report from the Sun-Sentinel.
The boat show brings in significant funds to Fort Lauderdale, about $850 million to the city annually.
Preliminary plans for the redeveloped property and 39-acre marina would include replacing the existing hotel and adding seven, 11-story apartment buildings, surrounding dock space, and restaurants — not to mention a small fishing village. The city said that it would not accept just any proposal, and even if Rahn Bahia Mar receives approval, Tate will have to renegotiate the terms of his 46-year lease on the city property, according to the Sun-Sentinel.
The low-lying buildings are a scaled-down version of Tate’s original 39-story tower proposal. But, even the scaled-down plans have been met with opposition from residents who disapprove of a 651-unit apartment development and 250-room hotel on city-owned, Tate-leased land.
In April, Tate explained the Fort Lauderdale project to The Real Deal. ““It’s phased so [the investment is] fairly significant. Between the 650 residential units and the commercial and the hotel, it’s probably, from an investment standpoint, $500 [million], $600 million,” Tate said in a video interview at TRD‘s Third Annual Broward Real Estate Showcase & Forum. “If we sell the condos, you’re talking a billion and a half, $2 billion.”
The vote was 4-1 from the city commissioners for redevelopment proposals for Bahia Mar. The oppositional commissioner Romney Rodgers told the Sun-Sentinel that he didn’t have enough information to feel comfortable in casting a supporting vote. [SunSentinel] — Grace Guarnieri