Hollywood Weighs PPG, First Eagle Rezoning at Emerald Hills

PPG Developments and First Eagle Management go before Hollywood’s Planning and Development Board on August 4 seeking to rezone the 166.2-acre Club at Emerald Hills from Country Club (CC) to Planned Development (PD), the entitlement step needed to build 284 homes and a rebuilt clubhouse around the golf course. A companion site plan application for the same date asks the board to approve the design of eight development sites. Neither request has been decided; the board’s role is to forward a recommendation to the Hollywood City Commission, which holds final say.

Why it matters

This is the implementation phase of a fight that has run since 2020, when First Eagle Management first floated redeveloping the private course. The City Commission already capped the residential entitlement at 360 units in March 2024 through a Future Land Use amendment. The rezoning now before the board does not ask for more density; it converts the underlying zoning from the golf-only Country Club district to a project-specific Planned Development that can actually carry that entitlement, plus site-specific variances on street setbacks and parking. For developers watching Broward’s suburban golf courses as redevelopment targets, Emerald Hills is the template for how a land-use win gets converted into buildable zoning years later.

The numbers

Staff’s rezoning report lists the site at approximately 166.16 acres, current zoning Country Club (CC), requested zoning Planned Development (PD), and recommends approval subject to conditions in Attachment H. The linked site plan covers 284 dwelling units across eight sites: 30 townhomes on Site A, 54 condominium units on Site B, 72 on Site C, 72 on Site D, two single-family homes on Site F, and 54 more condo units built into the Site E clubhouse, which also carries 40 lodging villas, a ballroom, dining and sports courts. Staff recommends approval of the design and site plan too, subject to Attachment I conditions. PPG Developments LLC, run by Ari Pearl, is on TREA’s developer watchlist; First Eagle Management, led by Todd Schoenwetter, is not tracked separately.

What’s next

Both items go to the Planning and Development Board, acting as the Local Planning Agency, on August 4. A board recommendation is not final approval; the rezoning and site plan still require a vote at the Hollywood City Commission before any permit can be pulled. Watch Miami market entitlement filings for the commission hearing date once it is set.