BDT & MSD Partners received approval on Mar. 25 from Boca Raton’s City Council to rezone land at the historic Boca Raton resort, allowing the firm to proceed with an eight-story, 76-unit condominium development.
The decision enables BDT & MSD Partners to advance its plans for a residential complex at 501 East Camino Real. The units will range from two to five bedrooms and will be built on a 5.2-acre site within the resort, as outlined in planning documents. The architecture firm Hart Howarton, led by Jim Tinson of New York, has been selected to design the project.
This rezoning vote was among the last actions taken by the current city council before a new group of council members—largely elected on anti-development platforms—are sworn in next week following a landslide victory on March 10.
The Boca Raton resort was originally designed in 1926 by Addison Mizner and now covers 337 acres with more than 1,000 hotel rooms, extensive meeting space, golf courses, marina facilities, and numerous restaurants and recreational amenities. BDT & MSD Partners acquired the property from Blackstone for $875 million in 2019 and has since invested $75 million in renovations. In addition, they secured $1 billion in refinancing for the property after reporting a significant increase in revenue per room over five years.
Since merging in 2023, BDT & MSD has focused investments on luxury hospitality assets. The company is reportedly nearing an agreement to purchase two Four Seasons resorts from Host Hotels & Resorts for over $1 billion and has provided substantial loans for other high-end real estate projects including oceanfront condos in Palm Beach. In early 2024, BDT & MSD also acquired a minority stake in Auberge Resorts Collection.
