fbpx

The New Cool Kid in Town

When a new neighborhood starts gaining attention, it’s often due to a combination of purposeful planning and fortuity. In the case of Flagler Village in downtown Fort Lauderdale, the rise to cool has been a mixture of the city’s dream for a live-work-play environment, the local arts community taking a first step and the Great Recession (which led to great opportunity).

Flagler Village – roughly defined as the blocks just west of Federal Highway from NE Fourth Street to Sunrise Boulevard, began its transformation from seedy to hipster around 2008. When FATVillage (Flagler, Arts, Technology), a multi-block hub for artists of all kinds, created its monthly Artwalk, foot traffic to the region quickly increased. Soon after, The Bubble (now known as Jump the Shark) launched a popular performance space and art gallery, and an edgy nightlife scene soon followed. Additional cafes, bars and shops hoping to tap into this new audience were able to take advantage of lowered rents when the recession hit, and the development of Flagler Village began to blossom. 

Now, with a growing residential population thanks to a few large apartment buildings (conveniently adjacent to downtown), everything from pizza joints to beer gardens have been popping up. “Our goal as a community is to make Flagler Village the best place to live, work and play,” says Camille Hansen, president of the Flagler Village Civic Association. She calls the area, “a diversified community,” and says the audience is “becoming very young and vibrant.”

Recent openings include the 5,500-square-foot Mellow Mushroom, an Atlanta-based pizza chain with an artistic 1970s feel. The restaurant, already a hit since it opened in May, delivers stone-baked pizza, calzones, gluten-free items and 48 beer taps at the outside bar. May also saw the grand opening of Colada, a Cuban coffeehouse from the owners of the 30-year-old Miramar Bakery. The shop offers coffee and food in addition to a bottomless Sunday brunch, craft beer and an already-popular happy hour with specialty drinks and $4 empanadas.  

Arturo Pena of The Related Group, one of the first developers in the area, says, “At Related, we love becoming part of a neighborhood and helping make it better. When we had this opportunity to develop The Manor at Flagler Village, an entire city block of mixed-use space with frontage along Federal Highway, a Fresh Market across the street and the Wave trolley to take folks to Las Olas, we jumped on it. Having a slice of pizza at the Mellow Mushroom with my family last weekend really made me proud of helping create the great vibe in the Flagler Village neighborhood.”

In July, The Related Group sold the 382-unit The Manor for $148.88 million to an affiliate of the Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association.

These days, Artwalk is more popular than ever, while new outings like the thrice-yearly Night Owl Market – a festival fusing art, community and sustainability – as well as the twice-monthly food truck gathering, “Food in Motion,” in Peter Feldman Park, continue to fuel the creative backbone of this community.  

Probably the best example of the current vibe in Flagler Village, though, comes in the form of the new bar/beer garden/art gallery/event space, Rhythm & Vine. Started as a pop-up in late 2014 by David Cardaci and Derek Young (who originally partnered on a location of The Whole Enchilada), Rhythm & Vine hosts a nightly rotation of food trucks and concerts. After a quick and organic growth, the partners set permanent roots in April of this year. “I would say within a month of diving into the project, we knew we were onto something bigger and better,” says Young. 

The space, which includes an outside garden and inside bar featuring murals from celebrated local artist Purvis Young and world-renowned street artist Gregory Siff, is “geared toward people who are comfortable in their own skin,” Young explains. He says many of their customers relax in the garden by day, and stay to party into the night. The men were influenced by their experiences in New York and L.A., and “tried to import some of the creative side, the more hip stuff that we felt Fort Lauderdale was lacking.”

As to why they chose this location, Cardaci says, “This is where there’s a lot of young professionals and a lot of businesses to serve those young professionals.” Both men love the “pedestrian” atmosphere. “About 50 percent of our customers come on foot or bike,” Cardaci says. “I think that’s a reflection of the concept that Flagler Village is about and developing into.” They say their customers are a mixture of “yachties” (people who work and live on yachts), young professionals and in-the-know visitors. “It’s a different crowd than you’d see on Las Olas. It’s where the cool kids come and play,” Cardaci says. 

Young echoes this sentiment: “Las Olas is an invaluable part of this community” but we are different. We are not trying to imitate the Las Olas feel, we want to complement it with a more urban and communal feel.” 

