"Just another condominium project on the edge of a residential island." That is how the Fisher Island Community Association and the Fisher Island Club describe a proposed luxury condo development on the island that lacks the community's blessing. The line comes from the complaint they filed in May 2026 against the developer of the island's old fuel terminal. The phrase is legal advocacy. It also describes how pricing works on Fisher Island.
Buyers comparing Fisher Island with other private Miami enclaves usually start with the median and the view. The fight over the nearly 10-acre fuel depot on the island's edge shows that what they are paying for sits underneath both: a set of rights covering the ferry, the Club, the common areas, and even the island's name. Those rights also decide whether new homes reach the market at all.
One Parcel, Three Very Different Prices
The fuel terminal has run on Fisher Island since the 1920s and supplies PortMiami. According to The Real Deal, TransMontaigne Partners put the site up for sale in 2024. A partnership of HRP Group, the Related Group and Russell Galbut bought it last year for $180 million. Miami-Dade County then tried to buy it. Negotiations at $400 million ended in early June 2026, and the County Commission voted to pursue eminent domain.
Before that vote, the county ordered three appraisals. The Miami Herald reported the figures:
| Appraisal assumption | Reported value |
|---|---|
| Site can only remain a fuel yard | $25 million |
| Middle appraisal | About $180 million |
| Residential development allowed | $430 million |
The dirt, the waterfront and the location are identical in all three rows. The only thing that changes is whether people can live there, and that assumption moves the value roughly seventeenfold. The middle figure matches what the developers paid. HRP's statement to the Herald said the planned complex is expected to generate $2.5 billion in sales. At that scale, nearly all of the value comes from the right to build homes that are recognized as Fisher Island homes.
The Rights That Turn Land Into a Fisher Island Address
Zoning is one part of that right. The private agreements are a bigger part, and the complaint lays them out in unusual detail.
On or about October 8, 2025, the Community Association, known as FICA, the Club and HRP signed a Development Agreement. HRP committed to demolish the fuel bunker, clean up the property and redevelop it as residential condominiums. In return, FICA and the Club took on obligations the complaint values "in the tens of millions of dollars," with a four-acre parcel of the site going to FICA as the centerpiece.
The complaint calls that four-acre transfer "the mechanism that would bring HRP's development into the Fisher Island community and make its units marketable as Fisher Island residences." The plaintiffs also granted HRP:
- Reciprocal easements
- Use of the ferry transportation system
- The right to use the "Fisher Island" trademark in marketing
- Support for HRP's government approvals, including appearances at public hearings
The complaint says HRP's units would carry "the membership rights, common-area access, and community standing that make Fisher Island property worth what it is." It says the condos would not be "marketable or usable" without ferry access. HRP paid the Club at closing and committed to further payments as the project progresses, which the complaint says would produce continuing annual dues. FICA, for its part, agreed to build a waterfront cart and walking path around the property's perimeter at its own expense.
This is the economics of the whole island, written out as a contract. A unit at Palazzo Del Sol, Palazzo Della Luna or the new Mansions is priced partly as real estate and partly as admission. The island is reachable only by boat or helicopter, and only residents, their guests and Club members may visit, according to the Miami Herald. When a developer had to bargain for ferry rights and the use of a name, those rights got an implied price.
Why the County Thinks It Can Pay Less
The county's position rests on the same reasoning in reverse. If the site can't plug into the island, it is worth something close to the $25 million fuel-yard figure.
Its main tool is a covenant. Deputy Mayor Roy Coley told the Herald that in the 1970s the county secured a covenant on four acres of the land requiring that they remain a fuel facility. The 1978 document says the property "shall be restricted" to shipping and storing petroleum and other fuels. Only the County Commission, which holds zoning authority over Fisher Island, can change it. HRP responded in its statement that the restricted land is not needed for the condo complex, and that "covenants of this nature are routinely terminated during the land use entitlement process."
On July 21, 2026, the commission adopted Resolution R-695-26 by a 10–2 vote, with one commissioner absent. The resolution updated the description of the land to be acquired and authorized either a purchase or eminent-domain proceedings, including a declaration of taking if needed. It allows a final offer up to 15% above appraised value. It also states that the county would own, operate and control the facility as a governmental function. Speaking to The Real Deal, attorney Jason Brooks of Buchalter, who is not involved in the case, said the county may end up paying "substantially more" than the $400 million once on the table if it wins, and that the appraisal dispute could last for years.
