Great Gulf is launching Mandarin Oriental-branded waterfront condos in West Palm Beach, making it the latest luxury development in the city’s north end.
The planned Mandarin Oriental Residences, West Palm Beach will span 31 stories and 87 units, according to a news release. Great Gulf tapped Moshe Safdie to design the tower, with interiors by Studio Munge and landscape design by Enea Landscape. Cervera Real Estate will lead sales and marketing for the project, the firm’s first major development sales effort in West Palm Beach since expanding to the city in 2024.
Prices start at $3.5 million, a spokesperson confirmed.
Slated for the 2.5-acre waterfront site at 5400 North Flagler Drive, the condo will have more than 215 feet of waterfront along the Intracoastal Waterway.
Units will span between two and four bedrooms, and the building will also have two multi-level villas and a full-floor penthouse, the release shows.
Amenities in the Mandarin Oriental will include two pools, a fitness center, spa facilities and a pickleball court, the release shows. Neil Vohrah, Great Gulf’s president of highrise residential development said the tower will also have a theater, pet spa, coworking space and a kids club.
Construction is expected to start next year.
Great Gulf bought the site from Palm Beach-based Frisbie Group for $28.5 million in 2024. The development giant was founded in 1975 by Larry Robbins and brothers Elly and Norm Reisman. The company has built more than 90,000 homes across North America and has more than 9,000 units planned or under construction, according to its website.
The Mandarin Oriental marks the Canadian developer’s second project in the city, following its La Clara tower at 200 Arkona Court, which sold out for more than $209 million in 2023. La Clara’s owners sued Great Gulf last year, alleging construction defects and claiming the building lacked the luxury finishes buyers were promised. Vohrah declined to comment on the suit, citing ongoing litigation.
With Mandarin Oriental, Great Gulf is targeting buyers looking for primary and secondary homes in a growing West Palm Beach, as well as investors, Vohrah said. Great Gulf considered branding the project with a fashion house or luxury car brand, Vohrah said, but ultimately prioritized a service-oriented hospitality name.
“West Palm Beach until recently did not have many branded residences, especially when you compare it to markets like Miami,” he said.
Great Gulf saw a gap in the level of service provided in West Palm Beach’s condo market, he said.
Branded residences, long a staple of the Miami development pipeline, only emerged in West Palm Beach in 2023, when David Martin’s Terra launched sales for Mr. C Hotel & Residences West Palm Beach. Sources say sales are strong at Mr. C, as well as at Related Group’s planned Ritz-Carlton Residences, West Palm Beach, which recently started construction.
The site for the Mandarin Oriental is at the northernmost end of Flagler Drive, West Palm Beach’s prime waterfront strip. Competition has intensified for the city’s dwindling waterfront sites, as evidenced by record prices being offered in condo buyout bids. Still, Vohrah said Great Gulf is “committed to the market” and eyeing future projects.
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South Florida
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