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1675-18 New Hotels 5 of 11, 38 Terms mh94 TOP PLAN FOR S. BEACH RESORT HAS DECO SPIRIT 06/30/1994 THE MIAMI HERALD Copyright (c) 1994, The Miami Herald DATE: Thursday, June 30, 1994 EDITION: FINAL SECTION: FRONT PAGE: lA LENGTH: 92 lines ILLUSTRATION: photo: The Loews (HOTEL-color) , The Grand Hyatt (HOTEL --color) , The Peabody (HOTEL--color) SOURCE/CREDIT LINE: ANTHONY FAIOLA And PETER WHORISKEY Herald Staff Writers TOP PLAN FOR S. BEACH RESORT HAS DECO SPIRIT 16-STORY HOTEL PRAISED FOR ITS DESIGN A proposal shaped by the spirit of the Art Deco historic district won the first round of a competition to design, build and operate a landmark convention center hotel in South Beach. The 830-room hotel, expected to open a new era in South Florida tourism, won the high marks for both architectural design and corporate backing. Miami Beach is offering up to $60 million in incentives to build a hotel at 16th Street and Collins Avenue to anchor its convention center. It will be the first major hotel to be built on Miami Beach in two decades. The front-runner is a partnership between Loews Hotels, controlled by the powerful Tisch Family of New York, and Forest City Ratner Cos., led by the Ratner family of Cleveland. Both are familiar with South Florida. The Ratners developed the historic Clevelander Hotel on Ocean Drive. The Tisch family -- including CBS Chairman Laurence Tisch -- built the Americana Hotel, known today as the Sheraton Bal Harbour. "We feel this project, located in one of the most well- defined historic districts in the country, is going to turn Miami Beach into one of the most pre-eminent resorts for business and leisure travelers in America," said Jonathan Tisch, president of Loews, who even dressed up as a woman in the company's presentation video in the hopes some laughter would sway support Loews' way. The selection committee recommendation will be forwarded to the City Commission, which will make the final choice later this month. The panel ranked a proposal for an 800-room Peabody Hotel, backed by the Belz family of Memphis, second best. In third place is a proposal backed by Miami-based Plaza Development Corp. and Cuban-American leader Jorge Mas Canosa for an 800-room Grand Hyatt Hotel. The Hyatt proposal was designed by Alan and Morris Lapidus, legendary beach architect and designer of the landmark Fontainebleau Hilton and Eden Roc hotels. The committee also recommended approval for a $10 million loan to help build a 265-room Sheraton Suites Hotel proposed by four Miami black businessmen. The measure was part of Miami Beach's promise to lure a black hotelier to the island after the end of Dade's black tourism boycott. This partnership includes American Express Vice President Peter J. Calin, Texaco attorney Jerry D. Bailey, Miami investor Marvin Holloway and Eugene Ford Jr. , chief executive of Miami-based Argus Construction. After two days of highly charged hearings, where five bidders presented flashy videos, charts -- including a virtual reality tour through • r one proposal -- the decision rested on two main criteria. Design and economics. "I think the design came first in our minds," said Arthur Courshon, chairman of the citizens selection committee and chairman of Jefferson National Bank in Miami Beach. "The Loews proposal fit into the community the best. " The Loews design team, John Nichols and Bernard Zyscovich, won unanimous praise for reflecting the surrounding Art Deco influence and for its scale. At 16 stories, it is the shortest of the competitors. Said committee member Vincent Scully, an eminent architectural historian: "It's a wonderful example of using history in the present. There is a sense that the architects care about Miami Beach." Economics, including marketing strategy and corporate structure, also weighted heavily. The selection committee chose the Loews chain because it was smaller. They felt a smaller outfit would mean that the landmark Miami property would garner more attention from corporate headquarters. Loews manages a chain of 14 hotels worldwide. Yet according to a last-minute review by city consultants, the Loews proposal actually requested more incentive money from Miami Beach coffers than the two runners-up. The $165.7 million Loews proposal asked the city for a total of $70.7 million, in the form of land, city-bond backed financing, and the construction of a parking garage across the street. It will take 25 years before the city is completely paid back. The $132 million Peabody proposal asked the city for a total of $61 million, also in land, financing and a parking garage. Under this proposal, the city would get its money back within 10 years. Finally, the $130.5 million Hyatt proposal asked the city for a total of $60.5 million. Under this proposal, the city would get its money back in six years. The selection committee narrowed the field down to three from five bidders. It wasn't an easy process, and it was not without controversy. Neil Fairman, president of Plaza Development Group, backers of the Hyatt proposal, complained that the city's financial consultants -- Arthur Andersen & Co. and Bear Stearns & Co. -- did not provide comprehensive economic comparisons between the different proposals. "Clearly, they didn't do their job," Fairman said. "All the proposals compared apples and oranges in their numbers, and it was the job of those consultants to do clear the fog for the committee. They didn't do that."