Miami-Dade’s first residential marina in 20 Years opens
The new full-service marina at Marina Palms Yacht Club & Residences has officially opened, marking Miami-Dade County’s first luxury residential marina and yacht club development in over 20 years.
“This milestone marks more than the opening of a new marina. It’s an accomplishment of meeting our customers’ demands for a product that serves luxury residential buyers and yachting enthusiasts in a way not seen in more than a generation,” said Neil Fairman, president of The Plaza Group, whose affiliate is developing the project with The DevStar Group. “We identified an underutilized asset and transformed it into a truly 21st century marina.”
The property’s former marina built on the shores of Maule Lake was a popular boating destination dating back to the 1970s and ’80s, but the facility long ago fell into disrepair. In 2013, crews began clearing the marina basin, removing sunken boat hulls, a submerged, 50-ton boat lift, more than 100 rotted, wooden pilings and some 2,000 cubic yards of sand and silt from the bay floor.
The marina basin now ranges in depth from 9 to 12 feet. The new marina has some 400 concrete piles constructed of galvanized rebar encased in high-strength concrete that are driven 35 feet into the seabed. The sheet metal pile seawall has been capped with a stout concrete bulkhead, similar to what marina general contractor Kearns Construction Company used when completing PortMiami.
The dock system itself features two fixed dock fingers that flank the north and south side of the marina and a floating dock spine that cuts down the center of the basin. The marina’s 112 slips are wired with electricity and fiber optic cabling for voice, data, and high-speed Internet service from dockside pedestals for each vessel. All cabling will run beneath the dock in a protective chase.
“The docks, piles and seawall were constructed with materials and methods well in excess of what is required by code,” Brock Sullivan, COO with Kearns Construction Company said. “We built a marina that is structurally sound, technologically advanced and is the key component of a remarkable development and a template for future marina developments.”
The marina’s fuel station and high-speed dispensers are fed from two 12,000-gallon tanks providing diesel and gasoline service. The fuel station itself is built on a central floating dock designed to rise and fall with the tide. The fuel station and marina sundry store will be open to the public.
The marina has a full-time dock master, dock hands and a yacht concierge to arrange vessel cleaning and maintenance, provisioning and even entertainment planning.
The marina is also home to the exclusive Marina Palms Boat Club. For a one-time initiation fee and a monthly membership fee, resident members will have access to vessels ranging from a 22-foot center console to a 35-foot cabin cruiser to cruise, fish or dive along the Intracoastal Waterway, the Atlantic Ocean or Biscayne Bay. PWC, paddleboards and kayaks also will be available. Residents will have the option to purchase a membership, rent by the day or even rent by the hour.
The marina is the namesake centerpiece of Marina Palms Yacht Club & Residences. Located at 172nd Street and Biscayne Boulevard just off the Intracoastal Waterway, the development features two, 25-story condominium towers with a combined 468 two-, three- and four-bedroom residences and penthouse units.
