This is bananas: Benjamin Cos sprouts agriculture on $33M Fort Lauderdale development site

Rows of banana tree saplings are sprouting from a vacant lot in downtown Fort Lauderdale where a massive multifamily development was once planned.  Dozens of trees were planted at 707 Southeast Third Avenue in the last several months, turning the development site owned by New York-based Benjamin Companies into an unlikely patch of farmland.  The planting has caused a stir online, with Fort Lauderdale residents and local groups questioning whether the bananas are part of a strategy to qualify for an agricultural tax break under Florida’s Greenbelt Law. The Benjamin Companies, a real estate development and management company led by […]

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