Related Ross, Fort Partners Swap West Palm Beach Waterfront Land
Two developers who sued each other over a condo tower settled it by trading land instead.
Related Ross and Fort Partners ended a year-long fight over a West Palm Beach condo tower not with a verdict, but with a trade: the developers swapped neighboring waterfront properties for $20 million apiece, closing out a dispute that had frozen both companies’ plans on the same stretch of South Flagler Drive.
Why it matters
The swap settles site control, not just a lawsuit. Related Ross, tied to Steve Ross, sold its remaining 21 units in the Harbor Towers and Marina Condo to an affiliate of Nadim Ashi’s Fort Partners, leaving Fort Partners one unit short of owning the entire 61-unit, 2-acre complex at 3901 South Flagler Drive outright. Fort Partners has been assembling the building since April 2025 and can now move toward redevelopment; the lone holdout unit belongs to the condo association itself, not an individual owner. In exchange, Related picked up two Fort Partners-owned multifamily properties next door, at 3906 Washington Road and 3907 South Flagler Drive. The fight began when the two companies started signing competing deals to buy out Harbor Towers and Related sued to block changes Fort wanted to make to the condo declaration. Track more South Florida land assemblages at the South Florida hub.
The numbers
Each side traded $20 million in property. Related Ross’s 21 units brought Fort Partners’ total to 60 of 61 units in the building, acquired since April 2025 for a combined $79.7 million, or about $1.3 million per unit. The apartment properties Related picked up total 18,900 square feet across four buildings on just under an acre. The companies’ broader competition for West Palm Beach waterfront covers close to 4.3 acres, including a separate 60-unit condo, Southbridge, at 3915 South Flagler Drive, that neither side has resolved.
What’s next
Fort Partners closed its Harbor Towers buyout in February and can now pursue redevelopment of the 2-acre site with only the condo association’s unit outstanding. Related has not disclosed plans for the multifamily parcels it picked up. It is unclear whether Friday’s trade was tied to the October 2025 settlement or negotiated separately, and neither company has said what becomes of Southbridge, the remaining contested site.