Tech Firms Plant Roots in Fort Lauderdale’s Growing Tech Hub

Benefytt Technologies has signed a five-year 26,163-square-foot lease at Hotwire Technology Center in Fort Lauderdale. The lease is the company’s second in the South Florida in the last 12 months. It is also a prime example of the expanding tech presence in the market.

Hotwire Technology Center is an 183,000-square-foot class-A tech-driven office campus, home to Hotwire Communications data center. The property is one of the most energy efficient plants in the area, achieving full operational performance at 30% capacity. The building features redundant power, dual-power grids, multiple backup generators, and 24/7/365 monitoring by onsite personnel and state-of-the-art magnetic chillers. Hotwire Communications purchased the complex in 2016 as its corporate headquarters.

A health insurance technology company, Benefytt Technologies plans to occupy the space in May. Colliers South Florida’s executive managing director of office and industrial services Jonathan Kingsley and South Florida senior director Jarred Goodstein, represented the landlord, Hotwire Communications, and Benefytt Technologies in the transaction.

Others are expanding in the area, too. Hines and Urban Street Development are building a 180,000-square-foot creative office building in the FAT Village, a 5-acre, 835,000-square-foot mixed use enclave. Branded as T3 FAT Village and located along North Andrews Avenue between 5th and 6th Streets, the developers will modernize a former mercantile warehouse building to serve technology, advertising, media, information and biotechnology/life sciences tenants.