A longstanding Art Deco hotel in the heart of South Beach is entering its next chapter. The Tony Hotel South Beach has sold for $16.5 million in an off-market transaction, with its new owners planning a major renovation and continued operation of the Collins Avenue property.
Located at 801 Collins Avenue, the 52-room boutique hotel was acquired by an entity connected to French hospitality operators Philippe Le Guennec and Benjamin Debard. The acquisition expands the duo's presence in Miami Beach following their $43.5 million purchase of the Kimpton Angler’s Hotel last year. Le Guennec also previously purchased and sold, Hotel St. Augustine in Miami Beach.
The seller is an entity tied to Jessica Goldman Srebnick and Janet Goldman, bringing the Goldman family's approximately four-decade ownership of the property to a close.
Susan Gale of Gale International at ONE Sotheby’s International Realty represented both sides of the off-market transaction.
Under its new ownership, The Tony Hotel is planned for a multimillion-dollar renovation. Le Guennec and Debard intend to add the property to their hospitality portfolio while directly operating both the hotel and restaurant.
The buyers have also leased a neighboring building along Ocean Drive that backs up to the hotel. The additional space is planned to accommodate 21 more guestrooms, creating an opportunity to expand the existing 52-key hospitality operation while maintaining its location between Collins Avenue and Ocean Drive.
The hotel's restaurant component is also slated for a change, with the existing Wish Café expected to make way for a new concept that has not yet been announced.
The Tony Hotel occupies a double corner lot just steps from Ocean Drive and the Atlantic Ocean, with an ocean-view rooftop pool and bar among its signature features. Its architecture and history stretch back more than a century to the formative years of Miami Beach.
Originally opened as the Tiffany Hotel, the property was designed by architect L. Murray Dixon, whose work helped shape the architectural character associated with Miami Beach's Art Deco era. The hotel was later renovated in 1998 while retaining its historic Art Deco identity.
The Goldman family's connection to the property dates to 1986, when Goldman Properties acquired the hotel for $550,000. The acquisition became part of the family's broader involvement in South Beach during a period when Tony Goldman was playing a significant role in the preservation and revival of the neighborhood.
That connection was permanently incorporated into the hotel's identity in 2022, when the property was renamed The Tony Hotel South Beach in honor of the late Tony Goldman, founder of Goldman Properties and a historic preservationist widely credited with helping revitalize South Beach during the 1980s and 1990s. He later would go on to spearhead the redevelopment of Wynwood and introduce Wynwood Walls which would grow into a global street art destination. The Goldman family is still active in Wynwood through development, ownership and art.
Image via Moris Moreno
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A longstanding Art Deco hotel in the heart of South Beach is entering its next chapter. The Tony Hotel South Beach has sold for $16.5 million in an off-market transaction, with its new owners planning a major renovation and continued operation of the Collins Avenue property.