Study predicts twice as many people in Fort Lauderdale 20 years from now!

Study predicts twice as many people in Fort Lauderdale 20 years from now

By Jean-Paul Renaud
Staff Writer
Posted December 21 2005


Fort Lauderdale -- There is no more land in this city. No more large swaths of space can be redeveloped.

But the people keep coming.


In 20 years, Fort Lauderdale's population will almost double in size, with another 130,000 people using its streets, playing in its parks and drinking its water, according to a housing study presented to commissioners Tuesday.

As leaders consider next month allowing 3,000 more housing units to be built downtown, a clearer picture is emerging as to how the city will look in the future, who will be able to afford to live in it and what needs to be changed before anyone else moves in.

Massive high-rises and chic townhouses will continue to go up in the downtown, as well as in the loft-dotted communities of Progresso Village and Flagler Heights in the city's northwest, if leaders have their way.

Fort Lauderdale officials propose major changes in order to make the city feel more like an urban center. If the sketches presented to commissioners Tuesday become reality, main arteries into downtown -- Andrews Avenue and Northeast Third Avenue -- will be narrowed. New bike paths and turning lanes will be added, and on-street parking will be welcomed.

"It's a huge step forward for the downtown," said Charlie Ladd, chairman of the Downtown Development Authority. "If we can do this, this is the biggest thing that could shape this downtown."

Even Federal Highway will receive a face lift, with large sidewalks, lush canopies hanging from medians, and new streetlights to illuminate cars and people.

As the population grows, city services need to keep up.

On Tuesday, commissioners signed off on several changes proposed by city planners to accommodate the boom.

Water treatment plants will be expanded; well fields will be upgraded; and water pipes, heavily damaged by Hurricane Wilma, will be improved.

Also in the future: parks. Lots of them. To make sure Fort Lauderdale stays green, commissioners are considering a special fee for new developments. Funds would go directly into building and maintaining parks.

But for all the changes coming to Fort Lauderdale, it appears that only wealthy newcomers will be able to enjoy them.

The median price of a home was more than $340,000 between July and September, according to the study. The median price of a condominium was more than $320,000.

The median income is $58,100.

"There is a great need for an attainable reality," said Commissioner Carlton Moore. "I just had a son graduate from school, and I want him out of my house. ... I want him to have a piece of the American dream. I really want he and my [other] children to live, work and play in Fort Lauderdale. I'm afraid that that American dream is slipping in this city."

And although the study showed that one- and two-bedroom rental apartments are affordable to the average resident, high-end condominiums and oversized houses on small lots are quickly replacing them.

"The vast majority of rental apartments are under 100 units," said Robert Gray of Strategic Planning Group, which conducted the study. "They're not on the ocean, and they're not on the river, but they're out in the community. Rental is not in that bad of a situation, assuming more will be built in the future."

Commissioners agreed to conduct an affordable housing roundtable to discuss the solutions proposed by the study, including a more rigorous demand for some units to be set aside as affordable housing each time a project is built.

"I must stress this is not only a Fort Lauderdale issue, this is not just a Broward County issue, this is a South Florida issue," Gray said.