CLIENT NEWS: A new project is planned at the former Deauville hotel site. Here’s what it looks like:
November 26, 2024Two years after Miami Beach voters rejected a plan to bring a hotel and condo tower to the location of the shuttered Deauville Beach Resort, a different group of developers is seeking to redevelop the site.
The Miami Beach Planning Board considered zoning changes Tuesday that would allow for a pair of 400-foot-tall condo towers alongside a reimagined version of the iconic hotel that once hosted the Beatles.
The project at 6701 Collins Ave. is a joint venture between the Meruelo family that owns the property and developer David Martin, whose Terra Group bought a 25% stake in the property in April.
In a statement, Martin said the project in the North Beach neighborhood would “blend the original hotel’s iconic architecture with modern aesthetics and amenities.”
“I think North Beach has so much opportunity, and I think this property is truly a vital piece of the revitalization of North Beach,” Martin told the Planning Board on Tuesday.
The site has been a point of controversy for years. The Deauville closed after an electrical fire in 2017 and was declared unsafe by the city, but some officials and residents accused the hotel’s owners of letting it fall into disrepair to expedite its demolition. The structure was demolished in November 2022, days after voters nixed a redevelopment plan by developer and Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and legendary architect Frank Gehry.
The new developers have several hurdles to clear before they can move forward.
The Planning Board didn’t vote on the project Tuesday, asking for more detailed plans and renderings. The developers will return to the board Feb. 4.
In a report produced ahead of the meeting, city planning staff said the project “may be out of scale with the immediate neighborhood.” Staff also said they were concerned about the proposed proximity to other properties, including a request for a 30-foot setback from a neighboring hotel at the site’s southern end rather than the required 50 feet.
Still, board members said they were encouraged by the concept.
“It’s definitely a step in the right direction,” said Planning Board member Matthew Gultanoff.
A virtual community outreach meeting will be held Dec. 17.
After review by the Planning Board, the land use changes will eventually need approval from six of the city’s seven elected officials. Mayor Steven Meiner championed that requirement — a change from the prior five-vote threshold — to make it more difficult for developers to increase floor-area ratio, a method of regulating building size.
Miami Beach’s Historic Preservation Board will also have a chance to weigh in on the plans to replicate elements of the original Deauville hotel.
But unlike Ross’s project, this one won’t require a voter referendum. Statewide legislation passed last year banned local referendums related to land development regulations.
The 400-foot-tall towers proposed by the new developers would be double the height of what’s currently allowed. But the developers have emphasized that their project would feature fewer units than existing regulations allow.
Martin said the new hotel would have about 150 rooms. The original Deauville had 566 rooms, officials said.
The two slender condo towers would have a total of about 120 units, Martin said.
If a requested zoning change is approved, the maximum number of units allowed would be 280 hotel rooms and 140 residential units.
As part of the deal, the developers would agree to provide pedestrian access to the oceanfront beach walk on both the north and south sides of the building. They also said they would prohibit short-term rentals in the condo towers and obtain a building permit within five years.
Several Miami Beach residents spoke in favor of the plan Tuesday, saying it would benefit the neighborhood by bringing life back to a vacant lot.
“There’s been a hole in our community for seven years now, and I think that this re-creation of the Deauville is the best scenario that I have seen thus far,” said resident David Sexton. “I hope that this project moves forward.”
Daniel Ciraldo, the executive director of the Miami Design Preservation League, which advocates for historic preservation in Miami Beach, also said he’s encouraged by the proposal. The design to reimagine the Deauville, he said, is “maybe even better than the original.”
