Thanks all for your comments.
I think that the thing which is tricky to wrap one's imagination around is that this MVC project is quite smaller than most other MVC projects. I mean this in the sense that it will consist of 2 buildings only and that these buildings are much smaller in length ( 142 feet ) than those at Ocean Pointe. There are only 3 ocean front villas and 4 ocean view villas on each floor ( 2 on each side ). It's an intimate sort of set up, but in a hi-rise. That's what the botique resort idea with the larger balconies and Ritz Carlton interior design teams are all about. I myself do not have a finger on who is purchasing here, though I myself would not reccomend it to families with Ocean Pointe 700 yards up the beach.
As
this image shows, Oceana Palms is a small fry compared to its 40 floor neighbor ( I pink out part of a nearby condo which apprears to blend into the Oceana Palms building to emphasize its smaller size ). Steve, I wouldn't characterize the area "urban" other than saying that scarcity of land makes building high on the beach the norm in this part of Florida. But on this stretch at Riveria Beach, the neighborhood remains decidedly simple aside from the hi rises -- in other words, the area is not as built up as Hollywood or Ft. Lauderdale which do indeed feel more urban. That said, Ocean Pointe's strength is being located on 24 acres on the same exact beach as Oceana Palms, but in the village of Palm Beach Shores which is consciously low rise. The wildcard for Oceana Palms is precisely what sort of future development will occur in Riveria Beach which has elected to spend part of its redevelopment monies on the beach areas first ( the Ocean Mall project is alive again, but I do not know who the developer is and what is ultimately planned for the site ). Both Ocean Pointe and Oceana Palms will benefit from what ever goes up at the Ocean Mall site as it has to mean more restaurants and shops.
I do try to convey the lay of the land in my images because Oceana Palms sits admidst a couple of very tall condominiums.
This image shows the two lots between Oceana Palms and that big hi-rise. Perhaps some other TUGgers who venture down to do a preview might want to inquire about what's going on with that lot ( part of it is referred to as the 'John B Lynch' property in my plot plans ). You gotta assume that something will be built there, but what is anyone's guess.
I guess that for the time being I'll end up as the Oceana Palms historian who snaps some "baby pictures" of the resort.
Brian, I guess that one big difference between now and the past is that MVC is not quite as free with the points when negotiating a deal. I'd be curious as to what Marriott is offering at this moment at Oceana Palms and some of the other new projects like Marco. Probably not as much as the good old days. Then again, as they say in those wise guy mafia movies, " just when I thought I was out . . . I bought another Marriott timeshare".
Barry