The Berkeley Palm Beach

The Bristol Palm Beach is the building by which all other WPB luxury is judged. When the developer behind it announces a new project, the market pays attention — and The Berkeley Palm Beach is exactly that: Al Adelson's follow-up to his own gold standard.

Adelson's development vehicle, Australian Properties Group, is a joint venture with Sympatico Real Estate. The project team he assembled for The Berkeley reflects the same seriousness as The Bristol: Bernardo Fort-Brescia of Arquitectonica as architect, Arquitectonica Interiors for the residential fit-out, and EDSA for landscape architecture. These are not promotional names chosen for a brochure — this is a project team that has designed some of the most significant buildings in South Florida.

The Bristol set the market ceiling in WPB and established price points the city had not previously recorded. The Berkeley is positioned at a slightly lower price tier, but it is built by the same hand. That is the value proposition: Bristol-caliber execution, at prices that the post-2020 Flagler Drive market has made increasingly rare.

Bernardo Fort-Brescia co-founded Arquitectonica in Miami in 1977. The firm went on to design some of the most recognized buildings in South Florida's skyline — the Atlantis on Brickell (the one with the hole in the middle, the swimming pool on the 12th floor), Portofino Tower in Miami Beach, the American Airlines Arena, and dozens of residential and mixed-use towers across the region and globally.

At The Berkeley, Arquitectonica is doing both architecture and interiors through Arquitectonica Interiors — a unified design vision that eliminates the friction between exterior and interior that can plague multi-firm projects. The intent is a building whose architectural identity carries through from the facade to the finish selections inside each residence.

Fort-Brescia's design language tends toward bold geometry, clean facades, and a South Florida sensibility that acknowledges the climate without being defined by it. On Australian Avenue, adjacent to Clear Lake, The Berkeley will be a distinctive presence — a building that looks considered rather than generic in a market where generic has become the default.

Per the developer's published positioning, The Berkeley is designed around modern family living — a stated market position that distinguishes it from most WPB luxury towers now under construction, which are generally specified for seasonal or lock-and-leave occupancy. Translated into objective specifications, that positioning means flexible interior space, estate-scale floor plans, full-service building infrastructure, and an amenity program built for year-round rather than seasonal use. All residences are available to any buyer without restriction.

Every floor plan includes a flex room — adaptable for home offices, media rooms, guest accommodations, wellness spaces, or family living. Every plan also carries a private elevator vestibule, so the arrival experience will separate from the building's shared infrastructure the moment the elevator door opens.

The pool program is deliberately split into two distinct experiences: a 7th-floor family resort pool deck with cabanas and outdoor recreation, and a rooftop adults-only pool retreat with panoramic skyline and waterfront views. Both are drawn as primary amenities, not afterthoughts. The plans also carry a kids center, teen room, rooftop private dining room with chef's kitchen, event lawn, and adaptable social spaces — an amenity set that signals a developer who expects residents to live here full-time.

Supporting infrastructure is equally serious: a whole-building generator is specified for uninterrupted power and security — a significant differentiator in South Florida's weather environment. Complimentary on-demand house car service and Butler's Pantry package delivery in select residences complete a service program built for daily residential use. Marketing materials reference premium Italian-inspired kitchen finishes and globally sourced luxury materials throughout — full spec sheets are available through DO Homes Group.

The Berkeley broke ground in July 2026 and is targeting delivery in 2029, so the timeline is no longer an open question. Two of the numbers buyers most want still are: HOA fees and the rental policy. That is normal for a project at this stage, but it changes what due diligence looks like. At a finished building you evaluate a documented history. Here you are evaluating a contract, a construction schedule, and a developer's track record.

The market has already voted on that track record. The Berkeley passed $125 million in sales as of August 2026, with more than 25% of its 193 residences under contract before vertical construction began — absorption at that pace on a pre-construction tower is a signal worth weighing alongside the renderings.

The track record is the strongest part of the case. Al Adelson delivered The Bristol, and a buyer can walk that building, look at how its finishes have held up, and talk to people who live there — a far better predictor of what gets delivered than any rendering. If you are weighing The Berkeley against other pre-construction options, our comparison of The Bristol and South Flagler House is a useful reference for what this tier of WPB construction actually produces.

What to pin down in the purchase agreement rather than leave to the brochure:

• Deposit schedule and escrow. How much is due at each construction milestone, where those funds are held, and under what conditions they are refundable.
• Outside delivery date. Not the 2029 marketing estimate — the contractual date past which you have remedies, and what those remedies actually are.
• Estimated HOA budget. Developers publish projected fees before closing. Ask for the projection, and ask what happens if year-one actuals exceed it.
• Rental policy at turnover. If your plan involves leasing, get the intended restriction in writing now. Association votes after closing can change it.
• Finish allowances and change deadlines. When selections lock, what substitutions the developer may make, and what is standard versus upgrade.

Financing a pre-construction purchase also works differently from financing a resale — our guide to financing a luxury condo covers the distinction. DO Homes Group can request current pricing, floor plans, and the developer's contract for review before you commit to a deposit.

The Berkeley sits on Clear Lake at 550 South Australian Avenue — the western edge of downtown West Palm Beach, steps from The Square and within easy walking distance of the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, the Norton Museum of Art, and WPB's best dining concentration.

The Clear Lake address is worth understanding precisely. The Berkeley is not a Flagler Drive tower competing for Intracoastal-front positioning — and that's intentional. Clear Lake provides serene, tranquil water views and a quieter residential environment that the Flagler corridor, for all its prestige, cannot replicate. The Clear Lake setting anchors the building's family and sanctuary positioning: west-facing sunset views across the lake on every floor, with upper-floor flow-through plans drawn to add east-facing Intracoastal and Atlantic views as a second exposure. That dual-orientation situation is rare in WPB new construction at this price point.

The walkable urban lifestyle The Berkeley is being built for is genuinely uncommon among WPB luxury towers. From the building's address, residents will be able to walk to The Square, RH Rooftop, Estiatorio Milos, Palm Beach Grill, Cafe Boulud, and Buccan. The Kravis Center and Norton Museum are within easy reach. For buyers who want to live in the city rather than commute to it — with a waterfront setting, estate-scale floor plans, and a family-oriented building infrastructure — The Berkeley's location is the most functional available in WPB.