Luxury house in Florida to feature robotic arm

A new luxury development in Florida will feature a robotic arm,
reports have revealed.

The block of apartments, located in Sunny Isles Beach, has been
designed by Porsche in co-operation with developer Gil Dezer and will
incorporate the mechanical limb into its structure to transport residents’ cars from
the road outside to the internal parking lot, via their front door.

Cars will be scooped up into an elevator after their engines
are turned off and lifted up the block’s 57 storeys automatically. “You don’t have to leave your car until you are in front of
your apartment,” Porsche Design Group CEO Juergen Gessler told the Miami
Herald.

$9 million for a 90-second ride

The Porsche Design Tower will boast three glass elevators to
ferry residents and cars to and from their properties, with each ride estimated
to last up to 90 seconds. The building, shaped like a cylinder, will be
constructed on a 2.2 acre plot of land in Florida, including a total of 132 apartments and
284 parking spaces. Apartments will cost up to $9 million each.

Sunny Isles Beach City Commission approved the plans for the
block this month with a unanimous vote in favour of the development, which is
expected to strengthen Florida’s high-end real estate market.

Overseas appeal strong

Indeed, Florida’s property is still popular with many
investors, as Canadians flock to the area to buy distressed properties and
foreclosures at low prices. Dubbed “Endvestors”, they are purchasing cheap
houses and saving them for the end of their careers, ready for retirement.

“Canadians love it here and their currency has
exaggerated buying power,” the Miami Association of Realtors told OPP. “That, coupled
with low prices… it’s a no brainer to buy and to buy now.”

With demand from overseas investors still strong and Florida’s
lifestyle appeal unchanged, Dezer will be expecting strong interest from
wealthy buyers, especially with the unique Porsche parking system. It is an unusual
facility for a luxury house, but the Porsche Design Tower concept is expected
to inspire similar projects around the world.

“We want to keep this really exclusive and not have this
become a McDonald’s kind of style. The tower is going to change the skyline of
Miami Beach,” Dezer told the Herald. “This is something Floridians should be
proud to have in their state.”