UPDATES

The Excitement is Building!

Monday, May 19, 2008

There's been a whirlwind of activity taking place over the last few months at Canyon Ranch Living-Miami Beach. From residents moving in to the South Tower, to the announcement of the October 2008 grand opening date for the hotel and spa, the dream is becoming a reality.

Canyon Ranch Miami Beach towers

SOUTH TOWER

Residents have begun moving into the South Tower. The Lobby is a lively scene, with decorators, painters and residents all busily preparing units for move-in. The remaining units will become ready for occupancy over the next few months.

South Tower Lobby

South Tower Hallway

HOTEL TOWER

Residents have been delighted to hear the news that the grand opening of the hotel and spa has been set for October 2008. Even more exciting for residents whose units are in the Rental Management Program is the news that guests can start making reservations for the upcoming winter season on canyonranch.com starting July 15, 2008.

Soon, residents and hotel guests will be able to enjoy the 70,000-sq. ft. Wellness Spa, the outdoor pools, all the fine dining venues, and the personal attention, healing therapies and wellness services that Canyon Ranch is known for. In preparation for the opening, the beach boardwalk has been extended, enabling residents and guests to walk, jog or stroll to Bal Harbor up north, and all the way down to South Beach.

Pool Deck

Boardwalk

NORTH TOWER

Closings for the North Tower have been taking place this spring. Already, the 69th Street access is near completion, and landscaping is underway. In just a few months, residents will be able to enjoy exquisite ocean views from their new haven of serenity at Canyon Ranch Living-Miami Beach.

View from North Tower Unit	View from North Tower
For additional news and information, please download the latest Miami Beach Newsletter.



A Historic Moment Friday, February 2, 2007 On Tuesday, January 16, the Carillon sign was ceremoniously lit for the first time in decades! WSG's principals Eric Sheppard and Phil Wolman and Miami Beach's Mayor David Dermer were excited to see it come to light. It is highly visible along Collins Avenue and a welcome sight to those familiar with this landmark location. Your residence at Canyon Ranch Living - Miami Beach is coming along at a breathtaking pace. The activity level from all of the construction teams combined represents a city in itself. The accelerated production schedule has crews extended to 6 days and even some nights. Everyone involved is energized and focused on the home stretch. PHASE 1 - SOUTH TOWER Drywall has been installed throughout the majority of the building, allowing for other events. Paint, tile and fixture installation are underway. South hoist (outside elevator) has been removed. This step indicates that all of the heavy materials are in place and finish work on the exterior of the building can continue. PHASE 1 - HOTEL / SPA COMPLEX Drywall has been installed throughout the majority of the building allowing for the next critical steps. In the spa, the Thermal Suite equipment has been delivered and installed. The Thermal Suite will provide you and your guests with many unique experiences. Restaurant — The space is lovely, and the Oceanside terrace, with the magnificent views of the ocean, will be the perfect place for intimate gatherings. Cardio/Weight Room — The ocean view is unmatched anywhere. Just imagine your workout while gazing across the waters. PHASE 2 - NORTH TOWER Owing in large part to a good weather year favorable to construction, solid progress has been made: Concrete work has begun on the 23rd floor, and a new floor is being added every week or two. It's exciting to see the building's growing profile on the beach. Total concrete poured to date is an amazing 24,934 cubic yards out of an estimated 31,000. That puts the concrete pour at approximately 80% complete! Glass is currently being installed through the 12th floor and is an important benchmark for the building.




Fourth-Floor Pour Saturday, April 1, 2006 For the fourth-floor pour, the deck was so highly complicated with all the plumbing, mechanical, electrical to feed all the intricate details of the spa. The image shows what will be held within the concrete slab. It's amazing how they can keep all that straight.

More pictures below...




Rebirth of a classic. The Carillon Hotel, a landmark from the heyday of such legends as the Eden Roc and Fountainbleu, has been deconstructed and is on its way up again. The 1957 sign was removed and will reappear, rebuilt and better than ever, on top of the building, maintaining the wonderful traditional feel. A great reincarnation for the Carillon, which stood vacant for 10 years before finding its new purpose. Tear down, clean up, refurbish. The floor-by-floor demolition required huge clean-up efforts. New rebar gets spliced into every floor and new slabs are poured with stronger, denser concrete. They're built for the greatest safety and durability, and the reinforced features make it possible to add the beautiful new balconies. Pillars of the past. The original Carillon columns have been replaced with new Palm Court Caps, which are planted at depths of 40 to 80 feet. They're not part of the structural support, but they add to the beauty. Aesthetic care. Designer David Rockwell has presented exciting plans for the Canyon Ranch hotel. The two-story lobby will be stunning, leading to the spectacular restaurant with picture-perfect views of the surf and sand. Wait until you see the lovely patterns and designs — relaxing and sophisticated, with marine imagery that fit the environment. In all the planning, use of sustainable materials gets high priority. Pooling our efforts. Tremendous work has gone into the 50-foot setback between the South Tower and seawall. You'll have a stunning view of the sea from the beach deck. Making a grand entrance. The new canopy over the sidewalk and Porte Cochere will be part of the building facade's transformation. Yoga with a view. You'll love the yoga/fitness room for classes including sunrise cycling, Pilates, tai chi, and other favorites. Windows on the sea. Beautiful new ocean-blue windows adorn the former Carillon hotel building, giving an updated look to the historic building. The rest of the building's windows are rapidly being added, from top to bottom. Of course, there's much more going on every day at your home-in-progress in Miami. Hundreds of people give their best effort daily to the thousands of details that will add up to the most exciting and innovative healthy living community imaginable. Please check in for updates as the project progresses. We welcome your questions and comments.




