Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava announced eminent domain of the PortMiami fuel tank, a key facility for transporting fuel to ships in the seaport of Biscayne Bay, after talks with the Chicago-based developer HRP "concluded without an acceptable agreement."
Eminent domain is the legal right of government to seize private property for public use without the owner's consent.
The takeover comes after Miami-Dade sought a negotiation in "good faith" with HRP, before determining price of the facility was too high, Mayor Levine Cava indicated in a statement. Roberto Perez, CEO, HRP Group on behalf of HRP Fisher Island, LLC, pushed back on those claims, calling the county incompetent for failing to come through on negotiations.
“The County finds itself in this position as a direct result of its own incompetence after years and frankly decades of failure to plan for PortMiami infrastructure," Perez said. "Seizing private property is not the solution for public failure. Prior to the mediation process, the County represented to us multiple times that alternate fuel storage options exist and rejected our offer to finance a relocation. We will defend against and defeat any attempt to condemn the property."
HRP acquired the facility for $180 million, with the expectation to replace tanks with condos, and according to reports is now offering the property to Miami-Dade at $400 million.
“HRP’s mission is to remediate, reimagine, and redevelop complex industrial sites to unlock the full potential of these unique projects. We are not fuel tank operators. We identified the Fisher Island terminal property as an incredible redevelopment opportunity nearly four years ago, led a world-class partnership to acquire the property in a publicly advertised sale process, and, over that period, invested considerable resources to unlock the value of One Fisher Island as the premier residential development site on the entire East Coast," Perez said.
Perez noted HRP's investment opened a project opportunity on Fisher Island, an exclusive barrier island and wealthy enclave, for $2 billion be built on the site.
“Miami-Dade County was aware of this asset for decades. They were approached directly by former owner TransMontaigne in advance of the public sale process and, later, also invited to participate in the public sale. They declined to purchase the property at each opportunity. Through the entire acquisition and due diligence process we were transparent with Miami-Dade County at every turn," Perez said.
Miami-Dade held a special meeting in September 2025 to purchase the land to no avail.
“In our business, we understand of the importance of critical infrastructure. We came to the table and worked in good faith to attempt to reach an agreement with Miami-Dade County in lieu of condemnation, as was explicitly directed by the County Commission," Perez said.
“After eight months of productive discussions with Miami-Dade County leadership, including senior officials from the Mayor’s office, we understand the County has now decided to walk away from the mediation that it requested, pass on yet another opportunity to acquire this property, and instead pursue a long, costly, and ultimately unsuccessful condemnation effort," Perez continued.
Perez added HRP will continue to "aggressively" pursue redevelopment on Fisher Island moving forward.
