Fisher Island's Last Building Site Is Caught in a Fight Over Port Fuel. What Does That Do to Supply?

Miami-Dade County's appraisals of Fisher Island's 9.6-acre fuel terminal run from $25 million to $430 million. The county's resolution memo says the spread comes from "differing valuation methodologies and assumptions about the likelihood that the Property would obtain development approvals." The Biscayne Bay Beacon reported that the $25 million figure assumes a 1978 restrictive covenant keeps the land a fuel yard, while the $430 million figure assumes residential development. The same tanks, berth and waterfront are worth seventeen times more on paper if housing is assumed.

That gap matters to anyone shopping the island this season. The Real Deal describes the fuel depot as the sole remaining large development site on Fisher Island, with fewer than a handful of single-family home sites left. If the county keeps the land for PortMiami, the island's future inventory is largely the inventory it has today. A buyer's real choice set is then the resale market, and that market is closing deals well below some asking prices.

One parcel, five prices

The same land has carried very different numbers in the last two years. Each one reflects a different belief about what the site will become.

The buyer group pairs HRP Group with the Related Group and Russell Galbut. When it bought the site, it signed two agreements with the island. A development agreement committed HRP to demolish the fuel bunker, remediate the land and develop luxury condos. An option agreement required HRP to convey 4 acres to the Fisher Island Community Association, which represents more than 800 property owners. On those terms, the island would have gained new condo inventory and a large piece of community-controlled land in one transaction.

The county wants the site for a different reason. The terminal has been the main source of marine fuel for cruise and cargo lines at PortMiami since the 1920s. The operator's lease provides for fuel operations to stop by May 2027. The county looked at alternatives: barging fuel from Port Everglades, berthing a tanker at the port, bringing fuel in by rail, or building a new facility. A study by AECOM concluded that the on-port options were not viable.

How the site moved from sale to condemnation

The sequence explains why the land is still unresolved more than a year after it changed hands.

1. 2024: TransMontaigne lists the terminal at $200 million. The county's attempt to buy it does not succeed.
2. September 18 and October 9, 2025: The County Commission adopts resolutions directing negotiations and then authorizing acquisition by negotiation or eminent domain.
3. January 2026: The Fisher Island Community Association and the Fisher Island Club sue the county to stop the seizure.
4. May 28, 2026: The association and the club sue HRP and ask the court to enforce the original agreements, including the 4-acre conveyance.
5. June 5, 2026: Mayor Daniella Levine Cava tells commissioners the final deal terms are unacceptable and that the county will pursue eminent domain.
6. July 21, 2026: The commission adopts Resolution R-695-26. It declares the acquisition a public necessity and authorizes an incentive offer of up to 15 percent over the appraised value.

At the June meeting where commissioners moved the eminent domain item forward, Commissioner Raquel Regalado cast the only "no" vote. Commissioner Oliver Gilbert told colleagues the higher cost had been predictable, according to The Real Deal:

"In the very beginning, I told you all that we would be here doing this and it would be more expensive."

Why the price could keep climbing

The appraisal question is where the cost sits. Jason Brooks, a real estate partner at Buchalter who is not involved in the case, told The Real Deal that a successful eminent domain case could cost the county "substantially more" than the $400 million deal that was on the table. He said the appraisal fight could last for years, though he expects the county to win. The county plans to pay with Seaport Revenue Bonds.

The private litigation has gone quiet in the meantime. On the public docket for the association's case against HRP in Miami-Dade County Court, a motion to dismiss was filed August 28. On October 5, the parties filed a stipulation to stay, and the court entered an order placing the case on inactive status. With the May 2027 lease date about six months away, the land has no settled future use.

For a buyer, this changes the time frame. Even if a court eventually sided with residential use, approvals, remediation of a century of fuel storage and construction would come after that. Any condos on this site sit years past the purchase decision anyone is making this winter.

What can still be built on Fisher Island

Without the fuel site, the island's new product is a short list:

• The Mansions on Fisher Island. Madar Group USA is building these single-family homes on a 2.5-acre site. Portuondo Perotti Architects designed them and ASR Construction is the general contractor. In May, the developer reported three homes under contract at asking prices of $36.5 million, $36.5 million and $36 million, with completion expected between the end of 2026 and the second quarter of 2027. Three homes remained for sale, starting at $34 million. The largest, at about 18,000 square feet on a half-acre lot, was asking $57 million. CEO David-Emmanuel Cohen told The Real Deal that "there is no more land on Fisher Island" for single-family homes. Every other single-family home on the island dates from the 1990s.
• Residences at Six Fisher Island. This 10-story, 50-unit condo is backed by the Related Group, Teddy Sagi, BH Group and Wanxiang America and financed with a $400 million construction loan. As of May it was expected to be completed in 2026. Completion and closings had not been publicly reported by late October.
• A new beach club. One is under construction on the island. Cohen put the buy-in for the private membership club at $500,000.

Taken together, the pipeline holds about 50 condo units and a few houses, still under construction, on an island with roughly 800 condo units, per the Miami Herald. Most of the new product is already spoken for or priced above $30 million. For most buyers, Fisher Island means resale.

Resale prices this fall depend on the unit

The most recent Palazzo Della Luna sale closed well below its asking price. The Real Deal reported that unit 6811 went under contract during the week of September 14 at an asking price of $21.5 million, or $5,080 per square foot. It was the priciest condo to go under contract in Miami-Dade that week. According to Traded, the unit closed October 2 for $17 million, or $4,144 per square foot. That is about 21 percent below the asking price. The two sources list slightly different sizes for the unit, 4,230 and 4,102 square feet.

Two units in the same building sold four months apart at prices more than $1,200 per square foot apart. Fisher Island resale pricing is set unit by unit, based on views, terrace, layout and the seller's timing, more than by a neighborhood average. The broad numbers point the same way. In PropertyShark's 2026 ranking, reported by the Miami Herald in August, Fisher Island's median sale price was $8.3 million, down from $9.5 million in 2025. Atherton, California, took the top spot. Scarcity has kept land valuations high, but it has not stopped individual resales from closing below their asking prices.

FAQ

Would the 4 acres promised to the community association still happen if the county takes the site? The conveyance comes from the option agreement between HRP and the association, which is the subject of the association's lawsuit against HRP. On October 5, the court entered an order placing that case on inactive status after the parties stipulated to a stay. No ruling on the agreement appears on the docket.

When does the fuel operator's lease end? The county's memo says TransMontaigne's lease provides for fuel operations to stop by May 2027.

Are any single-family homes still for sale as new construction? As of May, three homes at the Mansions on Fisher Island remained for sale, starting at $34 million.

This post covers public records and market activity and is general information, not legal or financial advice. Anyone weighing a purchase should confirm how these proceedings could affect them with an attorney and their own advisors.

The fuel site will take time to resolve, but a Fisher Island purchase comes down to a specific unit, its terrace, its views and what similar units have actually closed for. If you'd like to compare this fall's Palazzo Della Luna and Palazzo Del Sol resales with what remains in new construction, Vella Real Estate can go through the numbers with you privately. Book an appointment when you're ready.