September 17, 2025
Fort Lauderdale’s $3M Fight Over Failed Façade Lighting
Photo credit: City of Fort Lauderdale
City alleges obsolete lighting products, corrosion and neglect in newly filed lawsuit
What began as a high-profile beachside showpiece is now a cautionary tale in project management, aging tech, and corrosive environments.
The Las Olas Beach Parking Garage in Fort Lauderdale was supposed to shimmer. Installed with a programmable LED display designed to mimic ocean waves and fireworks, the five-story structure opened in late 2018 with a $21 million price tag. But by early 2023, the garage went dark. Now, the city is suing five firms over lighting and façade failures that it says will cost at least $3 million to fix.
While the Traxon lighting system is central to the allegations, the manufacturer is not a named defendant in the lawsuit. On September 12, we reached out to Traxon for comment. The company declined.
Key Players
- City of Fort Lauderdale (Plaintiff)
Owner of the parking garage; alleges design and construction defects. - Skanska USA Building, Inc. (Defendant)
Construction Manager at Risk. Recommended the mesh and subcontracted both GKD (mesh) and Meisner (lighting). - EDSA, Inc. (Defendant)
Lead design consultant. Processed lighting and material submittals. - Arquitectonica International Corp. (Defendant)
Sub-consultant under EDSA. Involved in aesthetic and system design decisions. - GKD-USA, Inc. (Defendant)
Supplied and installed the stainless-steel mesh that later corroded. - Meisner Electric, Inc. (Defendant)
Installed the fin-mounted lighting system using Traxon’s Dot XL-3 RGB components. - Traxon (Non-party)
Maker of the lighting system described in the lawsuit. Not a defendant.
- Intertek Group PLC (Non-party)
Hired by GKD to test mesh samples in 2019. Their report claimed no corrosion was present. - TMR Stainless (Non-party)
Hired by EDSA in 2020, concluded the mesh material was unsuitable for the marine environment due to chloride exposure.
The Lighting Installation That Couldn’t
The city claims the lighting system failed just a few years into service, with lights either going dark or becoming stuck. The City of Fort Lauderdale claims that the Traxon Dot XL-3 RGB system was already obsolete at the time of installation, and replacement parts and software quickly became unavailable, making repairs impossible.
Traxon’s website confirms that the Dot XL series is currently obsolete, with Allegro Dot and Media Dot Go listed as its successors. While it’s unclear whether the newer models can integrate seamlessly with existing Dot XL units on the same mesh installation, such interoperability seems feasible.
From a technical standpoint, the RGB system was individually addressable and designed for dynamic architectural effects.
The Sun Sentinel reported that when operational, the lighting display could simulate fireworks and ocean waves. That spectacle became a visual hallmark of the structure’s “glitzy image.” Today, the garage sits dark, and the city faces mounting costs and political blowback.
What Went Wrong. Allegedly.
According to the lawsuit, the City faults Skanska and Meisner for installing a lighting system without properly vetting its product lifecycle or long-term supportability. It also claims EDSA and Arquitectonica failed to flag those risks during design and submittal review.
“Several of the fin lights either do not function properly, become stuck, or do not function at all,” the lawsuit states. “Additionally, due to the Traxon System… being obsolete at the time of installation, the City is unable to obtain any replacement bulbs.”
The Sun Sentinel previously reported that the lights began failing in 2021, with the entire system shutting down by February 2023. The estimated replacement cost is now $3 million.
A Political and Legal Slow Burn
As the Sun Sentinel reported, Fort Lauderdale hired outside counsel in late 2023 to investigate the issues. Pre-suit notices went out in May 2024, followed by inspections in early 2025. The City is still awaiting feedback from the defendants.
Mayor Dean Trantalis voiced public frustration. “We’ve been dancing around this issue for several years now,” he said at a June City Hall meeting. “We can’t keep waiting for them to do nothing.”
Residents are equally frustrated. “That splash of color brightened up the entrance to the Las Olas corridor… and then it just went kaput,” one local told the Sun Sentinel.
For Fort Lauderdale, the lights went out. And the field service teams didn’t cover the silence.
