Citadel Billionaire Ken Griffin Wants to Develop Private Marina Right Off South Beach

Billionaire Ken Griffin wants to turn a nearly 4-acre property along one of Miami Beach’s busiest roads into his private resort-style marina.

The proposal for 120 MacArthur Causeway, right off South Beach on Terminal Island, would include three main buildings, two tennis courts and a pool, according to a filing with the City of Miami Beach. The 3.7-acre site is surrounded by facilities owned by Miami Beach and the ferry terminal to Fisher Island, one of the wealthiest residential enclaves in the country. 

A so-called owner’s pavilion intended for Griffin’s family and guests would feature a “grand seating area,” office space and storage areas for sports equipment. 

“The owner now wishes to redevelop the existing facility into a private marina,” states the application, which the Miami Beach Planning Board is scheduled to hear Nov. 4. Griffin, who’s worth an estimated $46 billion, founded both hedge fund Citadel, which he still leads, and market maker Citadel Securities. 

A separate structure called the marina pavilion, intended mostly for crew during their time off, would include a kitchen and a laundry area on the first floor. A gym, a sauna, showers and changing rooms would be on the second floor. A third structure would house the core operations of the marina. 

The proposed structures would sit just off busy MacArthur Causeway, which links the southern tip of Miami Beach to the mainland just north of Downtown Miami.

It’s unclear when and how Griffin paid for the vacant waterfront property. Public records show the owner of the Terminal Island site is an entity based at Citadel’s office inside the 830 Brickell office, managed by Citadel Chief Operating Officer Gerald Beeson, though the last transaction recorded in property records dates back to 2023.

That’s when Related Group sold the development parcel for $77 million to Lincoln Property Company after failing to launch an office project. Griffin had considered the property for the global headquarters for his two companies before settling on Brickell. 

The Terminal Island purchase adds to Griffin’s real estate portfolio since he relocated his two firms from Chicago to Miami in 2022. The finance mogul owns a mansion on nearby Star Island and oceanfront land near President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago compound in Palm Beach.

Along Brickell’s waterfront, he’s developing a mixed-use tower that will house his business, after buying the parcel for a record $363 million. The 54-story building is expected to break ground next year and cost $2.5 billion, a price Griffin recently revealed is $1.5 billion more than initial cost estimates.

A representative for Citadel did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

Julia Echikson can be reached at jechikson@commercialobserver.com.