Genting renews bid for 60-story towers at One Herald Plaza. Will it finally build?
Malaysian gaming and hospitality giant Genting has resubmitted plans to build three high-rises reaching more than 60 stories at One Herald Plaza.
According to filings with the Federal Aviation Administration, Genting’s Resorts World Miami brand towers stretch to 649 feet at the site of the old Miami Herald building. The filings were first reported by TheNextMiami.
The FAA originally approved the height in 2013. That approval expired in 2017, when Genting reapplied. The subsequent approval expired in 2020. Asked if Genting has plans to start construction this year, a representative said the company did not have any new plans to submit.
Under current zoning, structures up to 36 stories tall are allowed. However, the height restrictions can be altered by the Planning and Zoning Board.
The site has stood empty since 2015, when Genting demolished the former Herald headquarters. Meanwhile, the city has developed in all surrounding directions — north to Edgewater, south along Biscayne Boulevard, west to the Arts & Entertainment District — as well as vertically, with downtown’s tallest building now measuring almost 850 feet.
Genting’s multi-year bid to expand Florida’s gambling laws to allow for a destination gaming resort in Miami has stalled. But today, a project on the site would make sense without a gaming component, according to Alicia Cervera Lamadrid, managing partner and principal at Cervera Real Estate.
“They’ve had that site under control for a long time,” said Cervera, who is also a member of the Miami Downtown Development Authority. “It’s one of the most beautiful sites in the world in one of the most beautiful cities in the world.
“Before, the catalyst for the project was that they were going to introduce a market by bringing gambling,” she said. “Now there’s no need to create a market because the market here is alive and kicking. Gaming is not a requirement at all to sell real estate in Miami now.”
Prior to the pandemic, appetite for Miami luxury condos had slowed. But the emergence of COVID-19 and a change in tax laws has brought a new wave of ultra high net worth CEOs to South Florida in recent months, and several new luxury projects appear to be moving forward.
Miami is a far different — and wealthier — city than it was in 2011, when Miami was struggling to shake off the Great Recession. Genting grabbed headlines when it paid $236 million for the 5.36 acre waterfront property that was then occupied by the Miami Herald. The company subsequently purchased the failed Omni mall nearby and the historic Boulevard Shops fronting Biscayne Bay; in total it paid almost $500 million for the nearly 14 acres it now owns in the area.
The purchase initially was applauded by the business and civic communities as a move toward rejuvenation of a then-gritty area. But the company’s plans for a 300,000-square-foot casino inside a massive resort — six curved towers designed to resemble a coral reef, with 50 restaurants and 5,200 hotel rooms — drew heated controversy.
Subsequent plans for Resorts World Miami were dramatically scaled back, including a five-star luxury hotel, luxury condominiums, waterfront restaurants, some limited retail and an 800-foot long promenade along Biscayne Bay that covered only a portion of the site. At the time, studies showed Miami suffered from a shortage of luxury condos.
In 2013, the Miami Herald moved its office to Doral. Genting demolished the Herald’s distinctive Mid-Century Modern building in 2015. The prime bayfront location has lacked a permanent structure since.
In October 2016, Genting signaled plans — never realized — to build a mega-yacht harbor at the mouth of the property. In January 2018, it signed a multi-year deal to use the property to hold events; prior to the COVID pandemic, those included Art Miami, Art Wynwood and the Miami Yacht Show.
Genting is also lead partner on a proposal to build a monorail connecting Miami to Miami Beach. The plan’s most recent price tag came in at $770 million.
In August, Genting suspended payments to its creditors amid sustained losses from the COVID-19 pandemic. In its most recent financial statement, covering the three months ended Sept. 30, 2020, Genting reported a net loss of $180 million, as revenues fell more than 50% year-on-year.
Since first purchasing the One Herald Plaza site, Genting has repeatedly lobbied Tallahassee for an expansion of Florida’s gambling laws to allow a destination gambling resort. But for the last two years, that discussion has remained stalled.
Last year, House and Senate leaders tried to reach a deal with the governor that would update Florida’s gambling laws by allowing organized sports betting and bring in new revenue from the Seminole Tribe but the legislative session ended with little progress.
Voters in 2018 approved a constitutional amendment that now requires a statewide vote on any legislation that expands gambling in Florida, excluding a compact with a Native American tribe. Also since 2018, when then-Gov. Rick Scott refused to crack down on the games at horse, dog and jai-alai venues around the state, a court ordered that the state violated its agreement with the Seminole Tribe and so the tribe no longer had to pay $350 million in annual revenue-sharing payments to the state.
Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau Chief Mary Ellen Klas contributed to this report.
This story was originally published February 17, 2021 at 6:43 PM.
