Related's Portofino Hollywood Tower Nears Final Approval

Related Group’s proposed 27-story tower at 1301 South Ocean Drive in Hollywood is moving toward final approval, with the project’s last Planning and Development Board and City Commission hearings expected in October, according to Local10. The site now holds a city-owned community center, park and public parking lot, and organized resident opposition has followed the project through a developer-hosted community meeting this month.

Why it matters

Portofino Hollywood is a live test of how much local discretion actually survives Florida’s Live Local Act once a project qualifies for its preemption. With 40% of units reserved as affordable housing, Related does not need a zoning variance or height waiver from the city, the pieces that would normally be a board’s leverage over design and massing. What remains negotiable is the ground lease itself, since Hollywood owns the underlying land rather than the developer. That makes the lease terms, not the zoning code, the real venue where the city and the public can still shape the outcome. Developers eyeing similar Live Local deals on municipally owned beachfront should expect the fight to move from entitlement hearings to lease negotiations.

The numbers

Related’s plan calls for a 27-story tower on a 3.5-acre site, replacing the existing community center, park and public parking lot; the community center would be rebuilt as part of the project. Keith Poliakoff, an attorney representing the developer, has said the city stands to collect $2.7 billion over a 99-year lease term. Residents at this month’s meeting argued that converting public beachfront land to a high-rise permanently changes the character of the site, according to Local10’s reporting.

What’s next

Local10 reports Portofino’s final Planning and Development Board hearing and final City Commission vote are both expected in October, with no exact date yet set. Separately, and on a faster track, Hollywood’s Planning and Development Board takes up a citywide ordinance on August 11 establishing the Hollywood Beach Overlay District and design guidelines for the same stretch of coastline, per the board’s own agenda packet. That overlay item is a policy recommendation to the city commission, not a vote on Portofino itself, but it will set the design baseline for the corridor before Portofino’s own hearings happen. South Florida developers with beachfront sites in the pipeline should track both dockets, not just the one with their project’s name on it.