Despite strong local backlash, the controversial Portofino Hollywood project slated to rise on public beachfront land is edging toward final commission approval in October.
If all goes as planned, the 30-story tower would break ground by the end of 2027 and open in late 2029, says Keith Poliakoff, attorney for the developer.
Opponents are expected to come out in force on Sept. 8, when the high-rise project comes back to City Hall for a vote by Hollywood’s planning board on the site plan and design. A final vote by the City Commission is expected on Oct. 7.
Commissioner Kevin Biederman says he is looking forward to that final vote.
Biederman said he had no idea it would take years to see the project break ground. But he doesn’t attribute the long delay to what he called the persistent resistance.
Biederman argued the project will be good for the city’s bottom line.
Under the deal, Hollywood Portofino is conservatively estimated to yield anywhere from $1 billion to $1.8 billion to the city over the course of the 99-year ground lease.
If voters across the state approve the property tax break known as Amendment 3 in November, Hollywood might need a development like Portofino to help balance the budget, Biederman said.
“If the tax thing goes through, we are going to need the money that tower will get us,” he said. “1301 will produce multiple millions of dollars that will flow into our city and benefit the neighborhoods without having to burden the residents with a higher tax rate. Optimistically, 1301 could end up lowering our tax rate. It will benefit all of Hollywood.”
The $375 million project — a public-private partnership between Hollywood and Miami-based Related Group — is now moving forward as a Live Local project with a 99-year ground lease approved by Hollywood commissioners more than four years ago.
The state’s Live Local Act now allows developers to build workforce housing on government land.
Related Group revised the project to add workforce apartments under the Live Local Act, a move that allows the developer to bypass certain land-use and regulatory hurdles. Hollywood commissioners approved that change in May.
An artist’s illustration shows a luxury condo tower with workforce housing apartments planned on public land at 1301 S. Ocean Drive, now home to a park and community center in Hollywood. (SOM/CFE/ARX, Courtesy)
Originally proposed as a 27-story tower with 111 luxury condo residences, the new plan calls for a 30-story tower with 84 workforce rental apartments and 126 condo residences priced at $4 million or more.
“The old project was much more of an in-your-face project,” Poliakoff told the South Florida Sun Sentinel. “The building wasn’t sideways. It was directly facing the water. This is a better project. Taller and skinnier.”
The tower would rise 375 feet high and sit steps from the ocean on taxpayer-owned land at 1301 S. Ocean Drive, now home to a community center and Harry Berry Park. The parcel was deeded to the city more than 50 years ago.
As part of the deal, Related Group has agreed to expand Harry Berry Park and replace the outdated community center with a modern two-story building.
Under state law, Live Local projects typically do not require commission approval. But in this case, a commission vote is required because Hollywood owns the land, Poliakoff said.
Opponents say a private condo tower should not be built on city-owned land at 1301 S. Ocean Drive in Hollywood, shown on Thursday. (Carline Jean/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Commissioner Caryl Shuham has consistently voted against the project.
“I continue to strongly oppose the use of the community center site for a Live Local Act project — one that as of today might include separate entrances and amenities for those in the affordable units versus those in the multimillion-dollar condos,” Shuham told the Sun Sentinel. “That concept is a terrible fit for the city of Hollywood, especially when the city would serve as the property’s landlord.”
Shuham dismissed the notion that the project will save the city’s budget as a complete red herring.
“We do not need this project to generate a balanced and strong city budget,” she said. “And it is very dangerous to begin using city public recreational space to generate residential property tax revenue. If that’s the path Hollywood chooses, every single park in the city is now exposed to the risk of becoming a revenue generator. As a city, we owe it to our residents to maintain community and recreational space.”
A lawsuit was filed in June seeking to block the project and save the parcel from what some are calling a land giveaway. The city of Hollywood and Related Group are listed as defendants.
Poliakoff filed a motion last week seeking to dismiss the lawsuit.
Ryan Abrams, attorney for plaintiff Kathleen DiBona and the nonprofit group Keep Public Lands Public, has since refiled the complaint, removing the demand for injunctive relief. A hearing has been set for Sept. 22.
A sign, shown Thursday, alerts the public about an upcoming meeting related to a controversial high-rise project planned on public land at 1301 S. Ocean Drive in Hollywood. (Carline Jean/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Hollywood has been working on the controversial deal since June 2020, when Related Group submitted an unsolicited proposal to develop the city-owned land.
Ever since, outspoken residents have been showing up at City Hall meetings to argue that private condo towers do not belong on public land.
A Facebook page called “NO private condo tower on Hollywood public page” now has 2,200 followers and posts regular updates to keep opponents informed.
One recent post urges opponents to show up at the upcoming planning board meeting to speak against the proposed high-rise tower.
Because the parcel is zoned “government use,” it’s exempt from any height cap, Hollywood officials say. Under that special zoning, any potential cap on height would be up to the discretion of the City Commission.
Critics have nonetheless argued that the proposed tower is too tall for the site and incompatible with the surrounding area.
Hollywood planning staff argue the opposite.
“With respect to surrounding character, the Staff identifies this portion of South Ocean Drive as an established high-rise oceanfront residential corridor,” staff wrote in a backup memo for the city’s planning board meeting on Sept. 8. “Staff identifies the Summit Condominium, north of the site, as 24 stories and more than 200 feet in height; the Stratford Towers immediately to the south as 10 stories; and the Oxford Towers and Trafalgar Towers farther south as approximately 16 stories.”
In the document, staff recommends the City Commission set the height cap for the new tower at 375 feet and 4 inches.
Members of the planning board will vote on a recommended height at their meeting in September. But the final decision will fall to the commission.
Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com. Follow me on X @Susannah_Bryan