Preservationists Seek To Save Hotel From Demolition

Built in 1936, the then 60-room Lauderdale Beach Hotel, where staff served guests with silver tongs, was the first big resort on the waterfront after the Depression, but the now decrepit building faces replacement by a 28-story mixed use development. Set to go before the Fort Lauderdale Planning and Zoning Board on October 17, the proposal to replace the 65-year-old, once-grand Lauderdale Beach Hotel with an "Old Florida" style 153 unit condo with restaurant, shops, museum and health club has sparked controversy. Although letters from those who support the new development dwarf the objections sent to the City, preservationists will keep trying to save the building they say made Fort Lauderdale a destination spot.