Bryant Miller Olive helps Broward College negotiate the redevelopment of two underutilized buildings into a revenue source and community asset
Ma ny colleges and universities have properties in desirable locations that can be 
redeveloped to benefit both the academic institution and the surrounding community. A project in the works at Broward College is one of the latest examples of this trend.
In February, Broward College entered into a pre-development agreement and ground lease with the Stiles Corp. to redevelop two underutilized buildings on its downtown campus in the heart of Fort Lauderdale. The mixed-use redevelopment project will include spaces for academic use, along with approximately 380,000 square feet of office space, 17,500 square feet of ground-floor retail and dining, and an associated parking structure. An outdoor courtyard will provide a flexible, multi-use plaza
for civic events, student activities, classroom instruction and other public gatherings.
Bryant Miller Olive worked alongside Broward College officials and KPMG to administer a robust Invitation to Negotiate (ITN) that optimized the competitiveness of the procurement process. The team also structured the negotiation of the agreements needed to move the project forward.
“Revitalizing our downtown campus will improve the academic experience while providing the College with an alternative revenue source that lessens its reliance on tuition and state funding,” said Broward College President J. David Armstrong, Jr. “We are pleased that this project will benefit both the College and the downtown Fort Lauderdale area.”
In its representation of Broward College, Bryant Miller Olive leveraged the firm’s deep
expertise in both public-private partnership infrastructure transactions as well as development projects with colleges and universities. The firm’s recent experience includes: a classroom, office and administrative building developed for shared use by Broward College and Florida International University; two student housing projects for Florida Polytechnic University; and a student housing, health and wellness, dining and retail project for the University of South Florida.
“With less funding coming out of Tallahassee, colleges and universities in Florida are looking for ways to provide the needed infrastructure,” said Ken Artin, who leads Bryant Miller Olive’s practice in work involving academic institutions. “We helped Broward College take an underutilized asset and negotiate an excellent project to maximize
the property’s value.”
In addition to Ken Artin, the firm’s team on the project included Tom Constantine, who led the negotiation and documentation of the Ground Lease Agreement and the Pre-Development Agreement; Fred Springer, who assisted the College with the administration of the ITN process; and Charlie Cooper and Nailah Tatum, who provided advice on real estate and title matters.
More information about the Broward College project is available in this article from the South Florida Business Journal.