So the fight is about which of the three rows in that table a jury will accept. The answer depends on whether the community rights described above count as part of what the land is worth.
Two Lawsuits Aimed at Different Targets
The island's own institutions are suing on two fronts, and the two cases do different jobs.
- January 2026, federal court. FICA and the Club sued Miami-Dade County, not HRP. They argue the threatened taking is unconstitutional, unnecessary for a public purpose and procedurally defective. WLRN reported that their attorney argued for moving the terminal to the port.
- May 28, 2026, state court. FICA and the Club sued HRP Fisher Island, LLC. They allege that pursuing a sale to the county breaches the Development and Option Agreements. They ask the court to bar HRP from conveying the FICA parcel to the county without FICA's written consent, to declare that HRP must pursue development approvals in good faith, and to award damages.
The agreement also has a backstop. If HRP can't obtain approvals in good faith, FICA can veto any lease of the property as an oil terminal for longer than 24 months, for a period of six years. The community negotiated a way to keep long-term industrial use off its edge, separate from its stake in the condos.
On October 5, 2026, the state case was placed on inactive status after a stipulation to stay it. Motions to dismiss had been filed on August 28, and no ruling on the merits appears on the docket. As of mid-October 2026, no public condemnation docket number or hearing date has been confirmed. The outcome is open.
How This Shows Up in Today's Prices
Fisher Island has about 800 condo units. New supply comes slowly and depends on the community, as the depot dispute shows. The current market looks like this:
- Median. PropertyShark put the island's median sale price at $8.3 million, down from $9.5 million in 2025, as reported by the Miami Herald on August 5, 2026. In a market this thin, a handful of sales can move that number.
- Resale at the top. In August 2026, a five-bedroom, 7,600-square-foot unit at Palazzo Del Sol was listed at $36.25 million. It was bought from the developer for $11.7 million in 2016.
- Recent contract. During the week of September 14–20, 2026, unit #6811 at Palazzo Della Luna went under contract at a $21.5 million asking price, about $5,080 per square foot. That is a pending deal, not a closed sale.
- New single-family homes. As of May 2026, Madar Group's The Mansions on Fisher Island had three of its 12 homes under contract, with combined asking prices of $105.5 million. Remaining homes were listed from $34 million, and completions are projected from late 2026 through the second quarter of 2027. The Herald describes the project as being built on one of the island's last developable parcels.
- New condos under construction. Residences at Six Fisher Island, from Related Group, Teddy Sagi, BH Group and Wanxiang America, received a $154.3 million building permit, reported in September 2026, for 50 homes in a 10-story project at 6 Fisher Island Drive. Construction began in 2024.
Once Six Fisher Island and the Mansions are built, the depot is the island's most visible remaining question about future supply. If HRP prevails, a project tied to $2.5 billion in expected sales would join the community, along with the four-acre parcel promised to FICA. If the county prevails, the site stays a fuel facility under public control. The county memo says TransMontaigne's operating lease provides for fuel operations to end by May 2027, while the complaint alleges a wind-down by August 2027.
A Few Direct Questions
Does the depot dispute change anything for current Fisher Island condo owners? Neither case has been decided. The terms in the state complaint show that the Community Association and the Club treat ferry access, easements and the island's name as valuable assets they can grant or withhold. That framing applies across the island.
What happens to the fuel terminal in the meantime? The county says the current operating lease runs to May 2027. The complaint alleges August 2027. R-695-26 authorizes the county to operate and improve the facility if it acquires it, but no specific upgrade budget or schedule has been published.
Where is the case now? As of October 12, 2026, the commission's July 21 resolution is the most recent vote on the site. The state contract case was stayed on October 5. No public condemnation docket has been confirmed.
If you are weighing a purchase on the island and want to understand how ferry, Club and association rights apply to a specific building, Lydia Eskenazi can review those details with you. Let's connect. Schedule a confidential consultation.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
