“It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation,” Benjamin Franklin once said, “and only one bad one to lose it.”
When it comes to real estate and re-development, the opposite is also frequently true: it can be hard to shake off a bad rap, especially when it’s seared into the cultural DNA of a place.
In few cities has this reputational albatross been historically stickier than in Fort Lauderdale, which has been synonymous with hard partying, bikini-clad Bacchanalia ever since Colgate University swimming coach, Sam Ingram, first brought his team here in 1934 for an early season ‘winter warm-up’.
Over the next decade, Fort Lauderdale went viral across the snow-covered campuses of New England and the Midwest, eventually luring an ever-expanding migration of sun and booze-hungry co-eds down U.S. Route 1 to its cut-rate motels and neon nightlife. By the 1960s, Fort Lauderdale had become one of America’s biggest parties outside of Mardi Gras, giving it the dubious nickname the “Spring Break Capital of the World”, a.k.a “Fort Liquordale”.
In the 1990s, the city finally tried to rein in the mayhem and reframe itself as a more family-friendly, year-round destination. But by that point, that shipped had long since sailed. Even as adjacent towns and cities like Boca Raton and Sunny Isles were able to shed their Miami Vice, time share vibes and attract new luxury developments and upscale buyers through the first dot.com boom in the 2000s, Fort Lauderdale found itself persistently trapped between a seedy past and an uncertain future.
Yet, urban transformation and neighborhood revitalization happen in improbable ways at the unlikeliest of times. So, when a developer friend recently called me up raving about Fort Lauderdale finally “coming of age”, I nearly tripped over my smirk. I’ve long been fascinated with the lessons newer neighborhoods can learn from older ones. But Fort Lauderdale was a different kind of case study altogether; it didn’t need a Renaissance or to be revitalized. It needed to shake off a century of less-than-pristine repute and present an entirely new version of itself to the outside world again.
Finally Moving On Up
In many ways, Fort Lauderdale’s long suffering identity crisis didn’t have anything to do with spring break in the first place.
Compared with Miami, located just thirty miles south down I-95, Fort Lauderdale doesn’t have a natural harbor like Biscayne Bay; that made it less favorable to shipping and trade with Latin America as the United States expanded south and west after the Civil War. Henry Flagler’s Florida East Coast Railway also bypassed Fort Lauderdale as an original station stop when it was extended to Key West in 1896. As a consequence, the city languished as a mosquito-infested “backwater” well into the early 20th century as business, jobs, tourism, and infrastructure boomed in Miami.
Not surprisingly, Fort Lauderdale has historically been seen — and seen itself — as a vestigial appendage of its southern neighbor rather than an equal force to be respected and reckoned with.
These days, however, those outdated stereotypes couldn’t be further from reality on the ground.
As both a city in itself and a hub for the region, Fort Lauderdale has always had the innate geographic, ecological, and economic assets to step out from Miami’s shadow and stand on its own as a global city: including postcard perfect beaches, an international yachting culture, world-class infrastructure, well-connected transport systems, fives time more inland waterways than Venice, and Port Everglades, the third busiest cruise ship port on earth. Those advantages are now fueling one of America’s most dynamic and unexpected urban success stories literally from the ground up.
Fort Lauderdale’s recent reimagining is also closely linked to the pandemic, which not only accelerated several demographic shifts that were already underway nationally — like the migration to warmer, more tax-friendly states — but also focused America’s attention for the first time on the parts of Florida that didn’t already have Formula 1 Grand Prix races and Real Housewives TV shows.
Back in 2020, Miami and West Palm Beach drew most of the big names at first, including financial firms like Goldman Sachs, Blackstone, and Citadel, all of which opened offices across South Florida at a furious pace once COVID hit. But Fort Lauderdale increasingly caught the tailwinds generated by the emergence of “Wall Street South”, especially as already boho-riche enclaves like Miami Beach, Brickell, and Surfside further south quickly grew more expensive and overcrowded. The city has long had all the building blocks to be a playground for the ultra-rich: including labyrinths of canals lined with multi-million dollar mansions, a bustling small airport that can land a G5, and a stealthy network of yacht, golf, and tennis clubs that have catered to old-guard South Florida families for generations.
So, Fort Lauderdale’s current “moment” doesn’t come as a surprise to many long-time locals. After all, what self-respecting finance bro doesn’t want to tie up their Azimut outside their penthouse, walk to a Michelin-starred dinner, and jump on the Brightline high-speed rail to meet a new hedge fund client the next morning?
Global Branded Luxury Moves In
All of this makes Fort Lauderdale’s current bullishness even more exceptional because the forces underpinning it aren’t being driven by Florida’s frequent predilection for opportunism and myopia. As a result, while the real estate frenzy in other Sunshine State cities like Tampa and Orlando is finally climbing down from pandemic highs, Fort Lauderdale is still attracting national and international developers who would have never played in the sandbox here before — especially at the highest ends of the market.
