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Jeffrey Soffer loses appeal to block 2 a.m. last call in Miami Beach’s South of Fifth
Appeals court denied request by Story nightclub, owned by the developer, to overturn judge’s ruling allowing city’s new liquor cutoff time
Jeffrey Soffer’s fight to revive late night partying at his shuttered Miami Beach nightclub is effectively over.
Last week, the Third District Court of Appeals denied a Soffer entity’s petition to overturn a lower court’s March ruling upholding Miami Beach’s 2 a.m. last call for booze in the city’s South of Fifth neighborhood. Previously, South of Fifth bars and Story nightclub at 136 Collins Avenue, which is owned by Soffer and his partner David Grutman, were allowed to serve alcohol until 5 a.m.
In April, Soffer and Grutman closed Story indefinitely when the last call rollback took effect. The appeals court’s decision likely killed any shot the duo had of reopening the formerly thriving entertainment venue.
A spokesperson for Fontainebleau Development, Soffer’s Aventura-based real estate firm, and an attorney for Story nightclub did not respond to requests for comment. Edward Guedes, a partner with Weiss Serota Helfman Cole + Bierman who represented the city, said the appeals court determined Story’s petition failed to make a compelling basis to block the last call rollback.
“The city put on a very strong case,” Guedes said. “The appeals court found that there was evidence before the trial judge that the city had valid reasons” for eliminating last call at 5 a.m.
Eight months ago, Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Reemberto Diaz ruled that Miami Beach could enforce the 2 a.m. last call that the city commission approved in February. But Diaz granted Story a 30-day stay allowing the nightclub to remain open during Spring Break, one of the busiest times for late night venues in Miami Beach.
The Soffer entity that owns Story sought an injunction against the city, alleging in a Miami-Dade civil lawsuit that Miami Beach officials illegally singled out and targeted the nightclub. The city commission carved out an exemption for establishments with a capacity of 100 people or less.
Also in March, Soffer purchased the 17,000-square-foot building that houses Story for $23 million.
Diaz and the appeals court determined that Miami Beach officials had a rational reason for treating Story, a world known nightlife venue, differently from small local watering holes, said Guedes, the lawyer representing the city.
Soffer is among South Florida’s most well-known developers. In July, the Miami-Dade County Commission approved a 50-year lease with a joint venture between Soffer’s Fontainebleau and Steve Ross’ Related Companies to build a new 451-room hotel at Miami International Airport. The proposed Westin-branded hotel is expected to generate roughly $240 million over the life of the lease, according to county officials.
The same month, Fontainebleau landed a $72.8 million construction loan for a proposed five-story events center currently under construction adjacent to Soffer’s Fontainebleau Miami Beach oceanfront resort.