April 13, 2021 – By Brian Bandell Senior Reporter, South Florida Business Journal
Kolter Urban has launched sales of what will be the tallest condo along the beach in Fort Lauderdale.
Selene Oceanfront Residences will have two 26-story towers, rising 300 feet, with 200 condos and 5,300 square feet of restaurant space facing the ocean. It will be at 3000 Alhambra St., which the Delray Beach-based developer acquired in a land swap with the city in 2017.
The condos will range from 1,400 to 3,200 square feet, averaging around 2,000 square feet. Prices start from $2.7 million.
Bob Vail, president of Kolter Urban, said the launch of sales came after several years of working with the city and neighborhoods to find the right design and secure all approvals. They decided to make two slender, taller towers so the buildings wouldn’t block the views of neighboring condo residents. That also led to more open space at the ground level, including three public plazas.
It will cost more to develop a taller building, but the top five floors will have unobstructed views, so those units should be priced higher, Vail said.
Kolter will start with taking reservations for 90 days and then move to contracts. It will ask for 25% deposits, paid out in stages. That’s less than the 40%-50% deposits often requested at condo projects rising in neighboring Miami-Dade County.
Vail said he expects Selene to capitalize on the uptick of luxury condo sales in South Florida during the recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. Buyers from the Northeast and California, who used to be rare, now account for about 5% of deals at Kolter’s Florida projects.
“We are bringing it to market at pricing to fuel absorption of the project in a more aggressive timeframe,” Vail said. “We’ve got just over 200 to sell in three to four years so need to do 40 to 50 a year to bring the project in successfully.”
Amenities will include two pool decks with cabanas and day beds, open gathering spaces, a summer kitchen, several fire pits, a pool bar, a two-story fitness center, a dog run, a theater room, game rooms, a sports bar, social rooms, and a coworking center. There will also be a public pedestrian bath around the building.
Selene Oceanfront Residences was designed by Kobi Karp Architects with interiors by ID & Design International. Douglas Elliman is the exclusive sales broker.
Kolter plans to break ground on the project in November 2021. It should be completed in 2024.
“As the Fort Lauderdale condominium market continues to boom, we look forward to leveraging the current momentum and offer buyers unparalleled luxury living on Fort Lauderdale Beach with the newest, tallest towers on the waterfront,” said Jay Phillip Parker, CEO of Douglas Elliman in Florida.
