touch of class<\/a> to Las Olas, said Stephanie Toothaker, attorney for the developer.<\/p>\n\u201cIt\u2019s described as a jewel box,\u201d Toothaker said during a recent planning board meeting. \u201cYou can see why. It\u2019s just absolutely beautifully designed.\u201d<\/p>\n
The project, designed by Arquitectonica, still needs a green light from the Fort Lauderdale commission.<\/p>\n
Commissioners are expected to vote on the proposal on May 19. A second and final vote would come on June 2.<\/p>\n
The project is not without controversy.<\/p>\n
In response to neighborhood concerns, the developer lowered the height of the proposed building from 90 feet to 74 feet and scrapped plans to include two restaurants on site. In shrinking the design, the building went from 40,000 square feet to 32,000.<\/p>\n
But residents in the Colee Hammock and Beverly Heights neighborhoods still say the building is too big. They\u2019re also not happy that no new parking is planned.<\/p>\n
One of those residents \u2014 Jacquelyn \u201cJackie\u201d Scott, president of the Colee Hammock Homeowners Association \u2014 happens to serve on the city\u2019s Planning and Zoning Board.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a 50-foot lot, which is a postage stamp that we\u2019re trying to put an elephant on,\u201d Scott said before voting against the project. \u201cAnd we\u2019re trying to justify it by saying, \u2018Weston Jewelers is coming, oh my God.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
In the end, the project got a nod from the planning board with a 4-3 vote.<\/p>\n
Scott argued that the building as currently planned is not compatible with the neighborhood.<\/p>\n
Hector DelaTorres, another planning board member, cited the other tall buildings that are either under construction nearby or already standing.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it is compatible with the neighborhood,\u201d he said before making a motion to approve.<\/p>\n
Patrick McTigue, chair of the planning board, voted last and cast the deciding vote \u2014 but not before taking a long and tortured pause.<\/p>\n
\u201cBrutal one,\u201d he said before voting, bringing his hands to his face, taking deep breaths, and rubbing his hand. \u201cI\u2019m just torn over this one. I see both sides. It\u2019s going to the commission. Yes.\u201d
\n![\"Rendering](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Rolex-3.png\")
Rendering of a five-story Rolex-branded store planned for 1117 E. Las Olas Blvd., right along the Himmarshee Canal in Fort Lauderdale. (Arquitectonica\/Courtesy)\n<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s what has some folks fired up.<\/p>\n
Under city code, the store is required to have 129 parking spaces.<\/p>\n
But the developer does not plan to build any parking spaces, arguing that customers can park in nearby lots that serve a multitude of businesses along Las Olas.<\/p>\n
Critics are also worried about the building height overwhelming the area.<\/p>\n
The property is split between two zoning districts.<\/p>\n
The southern parcel facing Las Olas Boulevard is zoned business and capped at 150 feet. The northern parcel is zoned residential medium density and capped at 35 feet.<\/p>\n
The Rolex store would rise 74 feet high, more than twice the allowed height cap on the northern parcel.<\/p>\n
To make way for a higher building, the developer is seeking a zoning change from residential to community business.<\/p>\n
But Anthony Battista, president of the nearby Villaggio Di Las Olas Condo Association, argued the building is just way too tall.<\/p>\n
\u201cA building that size would destroy the character of the neighborhood,\u201d Battista told the planning board before the vote.<\/p>\n
Toothaker, attorney for the developer, touted the project as one that would fill a gap in the luxury shopping market that only got wider with the closing of Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue and a small Louis Vuitton store at the Galleria mall.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany people in the community talk about the total dearth of shopping options for everybody,\u201d Toothaker told the board. \u201cWe have really had a gap in the luxury shopping space. We have an opportunity. We have an actual luxury brand at the table.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Rendering](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Rolex-4.png\")
Rendering of a five-story Rolex-branded store planned for 1117 E. Las Olas Blvd., right along the Himmarshee Canal in Fort Lauderdale. (Arquitectonica\/Courtesy)<\/p>\n
The store would offer not only Rolex, but several other exclusive brands, Toothaker said before ticking off the names: Cartier, Chanel, Patek Phillipe, Audemars Piguet, Richard Mille and Hublot.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd those are just the tip of the iceberg for what will be included in this incredible store,\u201d Toothaker said.<\/p>\n
Right now, residents shopping for luxury items get in their cars and leave Fort Lauderdale, Toothaker said.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople get in their car and drive north to Worth Avenue or they drive south to the Miami Design District,\u201d she added. \u201cOr they go to Bal Harbour Shops or they go to Aventura or they go to Brickell City Center.\u201d<\/p>\n
The new Rolex store is just what Fort Lauderdale needs, said Jennifer Leong, a global real estate adviser who works with wealthy clients worldwide.<\/p>\n
When it comes to the international elite, Fort Lauderdale is still an unknown compared to Miami and Palm Beach, she told the planning board.\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019re known internationally as the doughnut hole, the forgotten city,\u201d Leong said. \u201cThey don\u2019t talk about us. They don\u2019t know about us.\u201d<\/p>\n
A Rolex-branded store on Las Olas would help put Fort Lauderdale on the map, Leong argued.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need this,\u201d she said. \u201cWe need this store desperately. Or we\u2019re going to be the doughnut hole.\u201d<\/p>\n
Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com. Follow me on X @Susannah_Bryan<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"High-end luxury in the form of a five-story Rolex-branded jewelry store could be coming to Fort Lauderdale\u2019s Las…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":248713,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[506,28,249,251,250,114,266,109],"class_list":["post-248712","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fort-lauderdale","tag-broward-county","tag-florida","tag-fort-lauderdale","tag-fort-lauderdale-headlines","tag-fort-lauderdale-news","tag-latest-headlines","tag-local-news","tag-social"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248712","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=248712"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248712\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/248713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=248712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=248712"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=248712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}