LTC 016-2023 Announcement of Developer Selection of General Contractor for the Grand HyattMIAMI BEACH
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER
L TC# 016-2023 LETTER TO COMMISSION
TO:
FROM :
DATE :
Honorable Mayor Dan Gelb ~bers of the City Commission
Alina T. Hudak, City Managt,\',,
January 17, 2023
SUBJECT : Announcement of Developer Selection of General Contractor for the Grand Hyatt
Miami Beach Hotel Project
Please refer to attached press release from the developer of the Grand Hyatt Miami Beach .
For more information, please contact Maria Hernandez at mariahernandez@miamibeachfl.gov or
via cellphone at (786) 371-3168.
ATH/t~MH ~
TERRA AND TURNBERRY TAP BALFOUR BEATTY To LEAD CONSTRUCTION FOR
THE GRAND HYATT MIAMI BEACH CONVENTION CENTER HOTEL
The BOO-room hotel will enhance Miami Beach's Convention Center District with new public
spaces, improved connectivity, along with infrastructure and resiliency upgrades.
Preconstruction site work is underway, with vertical construction expected to take place in
2023.
MIAMI BEACH, FL -January 17, 2023 -Two of South Florida's premier real estate developments groups,
Terra and Turn berry, have selected Balfour Beatty as the general contractor for the new Grand Hyatt
Miami Beach Convention Center Hotel. Located at the intersection of 17th Street and Convention Center
Drive, the 17 -story, 800-room hotel will serve as the central anchor of the Miami Beach Convention
Center District, steps away from the beachfront, hundreds of shops and restaurants along Lincoln Road,
the New World Center, the Bass Museum, and the Fillmore Miami Beach. Early site work at the property
is now underway, with vertical construction anticipated to start this year and be completed in 2025.
"A project of this magnitude and significance requires the best in-class team and we are thrilled to have
Balfour Beatty on board leading the construction efforts," said developer David Martin, CEO of Terra, and
Jackie Soffer, Chairman and CEO of Turnberry. "The firm's extensive experience pioneering new
technologies and transforming communities through smart infrastructure aligns with our goal to deliver
a hotel that will transform the City's convention center campus into one of the most desirable meeting
and convention destinations in the world ."
Headquartered in Dallas with full-service offices throughout the U.S., Balfour Beatty is a leading
commercial construction company with a portfolio of high-profile projects including terminal expansion
projects at Jacksonville International Airport, Florida International University Student Academic Success
Center, the W hotel in Fort Lauderdale, Loews Sapphire Falls Resort at Universal Orlando, Paseo de la
Riviera in Coral Gables, and Greater Fort Lauderdale Broward County Convention Center among others.
"This is a beacon development for Miami Beach," commented Scott Skidelsky, Balfour Beatty president
in the Southeast. "Balfour Beatty's national operations started its roots in South Florida and being a part
of the community is a point of pride for our company. Being chosen to construct this icon project means
the world to our project team who are some of the best builders in the industry and they are all so
excited to work with our stakeholders to make this an incredibly successful build experience."
Development of the Grand Hyatt comes as Miami Beach and South Florida solidify their position among
the world's most visited destinations. According to a recent report by the Greater Miami Convention &
Visitors Bureau, 15.9 million overnight visitors and an additional 8.3-million-day visitors totaling 24 .2
million came to the area in 2021, matching the total volume of tourists seen pre-pandemic in 2019.
Furthermore, visitor spending rebounded, and tourists spent an estimated $19.2 billion, an increase of
8% over 2019. In 2022, Miami-Dade County hotel occupancy from January through October was up 10%
over the previous year, a total of 72.2% occupancy-the sixth-highest occupancy in the country in major
markets -with an average daily rate of $251, which is 18.8% higher than 2021.