Case in point is the Naftali Group, a global real estate and investment firm that’s developed dozens of luxury Manhattan buildings including the iconic Plaza Hotel. This past December, Naftali launched sales for the Viceroy Residences Fort Lauderdale, a 45-story tower between Las Olas Boulevard and Flagler Village downtown. With architecture by Bernardo Fort-Bescia’s Arquitectonica, the current darling of Miami’s ultra-luxury branded residential scene, and interiors by the Rockwell Group, the Viceroy Fort Lauderdale represents a significant expansion from Naftali’s traditional Manhattan stronghold and is the highest profile validation yet of the city’s rising prestige.
“After developing some of Manhattan’s most iconic residential buildings, when we looked at Fort Lauderdale, we saw a city on the brink of a major evolution,” says the company’s Founder and CEO Miki Naftali. “With its unparalleled water access, growing cultural scene, and influx of new residents and businesses, Fort Lauderdale is quickly transforming into a world-class destination. It reminds me of Miami fifteen years ago, full of potential and quietly shifting beneath the surface.”
Strategically, Naftali also knew that bringing an upscale, service-forward brand like Viceroy to Fort Lauderdale would give city’s rebranding immediate credibility from the outside in, especially in South Florida which has long been the molten hot core of America’s luxury branded real estate space.
“We felt the timing was right to introduce a true luxury branded residence to Fort Lauderdale’s downtown, and partnering with Viceroy allows us to deliver something that significantly elevates the standard of living here,” says Naftali of the project’s original genesis. “It’s proof that Fort Lauderdale is no longer just a place to get away. It’s on its way to becoming a global city.”
For other luxury real estate developers, Naftali Group’s entry into the Fort Lauderdale market has also signaled a wider sense of ‘arrival’ for Broward County, which has long felt squeezed and sold short between Miami-Dade and Palm Beach Counties to the north and south, in much the same way a James Beard chef opening up a new restaurant in a revitalizing neighborhood can help foment similar critical mass.
“From Miami to Palm Beach, South Florida has become one of the most dynamic real estate markets in the country, and Fort Lauderdale and Broward County are right in the middle of it all,” says Naftali. “The fundamentals are strong and the reality is that demand is being driven by long-term, structural shifts in the region’s demographics, infrastructure, cultural offerings, and connectivity which have all evolved dramatically over the past few years. Fort Lauderdale’s growth as a primary place for people and families to live and invest isn’t just a moment. It’s a movement.”
That movement is also motivating several other skyline-reshaping towers to chase Viceroy’s tail.
In a nod to Fort Lauderdale’s deeply rooted maritime culture and moniker as the “Yachting Capital of the World”, the recently announced Riva Residenze development will feature 36 residences and two penthouses in an intimate 20-story project styled in partnership with the eponymous Italian yacht brand, making it the world’s first luxury yacht-branded residential development. A little further inland, Ombelle Fort Lauderdale’s two airy towers will include 775 fully finished and furnished residences, 100,000 square feet of amenity space, and Fort Lauderdale’s first Equinox gym. Then there’s the Andare Residences, a 46-story, 540’ project envisioned by Pininfarina, the Italian design house best known for crafting Ferraris, whose curvalinear silhouette will become the city’s tallest building when it opens in 2027.
Even by Miami standards, these are big projects in partnership with major international brands. And if current sales are any indication, they are quickly pulling Fort Lauderdale up into the stratosphere of international buyers who could easily afford to live in Brickell, Bal Harbor, and Miami Beach but already know they’ve missed the boat there.
FAT Village: Fort Lauderdale’s Creative Core Reimagined
“Fort Lauderdale is no longer Florida’s next big thing. It’s the now,” says Alan Kennedy, Managing Director at global real estate development firm, Hines, who’s responsible for the company’s South Florida business. “A city that once lived in the shadow of its South Florida neighbors has become a magnet for talent, energy, and culture. Miami has the heat. West Palm has the polish. But Fort Lauderdale is finally finding its rhythm in a way that feels thoughtful, local, grounded, and entirely its own.”
Not surprisingly, Hines’ new 5.6-acre, $500 million FAT Village project in the heart of Fort Lauderdale’s creative core is based on a deep respect for urban developments that are aligned with those soft-power principles.
