Broward Marina Owner Seeks Partner For Redevelopment Project

The owner of the Aquamarina Hidden Harbour and surrounding land in Pompano Beach is seeking a development partner should it receive approval for the property’s mixed-use redevelopment plan.

Aventura-based Aqua Marine Partners has a pending comprehensive plan amendment for its nine-acre site on the east side of Federal Highway from Northeast 15th Street to Northeast 16th Street.

Attorney Graham Penn, who represents the owner, said the plan would allow up to 343 residential units and at least 10,000 square feet of commercial/retail space. At least 10 percent of the site must be a use other than residential, he added. The exact size and design of the project would be determined later during the site plan process, likely with an experienced developer as a partner, Penn said.

Andrew Sturner, CEO of Aqua Marine Partners, said he has committed to keeping the main boat storage and working marina on about 2.5 acres and the balance of the site would be redeveloped. He would move some of the marine repair operations into the existing dry stack building. Sturner hopes to reserve space in the new retail for his existing marine-related retail tenants.

“The goal is to keep 100 percent of the marine use,” Sturner said. “The one thing we are focused on is continuing to maintain the marine use and continue to own and operate the marina.”

Sturner’s group bought the marina at 2315 N.E. 15th Street from Huizenga Holdings in 2008. His company owns five marinas. Since Aqua Marine Partners is not a residential developer, Sturner hopes to find a partner with experience in that field.

“We are looking for something that compliments the marina lifestyle and the recreational boating lifestyle,” Sturner said.

Pompano Beach officials have been encouraging more mixed-use development in the city. In 2013, the city issued a transportation corridor study that advocated for residential projects with ground-floor retail along main roadways such as Federal Highway, Dixie Highway and Atlantic Boulevard. The city recently submitted a plan to the county to rezone much of Atlantic Boulevard, and part of Federal Highway, to encourage pedestrian-friendly mixed-use.

While that plan doesn’t include the Aquamarina Hidden Harbour site, Penn said he feels the development will match what the city is looking for.

Much of the space along Federal Highway in front of the Aquamarina Hidden Harbour is currently vacant. Penn said the development plan would require at least one public access point of viewpoint to the water from the surrounding streets.

“The comprehensive plan amendment for Aquamarina Hidden Harbour passed the city commission on first reading.” Penn said. “It will likely head to the county commission in May or June, and then require another city commission vote. We are trying to set the table for someone to come in and get the flexibility to design something that is really great.”

Click here for a SFBJ slideshow of the Aquamarina Hidden Harbour in Pompano Beach.

 

Source: SFBJ

Broward Sets Hearing On Medical Marijuana Shops

Medical marijuana shops could crop up on Broward’s main thoroughfares.

Commercial strips along Sunrise Boulevard, U.S. 441, Northwest 27th Avenue and Northwest 31st Avenue, also known as Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, would be fertile territory for marijuana dispensaries, under a proposal county commissioners pushed forward Tuesday. Commissioners set a March 14 public hearing, where a final decision will be made.

Broward’s move Tuesday involves a tiny sliver of the county, the unincorporated areas. All other parts of Broward are represented by city governments, and city officials will settle the rules about where dispensaries can be within their boundaries.

Some of them, such as Sunrise, Boca Raton, Hallandale Beach and Fort Lauderdale, already have put temporary moratoriums in place while they wait to see the state’s new rules. Palm Beach County also put a moratorium in place.

Any pot shop in unincorporated Broward would be required to have 24-hour security and video surveillance cameras, under what’s proposed. The company would have to employ a medical director, and the owner would have to undergo a background check. The shops could not be within 1,200 feet of a church, school, daycare center or another marijuana dispensary. The shop would have to close by 9 p.m. Even with the correct zoning, the dispensaries, where patients would obtain medical marijuana, could not be opened without County Commission approval. One criteria would be that it is “compatible with the community character.’’

The only sites where marijuana could be cultivated and processed would be in industrially zoned areas.

