Hollywood is considering a zoning rewrite that could put 340-foot projects beside the century-old Hollywood Beach Resort, a move that would turn the Broadwalk skyline into the city’s biggest development test yet. The proposal is pitched as a way to revive aging properties without losing the beach’s low-slung character—but the tallest incentives are aimed right at the landmark resort.
The proposed Hollywood Beach Overlay District would divide the barrier island into six development precincts with different height and density rules, according to The Real Deal. The Hollywood Beach Resort precinct, between Harrison Street and Tyler Street, could allow projects up to 340 feet, while other areas would generally top out at 100, 150 or 200 feet.
The proposal is not a blank check for towers. Developers would have to meet design standards involving ground-floor restaurants and retail, public plazas, beach access, stepbacks and architectural details intended to create a modern reinterpretation of Hollywood Beach’s Art Deco identity.
The Resort Is The Big Test
The rules arrive just as Miami-based Related Group and Aventura-based BH Group are under contract to acquire the vacant Hollywood Beach Resort and an adjacent parking garage from Chetrit Group. The Real Deal previously reported that the developers want to redevelop the 4.5-acre property, although a final project plan has not been disclosed.
City records show the property at 101 North Ocean Drive is inside the Hollywood Beach Historic District and has historically operated as a mixed-use site dating to 1925. The city also says the resort is not individually designated as a local or national historic property, a distinction that could give officials and developers more room to negotiate what preservation should mean in practice.
In June, the City Commission confirmed the property’s vested right to 398 residential units, a move the city described as a legislative determination because its zoning code does not provide an administrative process for deciding vested-rights claims. That decision clears one regulatory hurdle, but it does not itself approve a redevelopment design.
Officials Want More Height To Come With More Public Value
A city presentation says the overlay is meant to be a near-term tool while Hollywood works toward a broader beach master plan. Its framework says added development capacity should be earned through community benefits, with possible tools including height bonuses, transferable development rights, hotel-room density incentives and other programs that remain under development.
The city’s draft design guidelines also emphasize walkability, public spaces, shade, resilient landscaping, active street edges and protection of the Broadwalk’s character. Community feedback collected during the planning process focused on preserving Hollywood Beach’s authentic low-scale feel while improving mobility, design quality and the public realm, according to the City of Hollywood presentation.
That balancing act is already familiar to Hollywood residents. Hoodline previously covered opposition to a separate Related-backed tower proposal on public beachfront at 1301 South Ocean Drive, where neighbors argued that additional height and density could change the barrier island’s character and strain public infrastructure.
Public Review Starts In August
The city has scheduled a special Planning and Development Board meeting for August 4, followed by a regular board meeting on August 11. The city’s calendar lists the August 11 session for 5 p.m., and the draft schedule calls for a first City Commission hearing on August 26, with a second hearing expected in September.
If approved, the overlay would remain in place for five years while Hollywood evaluates whether it actually produced redevelopment without overwhelming the beach. That makes the Hollywood Beach Resort more than one redevelopment site: It could become the test case for whether the city can trade additional height for preservation, public access and a better Broadwalk—or simply end up with a much taller skyline.
Hollywood’s proposal also lands amid a wider South Florida debate over coastal growth, with Deerfield Beach reconsidering development restrictions and West Palm Beach examining possible zoning changes. The Real Deal reported that those cities are weighing how much new construction their waterfront districts can absorb without losing the qualities that made them valuable in the first place.
