The home of the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, the Bahia Mar Resort and Yachting Center, has been approved for a redesign.
The new Bahia Mar will be designed by architect Kobi Karp and will introduce what the firm calls “urban sustainable and resilient solutions similar to those found in the south of France, Mediterranean side of Italy, Dubai, Cape Town, South Africa, Shanghai and Hong Kong.”
The public will still have access to the area for daily shopping and use of the Bahia Mar’s public green spaces and park. Residential areas will be 45 feet above the ground to allow for better pedestrian and vehicular circulation and traffic flow. The project is expected to be completed by 2020.
One opportunity that the redesign gives Karp is the chance to raise the site to give it a better chance to survive a hurricane and its aftermath such as rising tides and waves. For example, seawalls around the property will be raised.
