A Gehry Partners proposal to redevelop Miami’s historic Deauville Beach Resort into a luxury hotel and condominium dubbed Equinox Towers is gaining traction after officials there agreed to move the plan to public vote on Wednesday.

The firm’s initial concept model of the project revealed to the Miami Beach City Commission during the hearing indicated a 125-unit condo design to stand beside a taller sculptural hotel with 175 rooms, potentially bringing another big-name architectural design to an undiscovered portion of the city’s gilded 35-mile-long coast.

The architect is developing the newly-named plan alongside Related Companies CEO and Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, who told the Miami Herald the idea of having a second Gehry project in the neighborhood where he grew up “held a special place in his heart,” adding that it will “rebuild and lift a whole community.”

There have been some concerns raised by preservationists over the proposed redevelopment of the once-glittering resort. Its current de facto owner, Alex Meruelo, has been the subject of numerous legal actions, fines, and code violations and stands accused of purposely allowing the property to fall into disrepair following a devastating electrical fire in 2017. The soon-to-be-demolished 1957 design, a defining part of the MiMo era that refashioned the city’s visual language at midcentury, was the creation of Melvin Grossman and the site of The Beatles’ historic second Ed Sullivan Show performance in 1964.

There were also questions by the commission as to Ross’ assertion that the neighborhood is a blighted community currently in need of economic boosters. North Beach was controversially declared so in 2019, clearing the way for the establishment of the redevelopment corporation that would pump $100 million into the area over the course of three decades. Ross responded that he was interested in bringing more affordable housing to North Beach and noted the $12 million included in his proposal for public benefits. His team also said the project is expected to generate $6 million annually and another $3 million in tax revenues for the community.

Gehry’s firm now says the project is still in its initial design stages and will be updated in December following the special referendum. Using his relevant Los Angeles projects as a useful primer, 44 of the 100 total residential units in Gehry's recent Ocean Avenue project in Santa Monica are considered affordable, while downtown's The Grand is designed with more than 400.

The Miami Beach coastline is going to be the site of several recently-announced or completed high-rise luxury projects designed by Kengo Kuma, OMA, and Renzo Piano. Voters will choose to accept the increase in floor-area ratio and height-limit increases at the referendum election, which will be held on November 8th.