The Fort Lauderdale Budget Advisory Board voted Dec. 10 to recommend that the City Commission adopt proposed updates to the Fort Lauderdale Beach food-and-beverage ordinance, including an increase in the per-room fee and a new annual flat fee intended to raise revenue for the general fund.

Jenny, the Beach Improvement District program manager, told the board the program began as a 2022 pilot and became permanent in 2023. She said nine hotels currently participate and that the ordinance allows hotels within a designated area of Fort Lauderdale Beach to apply for a license to sell, serve and deliver food and alcoholic beverages to hotel guests and people renting chairs from the city concessionaire. “The ordinance allows hotels, on Fort Lauderdale Beach within the designated area to apply for a license to sell, serve, and deliver food and alcoholic beverages,” she said.

Why it matters: Staff said modest fee increases could boost general-fund revenue without expanding the program widely. The board and staff also discussed process changes meant to shorten permit renewals, and whether the City Commission should retain a formal “call-up” authority for renewals in case of neighborhood concerns. Staff’s recommendation would let the city manager approve routine renewals while first-time applicants still would go to the commission for review.

Details and board actions: In presentation slides and discussion staff framed a proposal to raise the per-room fee from the existing $25 and to add a small annual flat fee. Staff projected that, with nine hotels renewing, room-fee revenue would rise from roughly $64,450 in fiscal 2025 to about $77,000 (staff gave inconsistent figures during Q&A — see note below), and that an annual flat fee across nine hotels would add about $10,800 for combined projected revenue of roughly $88,000. Staff said one or two additional hotels might join the program in the coming months.

Board concerns and response: Several board members asked about including a formal commission call-up provision similar to planning-and-zoning appeals; staff and hotel representatives said the Beach Improvement District had endorsed the proposed changes and that, to date, the program had produced few resident complaints. The board debated whether the proposal should include an annual CPI escalator (Miami Beach uses a 2.5% CPI escalator), and staff said an escalator was not part of the initial recommendation but could be added later.

The vote: A member moved that the Budget Advisory Board support staff’s recommendation as presented; the motion was seconded and the board approved the recommendation by roll-call vote (all present voted yes). The board’s recommendation will be transmitted to the City Commission ahead of the ordinance’s first reading on Dec. 16 and second reading on Jan. 6.

What’s next: The City Commission will consider the ordinance; staff emphasized the first-reading hearing is an opportunity for public input and for commissioners to direct amendments before the second reading.

Editor’s note: The transcript of the board discussion records two different per-room figures during the presentation and Q&A (slides referenced an increase to $30 per room; during Q&A a staff comment referenced $35 per room). Staff-provided revenue projections used a combined figure of roughly $88,000; the ordinance language presented to the commission will include the precise fee schedule.