Facing a tidal wave of resident opposition, representatives for billionaire Jeffrey Soffer’s Fontainebleau Miami Beach delayed a crucial vote on his plan to renovate the iconic waterfront resort’s pool amenities.
The Miami Beach Historic Preservation Board was scheduled Tuesday to approve or deny Fontainebleau Miami Beach’s application to add cabanas and waterslides at the 1,593-room hotel at 4441 Collins Avenue. Instead, the board voted 6-0 to table the item until a later date at the owner’s request because a seventh board member, Haskel Meyer, was absent.
“The Fontainebleau team was fully prepared to present the proposal and welcomed the opportunity for dialogue,” a spokesperson for the resort said in a statement. “But requested a deferral so the full board could be present to consider the item during a future meeting this summer.”
The Miami Beach City Commission chambers, where the board meets, was packed with residents holding signs opposing the project, outnumbering a phalanx of Fontainebleau Miami Beach supporters in blue T-shirts. Videos obtained by The Real Deal showed two Miami Beach police officers and a security guard ushering away residents who demanded the item be considered.
“Asking for a deferral because of one missing board member was an excuse,” Alicia Casanova told The Real Deal after the meeting.
She suggested Fontainebleau Miami Beach officials “got scared of losing. It’s unacceptable.”
Casanova is president of the master condo association for the Blue Diamond and Green Diamond, two condominiums near Fontainebleau Miami Beach.
Anamarie Ferreira de Melo, president of the MidBeach Neighborhood Association, said a majority of the organization’s members oppose Fontainebleau Miami Beach’s plan because they believe it will add more traffic and negatively impact a planned infrastructure project on Collins Avenue.
“MBNA has always supported development that is compatible and that is thoughtful for our community,” Ferreira de Melo said. “For this one, we’re unable to do so. Of course, traffic is something that gets everybody very upset. It’s a trigger for anyone who lives in Mid-Beach.”
This marks the third time the board has delayed a vote on the pool amenities plan. In November, the board voted for a deferral to give Fontainebleau Miami Beach time to meet with opposing residents and neighborhood associations to address criticisms about the planned renovation, which entails a cabana structure and an aluminum waterslide tower.
Fontainebleau Miami Beach representatives presented an updated plan to the MidBeach Neighborhood Association last month showing the cabana structure was reduced from two stories to 1.4 stories, and the waterslide tower’s height was slashed to 99 feet tall from 131 feet tall.
However, a majority of residents who attended the presentation were unfazed, and continued to criticize the planned renovation. Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner also spoke out against the proposal even though the city commission will not get to vote on it.
Following the neighborhood meeting, Fontainebleau Miami Beach requested a second deferral to this month.
Since then, Soffer’s Aventura-based firm Fontainebleau Development has implemented a public relations campaign similar to that of a project on public land requiring voter approval. The developer hired political consultant Christian Ulvert to run the campaign. Ulvert managed the campaign for Miami Mayor Eileen Higgins, who won in a runoff in December. He also managed Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava’s runs in 2020 and 2024.
Fontainebleau Development also retained Miami-based polling firm MDW Communications to survey 305 Miami Beach voters last month. According to the poll’s results, 39 percent of the respondents said they had heard a little about the pool renovation and another 24 percent had heard a lot about it. The remainder had not heard anything about it, the poll results show.
When provided details about the project, 31 percent of the respondents said they strongly support it, 27 percent said they somewhat support it, 18 percent said they strongly oppose it, 11 percent said they somewhat oppose it and 12 percent had no opinion.
“The Fontainebleau proposal is about reinvesting in one of Miami Beach’s most iconic landmarks in a way that honors its history while preparing it for the future,” the spokesperson’s statement said. “All while maintaining the property’s existing footprint, without increasing density or adding traffic.”
Mark Weiss, a Miami Beach-based attorney who has been a leading critic, dismissed the campaign as “manufactured propaganda.”
“The swell of opposition is like something never before seen,” Weiss said. “The manufactured fake public support vanished very quickly and ran for the hills.”