Standing for “Food”, “Art”, and “Technology” and co-developed with Urban Street Development, FAT Village will transform Fort Lauderdale’s original arts district into a re-imagined cultural and commercial hub designed to prioritize a high-touch, human-centered sense of community. When it’s completed in 2027, the development will feature more than 850 residential units, curated retail and culinary spaces, entertainment venues and immersive art galleries, and the region’s first mass timber office building based on Hines’ proprietary ‘T3’ (Timber, Transit, Technology) design model that eliminates over a thousand metric tons of CO2 emissions during construction while also supporting sustainable forestry practices. Other AI-powered, eco-friendly features will include touchless technologies for enhanced hygiene, energy-efficient LEED Gold Certification, and WiredScore Certification which ensures a cutting-edge technological experience.
In a region long known for rampant spawl, an umbilical dependency on cars, and persistent climate change denial, this kind of big vision is no small deal. FAT Village not only doubles down on density, mobility, and community, but also sets a new norm for innovation and sustainability in South Florida that other developers will feel compelled to follow.
In this way, says Kennedy, FAT Village isn’t just a bet on Fort Lauderdale’s real estate market for the sake of putting another project in the ground; it offers Hines the far more meaningful opportunity to help re-shape the city’s identity for generations to come.
“FAT Village is Fort Lauderdale’s opportunity to show what the future of cities can look like when they have the chance to reinvent themselves,” Kennedy explains. “People today are seeking real experiences. They want walkable streets, art around every corner, and neighborhoods where work, creativity, and daily life intersect. FAT Village is designed to be that collision point where all those creative, cultural, and culinary elements come together. For us, this project isn’t just about creating buildings. It’s about curating a neighborhood with real texture and purpose so that Fort Lauderdale can truly tell a new story that belongs to itself.”
The Michelin Effect
As is often the case when a city’s real estate market booms, everything else in Fort Lauderdale is booming now too.
Tourism, for example, is exploding. According to the Downtown Development Authority (DDA), downtown visitation now accounts for over 30% of all visitors—up from just 7% pre-pandemic. High-end hospitality is surging as well, including the opening of the Four Seasons Fort Lauderdale in 2022, along with its signature restaurant, The Chef’s Counter at MAASS by chef Ryan Ratino, which earned Fort Lauderdale its first Michelin star last year.
“MAASS’s Michelin star award is absolutely huge for Fort Lauderdale’s culinary credibility,” says local chef Rino Cerbone, whose Flagler Village restaurant, Heritage, went viral last year for serving pasta in the Stanley Cup, and was also recently awarded Michelin’s Bib Gourmand distinction. “You have this insanely talented group making awesome world-class food and providing an incredible experience, which shows that our city is much more than just commercial style restaurants that cater to the masses. It also makes everyone here who is really invested in their craft want to step up their game and show their guests that you want to give them nothing but the best.”
Speaking of the Stanley Cup, Fort Lauderdale has also unexpectedly become an NHL hockey hotbed. The Florida Panthers, whose home ice is based in nearby Sunrise, Florida just west of downtown, are the reining NHL Champions and have made three straight Stanley Cup playoff runs, generating more than $100 million in economic impact across the region. The Panthers also hosted the NHL All-Star Game in 2023 and will welcome the iconic Winter Classic in 2026.
Meanwhile, Fort Lauderdale’s commercial office sector is defying the headwinds that are collapsing it in almost every other American city, including the recent sale of two office towers on Las Olas Boulevard for $400 million. Boca Raton-based Infinite Reality, a $15.5 billion innovation company powering next generation immersive media, AI, and ecommerce, also just announced plans to co-develop a 60-acre site into a futuristic technology and entertainment campus that will serve as the company’s new global headquarters and the cornerstone of its long-term real estate strategy.
“We’ve always had great weather,” says Fort Lauderdale’s Mayor Dean Trantalis. “We’ve always had some of Florida’s best beaches. As a result, we’ve always attracted thousands of tourists annually. But downtown Fort Lauderdale is now transforming into one of the best places in America to live, work and play. We’ve become a magnet for financial firms, tech start-ups, and luxury real estate developers, and, at the same time, attracted hip, young families and creative types with great housing, a good business base, and a nightlife scene of arts, restaurants and entertainment that is second to none. Fort Lauderdale is finally being seen across the nation and the world for the incredible future that lies before us, not our past.”
Ultimately, real estate stories worth writing are rarely just about glass and steel or green roofs. At their best, they’re about the loftiest of human emotions — like hope, courage, and belief.
In this way, what’s happening in Fort Lauderdale right now reflects a collective confidence about the future that people here haven’t felt for decades. The city’s new developments are bold and visionary, but they’re also smart and forward thinking. The new skyline isn’t just about height. It’s about identity. And as more developers, celebrity chefs, and big-name financial firms and tech start-ups buy in here, they’re not transforming Fort Lauderdale into the next Miami. They’re helping to shape it into something new entirely.
This time, though, the rest of the world is watching for all the right reasons.
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