317 N Federal Hwy — Reported Site of Approved Twin-Tower Plan
Fort Lauderdale city commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to approve an amended site plan for a long-planned twin-tower residential project on North Federal Highway, clearing the way for developer Merrimac Ventures to move forward with one of downtown’s largest pending developments. The vote caps roughly five years of planning for the project, known as 317 N Federal, which first emerged in 2021 as a pair of towers with more than 700 apartments near the heart of the city.
According to The Real Deal, the project is led by Merrimac Ventures principals Dev Motwani and Nitin Motwani, who paid $14 million in 2020 for the 317 North Federal Highway and 515 Northeast Third Street parcels. The 1.8-acre development site has a layered history: Joel and Camille Fox had owned the land since at least 1982, and the property once held a two-story retail building occupied by Sherwin-Williams along with a Greyhound bus stop that will have to be relocated or replaced for the project to proceed, according to Florida YIMBY.
How the Plan Has Changed Since 2021
Merrimac first proposed the project in 2021, and Fort Lauderdale’s Development Review Committee approved that original site plan in July of that year. At the time, the two towers were specified at 42 and 45 stories, according to a report from the Sun Sentinel, which described the west tower rising 453.16 feet with 390 units and 561 parking spaces, and a second tower reaching 495.67 feet with 326 units and 522 parking spaces. Combined, the 2021 proposal called for 716 residential units, 8,700 square feet of commercial space and 1,083 parking spaces, the Sun Sentinel reported, with fitness centers, media and social rooms, and coworking space included in the design…