Fort Capital Announces Agreement With Four Seasons to Create Four Seasons Hotel at The Surf Club and The Surf Club Four Seasons Private Residences in Surfside, Florida

Construction has started on new buildings by the firm of Pritzker-Prize winning architect Richard Meier, which will join historic 1930 structure to create unique luxury hospitality and residential experience opening in early 2016

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Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts

Jan 28, 2014, 03:20 ET

SURFSIDE, Fla. and TORONTO, Jan. 28, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Fort Capital, the Miami-based private real estate investment company, today announced it has entered into an agreement with Four Seasons, the world's leading luxury hospitality company, to brand and manage The Surf Club, a 9-acre property on the Atlantic Ocean in Surfside, Florida which Fort Capital acquired in 2012.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140128/NY54207)

Four Seasons Hotel & Private Residences at The Surf Club, rendering by DBOX. (PRNewsFoto/Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts) (PRNewsFoto/FOUR SEASONS HOTELS AND RESORTS)

Four Seasons Hotel at The Surf Club will have approximately 80 rooms, and incorporate a historic Russell Pancoast-designed building. The Surf Club Four Seasons Private Residences will comprise 150 homes and penthouses in two 12-story towers. Both will offer the intuitive, customized service that is the hallmark of Four Seasons. Richard Meier & Partners, in association with KKAID, is the design architect for the project.

The legendary Surf Club, was founded in 1930 by Harvey Firestone as a private membership club. It will soon join a growing portfolio of historic and architecturally important Four Seasons hotels, including the landmark Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris; the lavishly restored Palazzo and Giardino della Gherardesca at Four Seasons Hotel Firenze; and the majestic Four Seasons Hotel Lion Palace St. Petersburg, housed in a meticulously restored 19^th century palace.

The Surf Club boasts 965 feet of Atlantic oceanfront on a 9-acre site which will incorporate the hotel; two residential towers; a private membership club; two restaurants; four swimming pools; a state-of-the-art spa and fitness center; more than 40 beach cabanas; and an expansive park and oceanside gardens. The Richard Meier Signature Homes and Penthouses, ranging in size from 1400 to almost 8000 square feet, will offer residents extraordinary views stretching from the Atlantic to downtown Miami, with interiors and finishes personally selected by Mr. Meier. The design for the buildings utilize his decisive and iconic visual vocabulary -- glass walls, capacious volumes of space, a sensitivity to the movement of natural light throughout the day, and sumptuous yet elemental materials. This is Mr. Meier's first project in the Miami area

"When we acquired The Surf Club in 2012, our goal was to augment the property's natural beauty and storied past with the intelligent, purposeful design of Richard Meier to create an elegant, amenity-rich residential and hospitality experience," noted Nadim Ashi, CEO of Fort Capital. "By partnering with Four Seasons, we are going to ensure that Four Seasons Hotel at The Surf Club and The Surf Club Four Seasons Private Residences will consistently deliver the highest caliber of service. Their expertise, track-record and fully-integrated bespoke service will provide owners and guests with an unmatched lifestyle of luxury and ease. Richard Meier & Partners in association with KKAID, have created buildings which will become iconic additions to the Surfside landscape."

"We move forward with opportunities only if we are confident we have the right location and the right partner – a partner who shares our vision for success," said Scott Woroch, Executive Vice President Worldwide Development, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. "We are excited to partner with Fort Capital and Richard Meier – visionaries who have embraced the Surf Club's rich history and provenance while boldly reimagining its future."

"This is a tremendous opportunity to grow our portfolio in Florida, a key growth market for Four Seasons," continued Woroch. "Four Seasons Hotel at The Surf Club will be a dynamic complement to our existing properties in Florida – Four Seasons Resort Palm Beach and Four Seasons Hotel Miami, as well as the highly anticipated Four Seasons Resort Orlando at Walt Disney World® Resort opening this summer."

Richard Meier commented, "The Surf Club offers a unique opportunity to create an important addition to the built environment, one which affects a balance between the natural beauty of the expansive oceanfront site, and the desire for a new definition of luxury. Incorporating the historic structure; remaining sensitive to the gracious, low-rise context of Surfside, Florida; and further exploring the relationship between structure and sea has been a wonderful project for the firm. With the addition of Four Seasons, I feel confident that the homes and penthouses we have created will be enjoyed to their fullest."

Coastal Construction is serving as general contractor on the project. Construction commenced in late 2013 and is on schedule to be completed in early 2016.

About Fort Capital
Fort Capital is a privately owned real estate investment management company based in Miami, Florida led by developer and entrepreneur Nadim Ashi. Through its managed funds, the company invests primarily in the South Florida and Caribbean markets, with a focus on highly differentiated properties that possess singular attributes and unique provenance. Managing partner Ashi and his executive team have decades of successfully honed real estate and investment experience with a risk-management focus. Fort Capital's stakeholders are leading private investors and family offices from the US, Europe and South America.

About Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts
Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts is dedicated to perfecting the travel experience through continual innovation and the highest standards of hospitality. From elegant surroundings of the finest quality, to caring, highly personalized 24-hour service, Four Seasons embodies a true home away from home for those who know and appreciate the best. The deeply instilled Four Seasons culture is personified in its employees - people who share a single focus and are inspired to offer great service. Founded in 1960, Four Seasons has followed a targeted course of expansion, opening hotels and residences in major city centres and desirable resort destinations around the world. With 92 properties in 38 countries, and more than 60 projects under development, Four Seasons continues to lead the hospitality industry with innovative enhancements, making business travel easier and leisure travel more rewarding.

About Richard Meier & Partners
The work of Richard Meier & Partners is instantly recognizable and internationally respected. For over five decades, we have been appointed to create important public and private buildings. Our offices in New York and Los Angeles employ a multicultural staff of talented professionals practicing architecture, urbanism, product design and exhibition design. We aspire to thoughtful, elegant contemporary architecture that exceeds our clients' expectations for beauty and elegance.

Recent work includes one of the most sustainable office and research buildings in Europe for Italcementi in Bergamo, Italy; the headquarters in Hamburg for the Neumann Kaffee Gruppe; the Jesolo Lido Condominium in Jesolo, Italy; the first office project in the Czech Republic built on a speculative basis to receive the highest LEED certification; and the United States Courthouse in San Diego, California. We currently have new projects in North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. Richard Meier & Partners is led by Richard Meier and five partners – Michael Palladino, James R. Crawford, Bernhard Karpf, Reynolds Logan, Dukho Yeon – and sustains an international practice with offices in New York and Los Angeles.