The future of Flagler Village will certainly see more growth, but it will be in keeping with the established cool factor that is a must in this neighborhood.

The latest wave has seen the opening of Top Hat (a deli from the owners of Foxy Brown),  Source Salon (an Aveda Lifestyle Salon) and The Brass Tap Beer Bar – a craft beer bar with locations throughout Florida.

More than 2,164 new residential units are approved or planned for the area, but the most exciting news for Flagler Village is the recently approved loop on the Wave electric streetcar project. This will appeal both to residents, developers and new businesses alike. The existing businesses couldn’t be more excited. “My hope is that creative competition develops within Flagler Village, because that’s what makes places like L.A. and New York so cool,” says Young. “The more competition, the better, as long as we keep consistent with the concept of keeping that area creative and cool instead of cookie-cutter.” ?

You May Also Like
96-Year-Old Boca Helping Hands Volunteer Brings Happiness to Many

The nonprofit organization provides food, medical support and financial assistance to empower local individuals and families.

Read More
Art Polacheck
Upcoming JA Career Exploration Fair Seeks Vendors to Exhibit

It will take place from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Friday.

Read More
JA Career
Neighbors 4 Neighbors Hosts Endless Summer Splash Event

The nonprofit organization is located in Doral.

Read More
Neighbors 4 Neighbors
Transworld M&A Brokers Sale of PCMA to Intelvio

Peter Berg (pictured), Managing Director, and Leanne Erwin (pictured). Vice President, advised on the transaction.

Read More
Transworld M&A
Other Posts
NAMI Broward County Hosts “NAMIWalks” Event at Nova Southeastern University

The annual fundraising event on Oct. 5 promotes mental health and wellness.

Read More
NamiWalks
Broward MPO’s “Let’s Talk Transportation” Podcast Series

The MPO shapes transportation policy and allocates federal funding to vital projects.

Read More
Broward MPO
Fort Lauderdale Economy Boosted by Panthers’ Stanley Cup Victory

The team will host a victory parade on Sunday.

Read More
Fort Lauderdale Economy
Editor’s Letter: Growth Mode at Nicklaus Children’s Health System

The top-flight healthcare provider features 500 pediatric subspecialists.

Read More
Nicklaus Children’s Health System

Drew Limsky

Drew Limsky

Editor-in-Chief

BIOGRAPHY

Drew Limsky joined Lifestyle Media Group in August 2020 as Editor-in-Chief of South Florida Business & Wealth. His first issue of SFBW, October 2020, heralded a reimagined structure, with new content categories and a slew of fresh visual themes. “As sort of a cross between Forbes and Robb Report, with a dash of GQ and Vogue,” Limsky says, “SFBW reflects South Florida’s increasingly sophisticated and dynamic business and cultural landscape.”

Limsky, an avid traveler, swimmer and film buff who holds a law degree and Ph.D. from New York University, likes to say, “I’m a doctor, but I can’t operate—except on your brand.” He wrote his dissertation on the nonfiction work of Joan Didion. Prior to that, Limsky received his B.A. in English, summa cum laude, from Emory University and earned his M.A. in literature at American University in connection with a Masters Scholar Award fellowship.

Limsky came to SFBW at the apex of a storied career in journalism and publishing that includes six previous lead editorial roles, including for some of the world’s best-known brands. He served as global editor-in-chief of Lexus magazine, founding editor-in-chief of custom lifestyle magazines for Cadillac and Holland America Line, and was the founding editor-in-chief of Modern Luxury Interiors South Florida. He also was the executive editor for B2B magazines for Acura and Honda Financial Services, and he served as travel editor for Conde Nast. Magazines under Limsky’s editorship have garnered more than 75 industry awards.

He has also written for many of the country’s top newspapers and magazines, including The New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Miami Herald, Boston Globe, USA Today, Worth, Robb Report, Afar, Time Out New York, National Geographic Traveler, Men’s Journal, Ritz-Carlton, Elite Traveler, Florida Design, Metropolis and Architectural Digest Mexico. His other clients have included Four Seasons, Acqualina Resort & Residences, Yahoo!, American Airlines, Wynn, Douglas Elliman and Corcoran. As an adjunct assistant professor, Limsky has taught journalism, film and creative writing at the City University of New York, Pace University, American University and other colleges.