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| Harbor Beach circa 1980 Florida State Archives/Florida Memory/Steinmetz |
By Jane Feehan
According to some news accounts, the first Fort Lauderdale development after the boom years of the 1920s was Harbor Beach.
The Harbor Beach Company, formed by George W. English, purchased land south of the U.S. Coast Station in 1940 from Fort Lauderdale pioneer Tom M. Bryan for $1000 per acre for 200 acres.
Development commenced with permitting for infrastructure, and a wall, gate and “field office” designed by Miami architect Russell T. Pancoast (grandson of Miami Beach developer John A. Collins the same of Collins Avenue).
The first 73 lots were presented for sale by the Harbor Beach Co. in January 1942. The development was advertised as Fort Lauderdale’s newest oceanfront real estate development, the “only restricted residential beach property in South Florida.”
According to some news accounts, the first Fort Lauderdale development after the boom years of the 1920s was Harbor Beach.
The Harbor Beach Company, formed by George W. English, purchased land south of the U.S. Coast Station in 1940 from Fort Lauderdale pioneer Tom M. Bryan for $1000 per acre for 200 acres.
Development commenced with permitting for infrastructure, and a wall, gate and “field office” designed by Miami architect Russell T. Pancoast (grandson of Miami Beach developer John A. Collins the same of Collins Avenue).
The first 73 lots were presented for sale by the Harbor Beach Co. in January 1942. The development was advertised as Fort Lauderdale’s newest oceanfront real estate development, the “only restricted residential beach property in South Florida.”
Other ads claimed the building requirements provided for “substantial though not necessarily pretentious homes” with sweeping vistas of the ocean, a lake (near today’s Lago Mar) and the Intracoastal. Some inland waterway lots would accommodate 110-foot boat dockage.
An entrance to the new neighborhood was built as an extension of Atlantic Avenue (now A1A) but the development would be isolated from traffic. Lot prices were not available in early ads, but by 1945 some lots started at $4,200. In 1946 prices rose to $4500 (as comparison, lots in Croissant Park sold for about $1,000).
Plans were in place by the mid-1940s for a private beach club (today’s Surf Club). All 73 lots in the initial “unit” were sold by 1946 when another unit (number of those lots unknown to this writer) were placed on the market. It was followed by a third unit in the 1950s. Sales must have been fairly brisk by the mid-1950s; lots then generally started at $10,000.
One house went on the market in 1955 for $37,500 with three bedrooms, two baths and maid’s quarters. Today, the walled community is home to 592 residents (according to niche.com). Singer/actor David Cassidy (The Partridge Family) once called the community home until his death in 2010. His house was placed on sale later that year for $3.9 million.
Houses today (2022) range from about $4 million to nearly $24 million. It remains one of the city’s most exclusive neighborhoods but is not immune to Fort Lauderdale’s super-charged development woes. Residents complain about difficulties exiting the community to merge onto jammed A1A during certain times of the day or when the bridge at the 17th Street Causeway opens for boat traffic.
Sources:
Weidling, Philip and Burghard, August. Checkered Sunshine. Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1966.
Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 18, 1941
Fort Lauderdale News, Sept. 25, 1945
Fort Lauderdale News, Jan. 17, 1942
Fort Lauderdale News Jan. 31, 1946
Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 19, 1946
Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 15, 1947
Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 9, 1955
Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 3, 1955
Realtor.com
For current demographics, see:
https://www.niche.com/places-to-live/n/harbor-beach-fort-lauderdale-fl/
Tags: Fort Lauderdale communities, Fort Lauderdale developments, Fort Lauderdale in the 1940s, Fort Lauderdale history, history of Fort Lauderdale, Fort Lauderdale architects
One house went on the market in 1955 for $37,500 with three bedrooms, two baths and maid’s quarters. Today, the walled community is home to 592 residents (according to niche.com). Singer/actor David Cassidy (The Partridge Family) once called the community home until his death in 2010. His house was placed on sale later that year for $3.9 million.
Houses today (2022) range from about $4 million to nearly $24 million. It remains one of the city’s most exclusive neighborhoods but is not immune to Fort Lauderdale’s super-charged development woes. Residents complain about difficulties exiting the community to merge onto jammed A1A during certain times of the day or when the bridge at the 17th Street Causeway opens for boat traffic.
Sources:
Weidling, Philip and Burghard, August. Checkered Sunshine. Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1966.
Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 18, 1941
Fort Lauderdale News, Sept. 25, 1945
Fort Lauderdale News, Jan. 17, 1942
Fort Lauderdale News Jan. 31, 1946
Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 19, 1946
Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 15, 1947
Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 9, 1955
Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 3, 1955
Realtor.com
For current demographics, see:
https://www.niche.com/places-to-live/n/harbor-beach-fort-lauderdale-fl/
Tags: Fort Lauderdale communities, Fort Lauderdale developments, Fort Lauderdale in the 1940s, Fort Lauderdale history, history of Fort Lauderdale, Fort Lauderdale architects
