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Margate Officials Explore Manhattan Development to Inspire $500M City Center Project

by David Volz January 4, 2025

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Margate CRA Greenlights New Signs, Eyes Future Development and Small Business Support

A rendering of the proposed City Center project for Margate. [SeaVest Consulting Services].

Commissioner Anthony Caggiano is excited about the possibilities of a planned city center.

Over the winter break, Caggiano and his daughter Sophia, Commissioner Tommy Ruzzano, Vice Mayor Antonio Arserio, and City Manager Cale Curtis visited a Brookfield Properties development in Manhattan.

They traveled to New York from December 10 to 12 to participate in the ICSC New York at the Jacob Javits Center. There, they learned from industry experts who are leaders in the marketplace industry. The Margate CRA paid for the trip.

Anthony and Sophia also visited Vela at The Yards in Washington, D.C. He wanted to see firsthand the final product of one of the companies under consideration for building the city center. They did this at their own expense.

He told Margate Talk that Manhattan West, at 385 Ninth Avenue, New York, was “staggeringly beautiful.” He wanted to view the projects in person rather than in pictures. They were most impressed with The Yards in the Washington, D.C., area.

“It was well worth it to see what they had built,” he said, adding, “My daughter said she would want to live there.”

The amenities, such as the pool and clubhouse areas, impressed him the most. He also liked the balconies on the housing units. He saw residents enjoying themselves in the public areas.

According to Anthony, the upcoming city center project is the most crucial development in the city’s history and must be done right. He estimates it will cost more than $500 million to build and will be a major center in Margate for the next 50 years.

“I want Margate to be a city where my daughter and people in the area want to live. If possible, I would like to see other developer’s projects,” he said.

The Michaels Organization, Related Group, and Brookfield all presented at the December 3 Community Redevelopment Association (CRA) meeting. All the city commissioners have said they want the city center to be a destination with upscale restaurants, stores, and housing units.

All the commissioners have said they want the city center to be a unique destination.

CityPlace in downtown West Palm Beach has 600,000 square feet of retail businesses, about 20 restaurants, a 20-screen theater, an open-air plaza and hundreds of private residences. According to the CityPlace website, the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts borders its west side.

According to the Plantation Walk website, the Rise Plantation Walk includes about 700 residences and stores, restaurants, and a fitness center located at 321 N. University Drive, Plantation.

Miramar Town Center is a 54-acre mixed-use project that houses a City Hall, public library, cultural center park, and educational center in the civic complex area. In addition, the project contains retail, office, and residential components.

The next CRA meeting is January 15 at 7:00 p.m. at City Hall.

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Author Profile

David Volz

David Volz has worked as a writer in South Florida for 35 years. He has written for the Sun-Sentinel, Hollywood Gazette, School Transportation News, South Dade News Leaders, Observer among others. He has an MA in Communications from Florida Atlantic University and a BA in Communications from Valparaiso University. Volz teaches Communications at Miami Dade College and Palm Beach State College. He lives in Coral Springs and enjoys running and participating in 5Ks and half-marathons.