The Brief
An existing resort development is looking to double the number of units, and expand the property’s retail and amenity offerings. This 4-day, in-residence, paid team competition asks current graduate students or recent graduates in architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, or related disciplines to design a concept for developing a large site adjacent to the existing resort units.
Bonita Village is an existing 80 unit condo/short-term rental resort property on 20 acres in Bonita Springs, FL. The property developer, Omer Dror, a Yale MBA and MIT Real Estate Development master student with 20+ years of experience, is planning to further develop the surrounding property. A 90 unit condo building is due to begin construction in Summer 2020, and is already 10% pre-sold. The developer is looking to develop an additional 600 condo units which can also be leased on a short-term basis. In addition, the developer is expanding the property’s offerings to include retail and other amenities. Given the region’s high population density in the peak season (December-April) and lower density in summer, the developer is looking for ideas about how to design the site to accommodate temporary or semi-permanent buildings. Detailed information and assumptions about climate change, driverless cars ownership, and more will be provided upon acceptance into the competition.
Teams of 2-4 people will be provided with all expenses including: transportation to the property, a 3 bedroom unit to work and live in for the duration of the competition (4-5 days, depending on preferred date), resort pool and fitness center access, supplies, and 3 meals/day. Upon completion of the deliverables on the last day of the competition, all teams will be paid $1,500 each. At the conclusion of the competition, the teams with the best retail and resort proposals will be given additional rewards, and the team with the best overall proposal will be awarded the grand-prize of an additional $10,000. To enable participation of graduating students and students with summer employment, several competition times are available during May, June, and July, Sunday-Thursday or Thursday-Sunday (see website for exact dates).
Teams should be interested in designing a resort in Southwest Florida to be completed by 2025, and should bring appropriate design skills and knowledge. Acceptance into the competition will be through a request for qualifications by development team (submission of resumes and portfolio for each member), but no prior real estate development experience is necessary.
You can find some existing site information, program information, competition goals, expected competition deliverables and more here, but the rest will be provided upon acceptance into the competition. Participants will be expected to bring their own computers and design software.
Applications Closed
Applications are now closed. Thank you for your interest.