Related Cos. properties dominate much of West Palm Beach’s skyline.
Photographer: Ysa Pérez for Bloomberg MarketsBillionaire Stephen Ross Believes in South Florida—and Is Spending Big to Transform It
The Related Cos. founder is following the money flowing south by bringing his influence to everything from real estate to schools and health care.
Some of Florida’s most prominent names gathered at an oceanfront Palm Beach mansion this month to raise money for a tantalizing prospect: building a local outpost of Nashville’s Vanderbilt University, an institution that would add educational prestige to an area booming with newcomers.
The guest list was a who’s who of state politics and finance, including Governor Ron DeSantis and activist investor Nelson Peltz, according to people familiar with the matter. The host and owner of the 1930s estate, the billionaire real estate developer Stephen Ross, loomed above it all.