After years of relative inactivity on its downtown Miami holdings, Malaysian gaming giant Genting Group is finally planning on developing the property — just not into the massive casino resort it once promised to build.
According to the Miami Herald, the company is planning to build a mega-yacht harbor with 50 slips in Biscayne Bay along the former Miami Herald site at 1 Herald Plaza. The plans were unveiled Monday before the Miami River Commission, which voted 10-1 to give its support to the project.
In addition to the marina, which could accommodate vessels of up to 175 feet, Genting would also build a public baywalk along the 5.6-acre site, spanning the distance between the Venetian and MacArthur causeways.
(Click to enlarge) Overheard plans for the Resorts World Miami marina
The project would be made possible by a proposed boat slip swap, where Genting would purchase the slip rights from two properties on the Miami River. According to Miami Herald, the gaming giant only has rights to build eight slips at its Biscayne Bay site due to a manatee protection rule that limits property owners to one slip per 100 feet of shoreline.
Genting’s attorney Spencer Crowley confirmed at the hearing that Genting wants to move forward with its plans for a Marina separately from developing its vast 14-acre holdings in the downtown area, the Herald reported. Genting had originally proposed a large-scale casino resort called Resorts World Miami on the land, but its attempts to lobby state and county officials to allow gambling on the site have so far failed.
The land, which Genting bought for $236 million in 2011, has sat vacant since the company demolished the Miami Herald building in 2015. [Miami Herald] — Sean Stewart-Muniz