A federal bankruptcy judge on Friday approved a developer’s plan to purchase the county lease for the shuttered Miami Seaquarium, a key step toward replacing the iconic theme park with a marina and entertainment complex on Biscayne Bay.
A lawyer for the current owner, the Dolphin Company, said agreements are in place to relocate all of the marine mammals still living at the Seaquarium, including penguins, dolphins and sea lions, by the end of 2025, with developer David Martin expected to take control of the county-owned property by next summer.
“I will approve the transaction,” U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Laurie Selber Silverstein said at the end of the hearing held in Delaware and available for call-in participants. “I know, importantly, that the animals that live in the Seaquarium are being appropriately provided for, that they will be relocated to accredited facilities in the United States. That that is on track to occur.”…