  • In unincorporated Broward, the only industrial zoning is along the east side of Northwest 27th Avenue, south of Sistrunk Boulevard, and just north of Broward Boulevard, between Northwest 25th Terrace and Northwest 25th Avenue, zoning maps show.
  • Northwest 27th Avenue has the most medical marijuana zoning, in the proposal, from Sunrise Boulevard south to just before Broward Boulevard.
  • The portion of U.S. 441 affected by the proposed law is in Broadview Park, on the west side of the highway, from Davie Boulevard south to Interstate 595.
  • Along Sunrise Boulevard, the dispensary zoning is on the south side, from Northwest 31st Avenue to Northwest 27th Avenue.
  • On Broward Boulevard, just one corner at Northwest 25th Avenue meets the zoning rules.
  • And along the east side of Northwest 31st Avenue, a section from Sunrise Boulevard north to 13th Street would be eligible for marijuana establishments.

Residents in the community weren’t aware of the proposal, the Rev. Jesse Scipio said. Scipio, president of Boulevard Gardens Home Owner Association, said marijuana shops have no place in his community. Boulevard Gardens, north of Broward Boulevard between Northwest 31st to Northwest 24th avenues in central Broward County, has some of the intense commercial zoning proposed for pot shops.

“I don’t understand why we weren’t aware that was the county’s proposal,’’ Scipio said. “They didn’t come to us at all and ask us, ‘Would you want to have that?’”

Scipio said the community already has problems with drug users and doesn’t need medical marijuana added to the mix.

“Let’s put it this way: You’ve got a small fire and you’re going to add fuel to the fire,’’ Scipio said.

Broward Commissioner Dale Holness said the community’s opinions will be considered. A Feb. 22 public hearing will be held by county staff. Their recommendation will go to the County Commission for the March 14 final vote. He said the proposal gives the County Commission “leeway,’’ requiring their permission for any dispensary business to open.

“This is now putting the public on notice that we’re considering it,’’ said Holness, who represents the unincorporated areas. “We can make adjustments as the community wishes, or come back and say we want a moratorium.’’

Florida voters on Nov. 8 amended the state Constitution to expand the legal medical uses for marijuana and required the state Department of Health to regulate the business. For now, there are seven licenses to grow, process and distribute medical  marijuana, and only one, in Miami-Dade County, is in South Florida. But state legislators are considering bills that would allow the number of marijuana dispensaries to grow.

The Feb. 22 public meeting of the planning and development management division on the county’s proposed ordinance is at 10 a.m. The Local Planning Agency meeting is held in room 329F in the Broward County Governmental Center, 115 S. Andrews Ave., in downtown Fort Lauderdale. The County Commission’s March 14 final public hearing will be held at 10 a.m. in the same building, in room 422.

Click here for the Sun-Sentnel news video ‘Commissioners Set March 14 Public Hearing For Medical Marijuana Shops”

 

Source: SunSentinel

Broward Takes First Steps Toward ‘Downtown West’

But for the hockey arena on it, the 143 acres of public land on the edge of the Everglades in Sunrise is a clean slate.

In the coming 20 years, the county intends to fill in the grassy blanks with Downtown West, a mix that could include condos, stores, restaurants, offices, maybe even a casino.

This week, Broward County embraced a development vision for the land, a potential playbook created by the Urban Land Institute. The nonprofit real estate consultancy visited the site, studied it and issued the report this month. To carry it out, the County Commission agreed Tuesday to hire two real estate employees, including a director of real estate.

The institute’s land-use experts said the county-owned BB&T Center, a giant venue surrounded by parking spaces, represents “an opportunity lost.’’ The consultants said visitors leave the arena after shows or games because there’s nothing there to capture them. They suggest the land be developed thoughtfully, and slowly, with a potential mix of housing, a hotel, office space, retail, a casino and the hockey arena.

“The undertaking is huge and could be controversial,” said Broward Commissioner Nan Rich, who represents most of Sunrise. “There’s a lot of potential. But we have to get it right, and that’s the challenge.’’

