Fort Lauderdale is about to be Monopolized.
We’re talking, of course, about a Fort Lauderdale-centric version of the American real-estate board game. Picture building hotels on Las Olas Boulevard, along the New River or the beach — assuming you’ve got a monopoly, of course.
Game and toy company Top Trumps USA unveiled “Monopoly: Fort Lauderdale Edition” during a Monday publicity event on the Intracoastal Waterway. Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis and Vice Mayor Steve Glassman touted the collaboration at a Fort Lauderdale Water Taxi stop, standing beside bow-tied mascot Mr. Monopoly, who mugged for photographs and waved his cane. Surrounding the city officials were enlarged cutouts of board game squares, showing spots like Hugh Taylor Birch State Park and Bonnet House Museum and Gardens.
City of Fort Lauderdale / Courtesy
Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis, left, and Vice Mayor Steve Glassman flank bow-tied mascot Mr. Monopoly during a public event on Monday unveiling “Monopoly: Fort Lauderdale Edition,” set to be released in 2025. (City of Fort Lauderdale / Courtesy)
Monopoly, in which players collect properties, snap up hotels and charge rent to bankrupt other competitors, first debuted in 1935. But its origins can be traced to 1904, when Elizabeth Magie-Phillips patented The Landlord’s Game, a similar version created to highlight the exploitation of tenants by greedy landlords. Monopoly’s social-media pages say more than a billion people in 114 countries have played the game since 1935.
The Fort Lauderdale edition is expected to be released in January 2025 under a Hasbro license. But first, the toy company will accept nominations from the public for iconic Fort Lauderdale locales (businesses, nonprofits and landmarks) to be featured on the board game’s squares, Top Trumps USA spokesperson Sarah Bowman told the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
How to participate? Through Wednesday, July 31, submissions may be emailed to fortlauderdale@toptrumps.com.
“There’s only 22 property squares, so we’re totally spoiled for choice on what to feature,” Bowman said of Fort Lauderdale. “We’re looking for places with credibility, longevity and community engagement. We don’t just want to target one side of town. It’s what you think are beloved places or things in Fort Lauderdale ”
The game will also feature customized Monopoly money and community chest and chance cards that pay homage to Fort Lauderdale.
While public feedback is a guidepost for picking the Fort Lauderdale destinations, Bowman said there will be “buy-in” from local businesses and nonprofits, who also have a hand in choosing squares.
“We do depend on businesses in the community to make this game come to life literally,” she said. “Businesses use this as a way to leave their legacy.”
So, the question remains: Who deserves the coveted Boardwalk and Park Place slots: Las Olas Boulevard and Fort Lauderdale Beach? The Bonnet House and Hugh Taylor Birch State Park? Anthony’s Runway 84 and 15th Street Fisheries?
City of Fort Lauderdale / Courtesy
A sample selection of Fort Lauderdale-themed Monopoly board pieces were on display at a publicity event on Monday, June 10, 2024. (City of Fort Lauderdale / Courtesy)
Trantalis, for one, treats this question literally.
“You have to pick places where you can actually build houses and hotels,” Trantalis said. “You can’t do that at Bonnet House. It should be Bahia Mar Marina or Flagler Village or Sailboat Bend.”
“Just don’t ask me which Fort Lauderdale place should be Baltic Avenue,” he added.
Top Trumps USA has been making city-focused Monopoly spinoffs since 1998, Bowman said, and this will be its second Florida-themed board game after announcing a Tampa edition in 2023.
But you’d be forgiven for thinking you’ve spotted Monopoly-fied versions of South Florida cities before. A company called Late for the Sky has released Fort Lauderdale-Opoly and even a Tamarac-Opoly. (Yes, really.) Another Top Trumps USA spokeswoman said these other board games are unofficial, “fake Monopoly boards” missing the game’s official trademark and mascot, Mr. Monopoly.
“Our team jokes that imitation is the finest form of flattery,” Bowman said. “(They’re) similar but not actually licensed by Hasbro.”
Once released, the Fort Lauderdale edition will be sold at partnered retailers including CVS, Amazon and bookstores, Bowman said.
Staff writer Phillip Valys can be reached at pvalys@sunsentinel.com. Follow on Instagram @p.v.guide and X/Twitter @PhilValys.