Broward County-Builder Deadlocked Over Contract Buyout

HOLLYWOOD, FL-An agreement was struck in 1997 for the Swerdlow development organization to build warehouses on 97 acres of a Broward County-owned 272-acre tract. The land is planned as an intermodal transportation hub between the port and nearby Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport.

The builder was to pay $1 million a year rent on the land, going up to $2 million a year as construction proceeded at the rate of 100,000 sf a year.

Swerdlow blames political infighting for his failure to proceed. One published report says the cost to the county of repaying Swerdlow for the rent and taxes, as well as what he has spent on preliminaries to actually building, could go as high as $10 million.

For the moment, the county has walked away from the negotiations. Further clouding the project’s future is Hollywood’s complaint that it had not been notified first before Broward acted against the developer.

The city contends it has rights to develop the land itself or collect more than $10 million should Swerdlow default on his lease.