"The Grand Hyatt Miami Beach will be a great addition to the local hotel landscape," said Wendy
Kallergis President & CEO of the Greater Miami and the Beaches Hotel Association. "Miami Beach has a
broad range of hotel options -from luxury brands, meetings, leisure, independent and boutiques -but
there has long been a need for a conference hotel that maximizes the impact of the newly-renovated
Convention Center. The Grand Hyatt's 800 rooms will meet this demand, and it comes at a time when
meeting planners around the world are looking at Miami Beach for their upcoming conferences,
conventions, and trade shows"
Grand Hyatt Miami Beach will include 12 floors of guest rooms and 52 suites offering views of Miami
Beach, four floors of meeting spaces and ballrooms that will complement the Convention Center, a
resort-style pool deck with panoramic views, a signature restaurant, lobby lounge and bar, and limited
retail space that will activate the district at street level. An elevated skybridge will enable event
attendees to move freely between the hotel and Convention Center in a climate-controlled, art-filled
corridor.
Grand Hyatt Miami Beach will be designed by internationally acclaimed architect Bernardo Fort-Brescia
and his firm, Miami-based Arquitectonica. The team also includes Stonehill Taylor, a New York City
based hospitality-focused architecture and interior design firm in charge of designing the hotel's interior
lobby and lounges, ballroom, meeting and hotel rooms, and all common areas; EoA, a local architecture,
interior design and landscape firm tasked with designing the pool deck hospitality features of the hotel;
and Arquitectonica GEO, who will lead the creation of the pedestrian promenades and landscapes.
As part of the improvements to the area, the nearby Fillmore Miami Beach at Jackie Gleason Theater is
also receiving renovations to its back of house areas. The theater, which is owned by the City of Miami
Beach and managed by Live Nation, was once home to "The Jackie Gleason Show" and remains one of
the most beloved cultural venues in Miami Beach. These renovations will ensure the iconic institution
will have the ability to continue to present music, theater and dance to the expanding community of the
Convention Center district.
The Grand Hyatt Miami Beach project also includes landscaped pedestrian promenades on surrounding
streets, bike sharing stations, connectivity with public transit routes, dedicated ridesharing pick-up and
drop-off zones, and direct access between the Convention Center and Lincoln Road. The project's
resiliency and sustainability measures include storm water management and reuse, flood risk mitigation,
and the use of solar power -all of which are designed to ensure operational continuity during weather
events.
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About Terra:
Terra is a Miami-based real estate development and investment company that creates communities,
enhances neighborhoods and connects people. Led by David Martin, Terra was founded in 2001 and is
involved in all facets of residential and commercial development, including realty, mortgage, marketing
and construction. Terra owns and operates a carefully curated portfolio of real estate developments
valued at more than $8 billion that elevate quality of life; maximize the way in which people work, live
and entertain; and innovate the urban and suburban landscape with an eye toward resiliency and
sustainability. Since its launch, Terra has developed more than 5 million square feet of residential,
commercial, and mixed-use projects across South Florida. Terra thrives by assembling teams comprised
of the world's most accomplished architects, designers, planners, engineers and builders who
collaborate to bring the firm's development vision to life. Learn more at www.terragroup.com.
About Turnberry:
Turnberry is a real estate and property management company focused on placemaking with principles .
It has developed over $10 billion in commercial and residential assets, including more than 3,000 hotel
and resort rooms, approximately 20 million square feet of retail space, more than 7,000 apartments and
condominium units, and 1.5 million square feet of class "A" office space. Led by Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer Jackie Soffer, Turn berry owns and operates a broad portfolio of properties, among
them Aventura Mall, JW Marriott Nashville, an array of select service hotels, Town Center Aventura and
Destin Commons. The company is partnering with LeFrak to create Sole Mia in North Miami, a 184-acre
mixed-use community of residential towers, retail and commercial space . Recently, Turnberry launched
sales at ONE Park Tower by Turn berry, a luxury condominium designed by Arquitectonica with interiors
by Meyer Davis located within the Sole Mia community. For more information visit www.turnberry.com.
About Balfour Beatty:
Balfour Beatty is an industry-leading provider of general contracting, at-risk construction management
and design-build services for public and private sector clients across the United States. Pe rforming heavy
civil and vertical construction, the company is part of Balfour Beatty pie (LSE : BBY), a leading
international infrastructure group that provides innovative and efficient infrastructure that underpins
our daily lives, supports communities and enables economic growth. Balfour Beatty is ranked among the
top domestic building contractors in the United States by Engineering News-Record . To learn more, visit
www.balfourbeattyus.com .