Cymbal DLT in the News

Developer Asi Cymbal made significant changes to his planned Nautico District along the New River in Fort Lauderdale, scaling down the size of the project and recasting the design.

Still, it would be one of the largest developments in Fort Lauderdale with a size of 1.68 million square feet. It would include a branded condo, hotel, apartments, marina with dry and wet boat slips and commercial space.

Nautico's first phase is the Riverwalk Raintree Residences, a two-tower project with 677 apartments and 21,000 square feet that Cymbal started site work on in 2022. Cymbal, the chairman of Miami-based Cymbal DLT Cos., said that project should go vertical in the next six months. That project includes the relocation of a historic African rain tree.

The second phase, Nautico, would be on the 3.82-acre site at 400 S.W. Third Ave. Cymbal owns it through DFW 18 LLC and PCN Warehouse.

Cymbal first revealed plans for the Nautico District [formerly Nautica] in late 2022. It was originally slated for 2.09 million square feet with towers of 50, 39 and 32 stories. It would have had 241 condos, 454 apartments, 155 hotel rooms and the marina and commercial space.

“We sent almost two years speaking with members of community and elected officials and following their lead on what the district should look like,” Cymbal said. “All those adjustments were a result of those conversations.”

The city’s Planning and Zoning Board will consider the revised plans for Nautico on July 17. The project would feature a 37-story condo totaling 320,059 square feet with 200 units, a 30-story apartment building totaling 371,171 square feet with 360 units, and a 30-story hotel totaling 111,993 square feet with 119 rooms. There would also be a marina with 78 dry boat slips and 12 wet boat slips, 13,040 square feet of commercial space, 17,897 square feet of restaurants, 2,636 square feet of cafes and 1,599 parking spaces.

The condo and apartment tower would be positioned at opposite ends of the parking podium, and that structure would be connected to the hotel/marina building on the river with a pedestrian bridge.

Cymbal said Nautico would take advantage of Fort Lauderdale’s lifestyle as the yachting capital of the world. Residents could call a valet and have their 60-foot yacht ready to go downstairs. People could dock their boats and stay in the hotel and eat at the restaurants.

Cymbal said he’s already agreed to a hospitality brand for the project, but he isn’t ready to announce it.

The hotel operator could provide hospitality to the people who live at Nautico and the restaurants could provide food service to them as well, he added. The condo owners could list their units for daily rent in with the hotel, but not on their own with home-sharing platforms, he added.

“A high-end, branded hotel in this part of Fort Lauderdale would really rejuvenate and add energy to the south side of the river,” Cymbal said. ”A condo tower will elevate the district as well.”

Cymbal said the condo, apartments and hotel would have separate amenities.

The amenities for the condo would include a pool, tennis courts, racquet ball, pickle ball, an outdoor theater, a fitness center, a resident lounge, a party lounge, a game room, and a kids room.

The hotel building near the river would include a pool, ballroom, spa and coworking space.

The condos would range from 521 to 1,874 square feet. There would be 18 studios, 50 one-bedroom units, 82 two-bedroom units, and 50 three-bedroom units.

The apartments would go from 534 to 1,283 square feet. There would be 109 studios, 135 one-bedroom units, 84 two-bedroom units, and 32 three-bedroom units.

He’s represented in the application by attorney Stephanie Toothaker. Miami-based Arquitectonica remains the designer of the project.

According to city records, Cymbal agreed to pay $5.77 million into the county and city’s affordable housing funds in lieu of including affordable housing in this project.

Cymbal is seeking several waivers from the Planning and Zoning Board, mostly related to height and setbacks. Pending city approval, Cymbal hopes to start condo sales in the fourth quarter of this year or early 2025.