Real estate owner and developer Michael Shvo, chairman and CEO of the NYC-based real estate investment and development firm SHVO, has won approval from the Historic Preservation Board (HPB) of the City of Miami Beach to move forward with the three-acre master plan development of The Raleigh Hotel. The three-acre site includes the neighboring South Seas and the Richmond, located on Collins Avenue and 18th Street in Miami Beach.
"The Raleigh Hotel is the crown jewel of Miami Beach,” said Shvo. “This approval marks a new milestone in the partnership between SHVO, South Beach and the surrounding community. SHVO will continue to honor Miami's rich history and culture. We vow to play a significant role in the city’s continued growth and transformation.”
The board approved The Raleigh Master Plan to fully restore the three properties and to unify them as one site in order to operate them as a luxury hotel and condominium building, as presented by developer Michael Shvo and his partners. The approved plan includes construction of a new 175-foot oceanfront residential tower designed by Kobi Karp behind the Richmond and South Seas.
The plans, which were submitted to the board in April, will restore The Raleigh Hotel and its iconic pool, and the historic frontage of the Richmond and South Seas Hotels to their original 1941 grandeur, conceived by legendary architect L. Murray Dixon.
Shvo and his team worked diligently over the past 18 months with the HPB and held over 100 meetings with Miami Beach stakeholders to ensure that the proposed plans would maintain the building’s original façades, effectually restoring the streetscape. Shvo describes the redevelopment will restore the existing façades “exactly the way it was when it was originally built.” This includes the removal of the penthouse floor that was added to The Raleigh in 1961, the restoration of the original façades of the South Seas and the Richmond hotels.
SHVO purchased The Raleigh Hotel from Tommy Hilfiger in February 2019 for $103 million and later purchased the Richmond and South Seas for a combined $140 million in August 2019.
Given The Raleigh’s storied history, SHVO is committed to returning it as a cultural beacon for the greater Miami community. Last year, SHVO installed The Raleigh Gardens, an immersive and free temporary installation on the grounds of the hotel, featuring extraordinary sculpture from Les Lalanne.