Turnberry, a development firm based in Aventura and controlled by the Soffer family, has received initial approval from the Riviera Beach City Council for a zoning change that could ease density restrictions for waterfront projects on Singer Island. The council voted 3-2 in favor of the amendment, which would allow developers to bypass certain setback requirements in exchange for financial contributions to the city’s park fund.
The proposed project by Turnberry is a 200-foot-tall condominium with 52 units and a parking pedestal holding 121 spaces. It would be located on a narrow 3.3-acre site at 3930 North Ocean Drive. Under current regulations, most high-rises on Singer Island must have setbacks of at least 20 feet on their first two floors, increasing by two feet per additional story. The new amendment would permit these setback requirements to be waived if developers pay $50,000 for every quarter acre of open space not provided, with a minimum payment of $100,000 per project.
Hope Calhoun, an attorney representing Turnberry, said the building would have ground floor setbacks of 25 feet but requires relief from the requirement above the tenth floor.
Turnberry Chief Operating Officer Aly-khan Merali stated that “the project would provide about $7 million a year in property taxes and $2.2 million in impact fees.”
Council Member Glen Spiritis expressed concern over how quickly the change was being considered: “We are just going to do this at night with a simple stroke of the pen,” Spiritis said.
The amendment still requires one more vote before it can take effect.
According to city documents, Turnberry’s proposed building will be shorter than neighboring structures such as the Martinique buildings (314 feet tall) completed in 1986 and the Oasis towers (254 feet tall) built in 2024.
City officials say Riviera Beach needs more tax revenue to address infrastructure challenges, including an estimated $400 million required to replace its water plant. Council Member Bruce Guyton highlighted local concerns: “Our water rates are about to double in four years, and a lot of people in our community cannot afford it,” he said.
Singer Island is approximately five miles long with average home prices around $1 million according to Redfin data. Most of Singer Island falls within Riviera Beach—a nine-square-mile area where home prices average about $505,000.
Turnberry is also known as majority owner of Aventura Mall and co-developer of an upcoming $392 million convention hotel project in Miami Beach. Other developments planned for Riviera Beach include two apartment buildings at Marina Village—co-developed by Related Urban—and SobelCo’s planned mixed-use complex at 1117 Broadway.
