Downtown Transformation

Residential projects have reshaped Las Olas and downtown areas of Fort Lauderdale

Together, the Las Olas and downtown sections of Fort Lauderdale make up one of the hottest areas of the South Florida construction market. With nearly 5,000 residential units currently under construction and set to open within the next 18 months - and even more projects in the planning stage - this area continues to undergo a dramatic transformation. Is this as good as it gets, or can construction activity remain at these high levels?

by Scott Judy

A year ago, Rex Kirby, president and general manager of Suffolk Construction Co., thought construction in the Las Olas and downtown areas of Fort Lauderdale was about as strong as it could get.

Several condo projects were under way throughout the relatively small area, and his West Palm Beach-based office had its fair share of those contracts.

"Last year we were saying, 'This has got to be the peak; it can't get any better,'" Kirby said. "Now we've gotten even more contracts, to the point of actually having to turn away opportunities. So it's gotten even stronger."

Kirby now hesitates to describe the current level of work as a peak.

"Sales on the condo products have continued to be very strong," he added. "It doesn't look like there's any slowdown in site. It's phenomenal."

At the same time, he said, "It's going to continue, but I don't know that you're going to see the quantity of projects that you see down there right now.

Suffolk's five current residential projects include the Las Olas River House, Symphony and Esplanade on the New River condos, as well as the New River Phase II and Waverly Las Olas rental properties. Together these total approximately $320 million in contract value and roughly 1,500 residential units.

Suffolk may be leading the pack of contractors benefiting from this Fort Lauderdale condo boom, but it's certainly not alone. Turner Construction Co.'s Miami office is heading into the final stages of its Las Olas Grand residential project, for example.

Fort Lauderdale-based Stiles Corp. - which is diversified with general contracting, development and architectural subsidiaries - is also busy. Stiles Construction is currently building two Publix grocery centers, has broken ground on its 30-story 350 Las Olas Place luxury condo project and is evaluating another condo project.

Another high-profile project just recently announced was the $220 million W Fort Lauderdale hotel and residences facility, with Starwood Hotels planning a 2006 opening.

Development of the city's beach area is also progressing. AMEC Construction Management, with offices in Fort Lauderdale, recently started work on its $65 million St. Regis Hotel on Fort Lauderdale Beach.

Doug Eagon, president of Stiles Corp., boiled the boom down to basics.

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"There's finally a reason for people to live here," he said. "There's finally enough of a critical mass - there's enough quality-of-life things - that people do want to live here."

But a cap on residential units currently imposed by the local government could cause this residential sector to slow down, at least temporarily, Eagon added.

"We have seen a significant wave in residential development over the last two to three years," he said. "With the governmental constraint on additional units, I think you're going to see a hiatus for some time period until that is resolved."

Eagon added that other parts of the city are not under that same development constraint.

James P. Tarlton, president and CEO of the Broward Alliance, Broward County's economic development organization, said government oversight has been balanced overall.

"The county has been very aggressive in terms of moving the construction process along … and not at the cost of the environment and the other concerns that (citizens have)," he said. "It's smart build-out."

And he added that development is going to continue for the next few years. "Since the county, from the Everglades to the ocean, is getting very close to build-out, we'll see redevelopment not only in downtown Fort Lauderdale, but we'll begin to see the same things occur in other communities across the county," Tarlton said.

Las Olas River House

Perhaps the most prominent high-rise condo project in this area is the Las Olas River House, currently under construction by Suffolk Construction. The $135 million, 42-story luxury project will be the tallest building in Broward County upon completion in May.

The project was roughly 80 percent complete in October, said Stephen Cupp, senior project manager for Suffolk. The project team's first test came during the foundation stage. The structure's foundation is built upon approximately 220 24-in. auger-cast piles and a 10-ft.-deep concrete pile cap on top of that.

With the jobsite only about 50 ft. from the New River, and foundation excavation extending roughly 3 ft. below the local water table, dewatering was a major issue. Cupp said that at one stage the contractors were pumping nearly 2 million gallons of water per day from the site, without polluting the New River.

As are other condo projects in the area, the River House project has been a race to the top. Cupp said the team's goal was to erect the main towers at a rate of one floor per week. This was achieved through a three-pour-per-week schedule to build the approximately 26,000-sq.-ft. floors.

Suffolk and its subcontractors were recently slightly more than 50 percent finished with interior build-out.

Designed by the Sieger Suarez Architectural Partnership of Miami, the luxury building's exterior wall system consists of floor-to-ceiling glass, offering views of the New River, the ocean and downtown Fort Lauderdale. Gamma USA, a Canada-based subcontractor with offices in Miami, handled the installation of this exterior system, which measured approximately 270,000 sq. ft.

Amenities will include a five-level fitness club and spa, media rooms, library, sixth-floor recreation deck with putting greens and swimming pool, among others.

Watergarden

The Weitz Co. of West Palm Beach has been moving quickly on its $52 million Watergarden condo project for owner Minto Communities of Coconut Creek, Fla.

Cohen Freedman Encinosa & Associates of Miami Lakes was the project architect.

The 31-story, 550,000-sq.-ft. tower structure will offer 317 luxury condo units. Weitz's contract also included the construction of a 166,781-sq.-ft. parking garage that connects to the tower at the northwest section of the site, as well as a 39,367-sq.-ft. recreation center featuring a pool, spa, common area and fitness center built on top of the garage structure.

The contractor broke ground on April 15, 2002, and expects to conclude its work by January. Peter Jakubiec, assistant project manager for Weitz, said the team's been focused on speed from the beginning.

"The owner's attitude was they wanted to be the first (current condo project) to the top," he added. "We wanted to be the first done. And everybody on the team's worked to do that."

The project started going vertical around the end of May 2002 and achieved top-out the next February. Installation of windows began in about October 2002 and major interior finish work started in January.

Jakubiec said keeping pace through the shell phase of construction was critical to achieving schedule. Contractors worked as much as seven days per week to overcome any weather delays, which were numerous during this stage of the project.

The building's layout offered a mix of hurdles and efficiencies, with an overall curving design adding complexity, but units that were stacked on top of each other from floors six to 27 allowing for a consistent work flow.

Weitz and its subs went vertical at a schedule of roughly one floor per week.

One unusual aspect of the project was Weitz's use of an Internet-based resident-selection system. An internal Weitz product, this program allowed tenants to select their interior finishes remotely and then coordinated those selections directly to the Weitz staff for purchasing and then to the trades contractors for unit build-out.

With 11 different unit layouts per floor, and roughly 35 different tiles to choose from and 80 different carpet selections, automating this process had several benefits.

"We can order materials faster," said Jakubiec. "We can get selections to the subs faster. We can get things done and locked in. And if tenants make changes, there's a way to track it where you don't miss anything. Then we can print it out and stick it in the unit and every contractor that goes in that unit knows exactly what they've got to put in."

As for the overall development of Fort Lauderdale's central district, Jakubiec said, "There's a lot going on, and the downtown environment has changed a lot in the last year. It's going to be exciting once everything opens."

Useful Sources:

For more information about Fort Lauderdale construction and development activity, readers may visit the following:

• www.browardalliance.org
  
• www.visionbroward.org