Motwanis’ Merrimac Ventures Wins Alright for Denser, Taller Condo Project

Motwanis’ Merrimac Ventures Wins Alright for Denser, Taller Condo Project


Dev Motwani and Nitin Motwani with a rendering of 530 North Birch Street (Adache Group Architects)

Merrimac Ventures won approval to grow its prepared boutique condominium development in close proximity to the beach in Fort Lauderdale.

Fort Lauderdale commissioners on Thursday accepted a site prepare modification that adds 11 units and a fourth flooring, to build a four-tale, 32-device making at 530 North Birch Highway.

Inquiring prices for condos will top $1,000 for each sq. foot, stated Dev Motwani, who operates Merrimac Ventures collectively with his brother Nitin Motwani.

The growth web page is in Fort Lauderdale’s Central Seaside area. The property presently residences a 14-room resort and a parking large amount. The site is one particular block from the oceanfront and specifically west of the new Four Seasons Residences Fort Lauderdale, which counts Merrimac Ventures among the its co-developers.

“It’s ideal driving the 4 Seasons. It is just our spouse and children. We’ve owned the home for decades,” Dev Motwani advised The Authentic Deal. “It will be a luxury boutique setting up that we may perhaps or may possibly not manufacturer. We haven’t decided but.”

In 2019, Merrimac Ventures won metropolis acceptance of the initial web-site system for a 3-story rental with 21 models at 530 North Birch Street. But Motwani claimed building was delayed by the pandemic and by slow development on the city’s master strategy of enhancement for the Central Beach place, which eventually was accomplished in May of this yr.

“This is a grasp system procedure that was likely on for a long time. Then of course, Covid slowed it down even much more,” Motwani said. “The biggest change was, just before, the code truly type of pressured you to do these massive units, you know, 3,000-additionally sq. ft. Now you’re able to do far more models in the exact sum of place. Which is what allowed us to decreased our device dimensions.”

Merrimac Ventures lessened regular device measurement by 20 % to about 2,300 sq. toes, “which will be a additional reasonably priced products,” in accordance to a assertion the enterprise submitted to the metropolis. The Fort Lauderdale City Commission unanimously accepted the amended web site prepare at its Thursday assembly.

The amended site plan also raised the top of the prepared condominium from three stories to 4 stories, or from 120 ft to 144 feet. “Previously, you ended up [only] allowed to go up to 120 [feet],” Motwani claimed. The new plan also greater the amount of parking areas from 48 to 68 and included a
fourth degree to the development’s parking podium.

Preconstruction gross sales possibly will start out in the impending wintertime tourism time, but Merrimac Ventures hasn’t still selected a brokerage to manage sales.

“We ordinarily like to come to a decision on that closer to start, and we’re considering a start this season,” Motwani reported. “There are a pair other projects in the area that are marketing, so we could possibly choose to wait around a minor bit.”

The permitting period of the unnamed condominium task will just take six to 9 months, and development will take 16 to 18 months, he reported.

The marketplace for the units most likely will consist of inhabitants of the Northeast
and foreign customers as very well as South Floridians, Motwani explained.

“We also count on to see Miami-Dade citizens going north, and Broward inhabitants who have a significant property out west, and they are both downsizing to transfer to a apartment, or they just want a pied-à-terre.”



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