Cymbal DLT Secures $32M Loan for Fort Lauderdale Riverfront Development
By Mark Hallum October 24, 2022 4:18 pm
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Asi Cymbal is putting down roots along the Fort Lauderdale waterfront — literally.
Cymbal DLT Companies closed on a $32 million construction loan from 3650 REIT to get the propeller spinning on a 6-acre riverfront project in Fort Lauderdale that was a decade in the making.
The project in Fort Lauderdale’s Downtown Riverwalk District will be developed in four stages, which Cymbal DLT has planned for over a decade. The district will include a slew of proposed attractions, residential towers, a yacht club, and much more.
The firm has even budgeted what it will cost to move and replant a leviathan African rain tree away from where it plans to build the tower.
The first phase spans 1.5 acres at 408 SW Fourth Avenue, covering 200 feet of waterfront. The second phase is about the same size and located at 413 SW Third Avenue. The third and fourth phases will redevelop 3 acres of land at 400 SW Third Avenue and 300 feet of waterfront, according to Cymbal, chairman of Cymbal DLT Companies.
“This funding will be a huge step in bringing the entire site to a shovel-ready state. We are looking to significantly transform Fort Lauderdale for the better with exciting architecture and design,” Cymbal said in a statement. “Upon completion, our district will also connect the last remaining piece of the Riverwalk and will highlight our beautifully preserved rain tree.”
The residences of phase one will be two mixed-use towers, 28 and 29 stories tall, designed by architecture firm Jo Palma + Partners. The developers will break ground in the summer of 2023.
The lender, 3650 REIT, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The $32 million loan is to cover the groundbreaking on all four phases, but additional financing will be needed to go vertical, according to Cymbal.
Cymbal is also spending about $1 million and posted an additional $1 million bond to hire tree preservationists to relocate the largest African rain tree in Florida to the new site. It is 80 years old, stands 100 feet tall and has a 100-foot canopy, according to Cymbal, and the firm will have restaurant seating beneath the tree. “I love that tree,” founder Cymbal told the Wall Street Journal back in 2013. “It’s not my intent to have the soul of an 80-year-old vanquished rain tree following me around.”
The Ents of Fangorn would approve.
Cymbal DLT’s vision for the district includes rental towers, a condominium building, a hotel, membership clubs, and a marina and yacht club. The district also will have offices, retail space, and food and beverage establishments.
Arquitectonica is the architect behind phase two of the project, the details of which will be released next year.
Mark Hallum can be reached at mhallum@commercialobserver.com.
