By Andrew Warfield – Original Article
The controversial One Park condominium development plan at The Quay has suffered its second defeat in as many weeks, as 12th Circuit Judge Hunter Carroll ruled Monday that Key Ventures LLC cannot convey air rights over Key Commons to Property Markets Group, which operates as Key Blocks 1 and 9 at The Quay.
At its Oct. 12 meeting, the Sarasota Planning Commission voted 3-1 to recommend rejecting PMG's proposal to combine Blocks 1 and 9 and build One Park on both blocks, connected by a walkway over Key Commons.
In his 30-page ruling, Judge Carroll wrote that air rights over Key Commons, the main road leading to the 15-acre master development district, must be transferred to the master association under a general development agreement between the city of Sarasota and Key Ventures.
“The court's rejection of the construction of the master declaration for Quay 1/9 comes after reviewing all of the provisions in that agreement,” Carroll wrote. “There were no findings of fact necessary for the court to conclude that nothing in the master declaration indicates that Quay Venture intended not to make the air rights more than 14 feet above the street common areas at the time it recorded the master declaration. The court concludes that the master declaration clearly and unambiguously included the air rights of Quay Commons in its common areas.”
PMG has been considering an alternative plan to build separate buildings on the two blocks, anticipating the possibility that Governor Carroll would rule against building One Park as proposed.
“Understanding that Judge Hunter Carroll's ruling could go either way, our development team has been hard at work for several months on the design of two buildings in Blocks 1 and 9 of The Quay,” said Kevin Maloney, founder and managing partner of PMG. “When completed, these iconic communities will highlight our commitment to redefining luxury living on Florida's west coast.”
PMG completed the transaction for Blocks 1 and 9 on Sept. 29, acquiring the properties from Quay Venture for $37 million.
In his five-point ruling, Carroll wrote:
On November 6, 2018, the master developer, Quay Venture, LLC, committed all of the assets within The Quay to the provisions of the Master Declaration. At that time, Quay Venture defined the common areas to include roads, etc. This commitment included all air rights above Quay Commons, as well as air rights up to 14 feet above the road surface. The former Driveway A and Driveway B, now known as Quay Commons, were developed within the meaning of the Master Declaration by April 30, 2021. This granted Block 6 Condominium Association Inc. and its unit owners various rights regarding the use of Quay Commons and all of its air rights. At the time Quay Venture and Quay 1 and 9 signed the original agreement on 13 September 2021 for the purchase of Blocks 1 and 9, and the air rights over Quay Commons between Blocks 1 and 9 above 14 feet, Quay Venture was already contractually obligated to transfer Quay Commons, including all air rights, as set out in the Master Declaration, and not just the air rights up to 14 feet above the road surface. The One Park development application for Quay 1 and 9 improperly and unacceptably contemplates building units between Blocks 1 and 9 over Quay Commons, which cannot be done as Quay Venture is obligated to transfer both the road and all air rights over Quay Commons to the Master Association. Any attempt by Quay Venture to redefine or revoke its air rights over Quay Common above 14 feet above the road surface is invalid and of no effect.
“We couldn't be more pleased with the court's decision,” said Morgan Bentley, the lawyer representing the Ritz-Carlton Residences owners in their lawsuit against One Park. “The judge clearly put a lot of time and thought into his decision. I also want to commend the Ritz-Carlton owners, who have had to withstand a lot of pressure from this developer to reach this decision, and they should rightly be celebrating this victory.”
Residents of the Ritz-Carlton neighborhood, collectively known as Block 6, challenged the validity of the plan, primarily over the issue of air rights above 14 feet.
One Park, a 123-unit luxury condominium with around 80 units pre-sold, was designed to rise more than 20 feet above Quay Commons and sit atop a working airy walkway. It's now going back to basics with plans for two buildings on blocks 1 and 9. With all other blocks on Quay planned, PMG only has 150 units remaining to build on the two blocks.
The city is expected to know what PMG has in mind by the end of the year.
“Updated building plans are expected to be released in 2023, and our team looks forward to presenting the project to the City of Sarasota and obtaining administrative approval in early 2024,” Maloney said. “We will offer current One Park buyers the first opportunity to participate in our two new iconic communities prior to the public sales opening.”