Margaritaville Developer Could Get Time To Fight Funding Failure
HOLLYWOOD BEACH (CBSMiami) – The developer of the Margaritaville Beach Hotel & Resort has, so far, failed to secure money for the $130 million beachfront complex.
However, Parrotheads and partiers needn't abandon hope yet: CBS4's news partners at The Miami Herald report the resort could catch a break.
At 1 p.m. Wednesday at Hollywood City Hall, commissioners will vote on whether the city attorney may find the developer in default after missing key construction and financing deadlines.
In May, the developer said that he needed time to find new financing after the developer's initial plan to get foreign investment failed. The developer had expected to break ground in June, with the resort located at Johnson Street on the Boardwalk and across A1A on the Intracoastal Waterway.
Then, in late June, City Manager Cathy Swanson-Rivenbark said the city was close to presenting a deal to the commission that would lend more to the company from the Community Redevelopment Agency but would result in more money for the city long term.
For months, the anticipation of Margaritaville has spurred a frenzy of improvements up and down A1A and the Boardwalk. Restaurants and hotels have been securing grants from the Community Redevelopment Agency's improvement program to shore up storefronts. The CRA has also fed millions to revamping the Broadwalk, as way to get ready for Margaritaville.
Based on the developer's plans, the resort should be worth the wait.
The resort will be 17 stories and have 349 rooms, along with seven restaurants, several bars, a spa and retail shops. In addition, patrons can enjoy a lagoon pool, a water slide and a "Flo Rider" used to simulate surfing.
Construction is slated to begin in July, and the resort is expected to open in August 2014.
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