The mix of development — including whether casino rights are obtained and whether the Florida Panthers hockey team remains in the arena — will be determined in the coming years. The development is expected to complement what’s around it: America’s largest single-story retail mall, Sawgrass Mills, condo towers and  Metropica, a $1.5 billion development on Northwest 136th Avenue and Sunrise Boulevard that’s in the planning stages.

Sunrise Mayor Mike Ryan said he’s “thrilled’’ the county is taking the opportunity so seriously. He said the arena never was expected to stand alone, as it has since its 1998 construction. Sunrise supports development of the land, he said, and the market will determine the right mixture of uses.

“We’re a partner in trying to help find something that works in the context of what’s already there,’’ Mayor Ryan said.

The land for years was in the hands of the hockey team owners, who never used it. The Panthers, a National Hockey League team, plays in the county arena, and an affiliated company operates it. In a reworked agreement in December 2015, the county won back development rights to the land surrounding the arena. The deal increased the public subsidy of the team by $86 million, to $342 million. The new agreement aims to keep the team in the BB&T Center until 2028.

The county brought Urban Land Institute to town last summer to brainstorm possibilities for the land around the arena, and to look at possibilities if the Panthers ultimately depart. After visiting in June, the institute’s participating experts interviewed those involved in the arena and the site and conducted research, producing the report released this month.

The consultants explored three alternatives: the Panthers extend their lease, and a casino is added; the Panthers extend their lease, and office and housing are added; and the Panthers leave, the arena is demolished, and housing, a casino and offices are added. The third option would bring in the most tax revenue and income to the county, at an estimated $391.3 million over 11 years, the report said.

“Limited initial demand exists for new development on the site,’’ the report says, “However, over time, more opportunities will arise.’’

The development report lays out a timeline from now to 2040 for remaking the acreage.

“Redevelopment of the arena site will require a long-term, patient approach that will take more than 20 years,’’ the report says.

It also acknowledges that market forces, including potential downturns, remain unknown. The path to development started Tuesday with the agreement to hire real estate overseers. The expense of a real estate director and project coordinator is expected to be $275,000 a year, a county memo says.

The consultants suggest the county start by assembling a Downtown West Broward Leadership Council, a hub for public input and problem solving. Ryan said one thorny issue will be management of traffic. He’s advocating construction of Sawgrass Expressway ramps to and from the north, to help drivers reach and depart from the site. He also said it’s important that the county not build anything that would compete with or detract from nearby development.

“It’s critical to get participation from everyone from the beginning,’’ Broward Commissioner Nan Rich said.  “One thing is clear, there has got to be a lot of involvement from the community. When you’re developing something this size, I don’t want to superimpose things on people that live in an area.’’

Click here to view the SunSentinel video ‘Broward Embraces Development Vision of Downtown West’

Click here to view the SunSentinel video ‘Broward Explores Developing Land Around BB&T Center’

 

Source: SunSentinel

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Canadian Drug Firm Buys Miramar Warehouse For $50 Million

Canada-based generic pharmaceutical company Apotex Corp. bought a warehouse in Miramar for $50 million.

An affiliate of Apotex, called Sherm Realty Corp., bought the 302,864-square-foot warehouse Jan. 31 for $165 per square foot.

The seller was Atlanta-based industrial property developer IDI Gazeley, which built the warehouse in 2014.

5501 SW 29 Street in Miramar

The warehouse is located on a 20-acre lot in a corporate park that IDI Gazeley developed at 15501 Southwest 29 Street in Miramar, northwest of Miramar Parkway and Interstate 75. The park’s tenants include Kellstrom Defense Industries Inc.

Colliers International reported that the pace of industrial-space absorption in Broward during last year’s fourth quarter was the fastest in a decade and supported “skyrocketing” lease rates. Colliers reported that 37 percent of all Broward industrial space leased last year was leased in the fourth quarter, about 936,000 square feet.

 

Source: The Real Deal