It's raining spas! Monday, March 20, 2006 The dramatic, aerial arrival of the prefabricated hydrospa. This will be part of the ThermaSpa suite located on our fourth floor of the 70,000-square-foot spa, and was specifically designed and manufactured in the UK for this project.



Live Here! Saturday, March 9, 2006 Consider this rendering of the condo town homes in the second phase — so, what would you do with this space? The volume is amazing, and you get a dazzling view of the water.



North Tower Foundation Work Saturday, March 4, 2006 Great progress at the North Tower! You can also see in the background the enclosure of the Historic Carillon Tower, where framing and dry-walling have started inside.



1000 Yards Weds, February 8, 2006 We had a great Saturday this past week, pouring nearly 1,000 cubic yards of concrete (approximately 100 trucks worth) for the large pile cap that supports the core of the taller spire of the North Tower.



Atrium Takes Form Tuesday, January 10, 2006 From this shot of the atrium in the South Tower, you can start to imagine what the space will eventually look like. The great colors, dramatic art and innovative design features will make a spectacular first impression for anyone arriving at Canyon Ranch Living - Miami.



Getting in Shape Sunday, December 18, 2005 Lots happening on the site these days, as work continues on your amazing beachfront property. The second spa level above the porte cochere is now being formed and will be poured soon. Enjoy the bird's eye view.



South Tower (Floor 16) Monday, November 28, 2005



Faring well after Hurricane Wilma Tuesday, October 25, 2005 We're glad to report that Canyon Ranch Living - Miami held up with flying covers through Hurricane Wilma. All windows held intact. A little duct work was lost from the open structure, and a bit of the CMU block wall on top of the building was compromised. We did lose the formwork created for the first-floor spa, which hadn't been poured yet; this may cause some lost time as we rebuild the concrete formwork. The sales and construction trailers were all in place with no water damage. In contrast, downtown Miami was hit fairly hard, as many of the new buildings suffered 50 to 75 percent window loss. Because of disarray in South Florida and jobsite crews, we're unsure how much time might lose due to surrounding circumstances. Be assured we're in good shape, and everyone is working hard to get your new home ready.



South Tower Rising (Floor 12) Friday, September 30, 2005 Boy, have we grown since we started last spring.



Windows with Views Friday, September 30, 2005 The windows are rapidly being added to the Carillon enclosing the existing structure. We're starting at the top and working our way down.



Spared From Katrina Tuesday, August 30, 2005 Fortunately, Katrina only skimmed the Miami Beach coastline. The project had to pause for its passing. The decks of the south tower (seen on the right) are rising at a pace of nearly one floor a week.



Carillon Lobby Thursday, July 07, 2005 The new Carillon hotel lobby is starting to take shape. The vaulted two-story space is already revealing a dramatic design.



Forming the 5th Floor Thursday, June 23, 2005 Now the 5th floor frame work is about 95 percent complete.



Pools! Tuesday, June 21, 2005 The south tower pool was formed last week and will be poured in the weeks coming.



Progress! Saturday, May 21, 2005 This week the project completed the "B" section pour of the south tower; these large floor plates are completed in three sections. The fourth floor sheer walls and columns are starting to go up as well.



Column Pour Wednesday, May 11, 2005 The bucket hanging over the column dumps wet concrete into the column form. We'll pour a floor and columns about every 10 days, removing the form work and creating the next floor.



April Aerial Monday, May 02, 2005 Here you see the south tower under construction (amazing ocean view in the background), the laydown space between the south and existing center tower (soon to become the palm court), and the mobilization on the north parcel - Phase II.



The First Elevated Slab Pour Friday, April 01, 2005 If you had X-ray eyes, this is what you'd see inside the concrete after it is poured. This is the first elevated deck of the south building. The long parallel strands going from the bottom left toward the top right are the PT cables (or Post Tension). About 24 hours after the concrete is poured, a device is placed at the edge of the slab to tighten these cables within a greased sleeve. These cables form the efficient structural system for the concrete slab. The sweeping gray lines in the image are mostly electrical conduits providing service to the condos and the elevators in the south building.



Sometimes It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better Thursday, March 31, 2005 This is the south elevation of the 1957, 16-story Carillon Hotel. The photo was taken on April 1, 2005 after four months of concrete renovation work. The weather-damaged concrete and rusted rebar have been chipped away. The next steps are to splice in new rebar, form the fresh slabs and pour in stronger, denser concrete. This remediation was necessary to support the new balconies.



Canopy Roof View Wednesday, March 30, 2005 A new canopy over the sidewalk will transform the Porte Cochere and the building facade. Hard to believe we will turn this structure into a first-class, luxury resort.



Carillon Circa 1960 A real "before" picture. This shows the Carillon Resort in its heyday, probably taken in the late 60s, when this was a thriving resort spa on the beach. The area was later rivaled by the Fountainbleu Resort and the Eden Roc to the South (around 54th and Collins Avenue). The Carillon sat vacant for more than 10 years, until Canyon Ranch had another vision for it.



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