A judge has sided with the city of Hollywood in a dispute with a developer over an affordable housing project proposed under Florida’s Live Local Act.

In a March 26 ruling, Broward County Circuit Court Judge David A. Haimes held that Hollywood officials were within their rights when they rejected Miami Beach-based Condra Property Group’s proposal for a 17-story beachfront high-rise.

Keith Poliakoff, the developer’s attorney, told the Business Journal on Monday that his client plans to appeal.

“We are incredibly disappointed with the court’s decision,” said Poliakoff, with Fort Lauderdale-based Government Law Group. “This ruling creates a massive loophole that completely undermines the Live Local Act and the state’s goal to provide affordable housing.”

“The city is pleased with the ruling and the judgment, but is not surprised,” said Daniel L. Abbott, with Coral Gables-based Weiss Serota Helfman Cole & Bierman, who represented the city. “The judge’s reasoning was similar to that of city staff when they denied the application.”

The dispute began when Condra filed plans, under the Live Local Act, to replace a group of hotels with a mixed-use project that would’ve included 282 multifamily units across multiple buildings. Forty percent of the units would’ve been set aside as workforce housing. The highest building would’ve been 183 feet tall – well beyond the site’s current maximum limit of 65 feet.

The plan concerned 3.33 acres at 2007 and 2115 N. Ocean Drive; 309, 333 and 341 Oklahoma St.; 320 and 324 McKinley St.; 320, 322, 324 and 326 Nebraska St.; and 2012 N. Surf Road.

The Live Local Act permits developers to bypass municipal public hearings and zoning approvals to build multifamily on commercial or industrial land with the greatest density allowed in a city and the tallest height within a 1-mile radius, so long as 40% of the units are workforce housing for households earning up to 120% of area median income.

Condra said it met those requirements, claiming the Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort, which has a height of 183 feet and 8 inches and is located less than 1 mile away, as a benchmark.

But City Hall rejected the proposal, saying the Margaritaville Resort couldn’t be used as a point of comparison since it was built on city-owned property and received a special bonus for additional height when it was first approved.

That prompted Condra, through affiliates, to sue Hollywood in Broward County Circuit Court on Jan. 10, 2025. In its complaint, Condra asked the court to overturn the city’s denial of its project, but did not request additional financial compensation.

In a wrinkle, the judge issued his ruling just hours after the parties jointly applied for a stay of proceedings to allow settlement discussions to begin. By ruling, Haimes implicitly denied that motion, according to Abbott.

This is one of the first lawsuits a judge has ruled on that involves the Live Local Act in South Florida. There are also pending cases against the city of Miami Beach and village of Bal Harbour, which developers have similarly accused of blocking Live Local Act applications.

Since it first passed in 2023, the Live Local Act has been the subject of controversy. Proponents say it’s needed to expand the availability of affordable housing, while critics say it takes away local officials’ authority.

Earlier this month, state legislators approved amendments to the law that further expand the categories of land on which developers can propose Live Local Act projects, among other changes.

As of this year, there have been nearly 200 Live Local Act projects filed statewide, but most haven’t broken ground yet. About 60% of the state’s Live Local Act projects are proposed in South Florida, according to figures from the Florida Housing Coalition, a Tallahassee-based nonprofit.

Article Link: Judge rules in city’s favor in Live Local lawsuit; developer plans appeal
Author: Mark Dovich