1674-1 R. Donahue Peebles ONAL SUNDAY, AUGUST 4, 2002. .
A Hotel Helps Ease Racial Tensions
Developer Uses Miami Beach Real Estate to Make a Statement
By DANA CANEDY He is planning to transform the Bath
MIAMI BEACH,Aug.3—In slick ., 1,:'+ ` t Club,one of the oldest private clubs
travel• magazine ads, big-budget •..+r,!r..' ` pG�) in the country, into 20-story condo-
movies and hip-hop videos,this sun- t, ;k;'' 1 /niniums and private villas with
drenched city is billed as an ocean- `t''.j�r �i - ilia , rigs prices starting at$5 million.
front oasis with an international fla- i°C If the Royal Palm sent a message,
vor that offers something for every- • '' [ Tel Mr. Peebles was making an even
one.To some,though,Miami Beach !b j ' bolder statement with the Both Club.
has never fully lived up to its reputa- �i Dating to the 1920's, the Mediterra-
tion. ix"0 Wean Revival-style club was once an
Off and on for decades, Miami ilii = exclusive getaway for wealthy snow-
Beach has hada strained relation- birds. Herbert Hoover was a mem-
ship with African-American tourists _= a ber; in 1996,Mr. Peebles joined too.
and locals, who contend that the
cC I Soon after,a local newspaper report-
city's embrace of Hispanic, Euro- - . ( . i__ er asked how he felt being,the first
pean and white American visitors ha s African-American member.of a club
has not always been extended to =:.-. I that had historically excluded blacks
blacks. –• t and Jews.He said he was stunned.
When city officials snubbed Nelson �• == .. t When he found out a few years
Mandela during a visit here in 1990, ' N/ Rolm. iA later that the club was debt ridden
local civil rights activists led a two- '++" •,k: and on the market for a mere $10
and-a-half-year boycott of Miami t r.. � ''� million, he bought it. Construction
Beach by African-American tourists > - ,r, will begin later this year,he said.
that cost the city$50 million,by some ter. ._,040,-,,,i,,v)
,,,► Just as his projects blend old-style
estimates. Tensions have risen and ►w �' i architecture and modern decor,Mr.
fallen since,edging up again over the 4,:%,:.,'ls' Peebles himself is an image of con-
2001 Memorial Day weekend, when <:r,ar. trasts. He began a recent interview
the city did little to prepare for an : by declaring, "I'm not an African-
Influx of 250,000 hip-hop fans for club `r American businessperson — I'm a
events on South Beach that had been David Friedman for The New York Times businessperson." But promotional
promoted on urban radio stations R.Donahue Peebles in front of the materials distributed by his office
throughout the country. Royal Palm Crowne Plaza Resort, repeatedly refer to his business as
The disorganization led to over- which he developed. African-American owned and his
crowded streets and hotels and more projects as African-American firsts.
200 arrests and vocal com- Mr. Peebles also says he is corn-
than by local and com- Given the rocky road to making milted to creating career opportuni-
plaintspowners that residents and
had. the Royal Palm a reality, Mr. Pee- ties for African-Americans.The gen-
been a blight on the thecitwey's image. bles said he was not looking for local eral manager of the Royal Palm is
Enter R.Donahue Peebles,a mul- pfticials to weigh in."They should be black,and the hotel staff reflects the
timillionaire developer on a mission. ,/proud and grateful that my company diversity he says he is striving for,
Mr. Peebles bulldozed his way onto and I created the Royal Palm, and though the Bath Club's sales and
the pricey real estate scene in 1996, finished it,"he said. marketing staff is mostly white.
"We built this project under very Mr. Peebles says that who he is
becoming a major part of Miami and what he does involve a dual
Beach's answer to its racial tensions. challenging circumstances,"he said.
As part of a deal to end the boycott, "There was contaminated soil,there responsibility. "I'm a businessper-
the city agreed to allocate some of its.v as structural defects on the build- son who has just as much of a sense
oceanfront real estate and invest$10 ►ng,the hotel management industry of responsibility to my employees
basicallycollapsed,we had Sept. nd my investors, but I also feel a
million in an African-American- P p[. 11 sense of responsibility to the commu-
owned hotel.The result is the Royal after that, all those obstacles. The
Palm Crowne Plaza Resort, devel- project went over $20 million over nity I represent,"he said.
budget,and I didn't walk away." The Royal Palm has come to be
open and owned by the Peebles At- gknown as the black hotel, a distinc-
lantic Development Corporation. Not only did he have his company tion Mr.Peebles admits is simplistic,
"The whole idea for the hotel was and investors to consider, Mr. Pee- but embraces anyway.The hotel has
conceived to be a panacea to restore bles also had a personal investment also become a source of pride to
. relations between the black commu- in the Royal Palm,an elegantly ap- some residents and tourists here.
nity• and leadership in Miami Pointed,$84 million resort. "I didn't Dwayne Bryant,an African-Amer-
Beach," said Nancy Liebman, who want to be,as a developer,the person ican firefighter from Newark who
was until last year a Miami Beach who failed to build the African-Amer- was visiting here for the first time on
commissioner and one of the people ican-owned hotel,"he said."It would his vacation last week, said he
criticized for statements she made have allowed the city and others who switched hotels when a cab driver
about the 2001 hip-hop weekend. may not be supportive of equal eco- told him about the Royal Palm.
"The hotel seems to be a very nomic opportunity to say, 'Hey, we "It's long past due," Mr. Bryant
bright and shining star in the tour- tried to build an African-American- said. "There should be more black-
ism aspect of Miami Beach," Ms. owned hotel but the developer could- owned businesses out here. I mean,
Liebman said.The mayor of Miami n't do it, so now we don't have that this place is for everyone—it's not
Beach,David Dermer,did not return responsibility anymore.'" just for whites, not just for Latinos,
calls requesting an interview. Mr.Peebles has not stopped there. not just for blacks."
1 I "'RFMENT _ I