Judge Raag Singhal. Photo: Melanie Bell

David Beckham's plans for a Fort Lauderdale soccer stadium and training facility are now in the hands of Broward Circuit Judge Raag Singhal.

Singhal said he will issue an order Friday after hearing arguments at a two-hour hearing late Wednesday on a request by a competing soccer group for a temporary injunction to halt the planned demolition of Lockhart Stadium.

FXE Futbol LLC in mid-April sued the city and Miami Beckham United, and asked the judge last week to delay the tear-down while its lawsuit plays out.

FXE contends the city didn't follow state law when reviewing the proposals and maintains demolition isn't allowed under an interim agreement between the city and Beckham's group.

The emergency motion was filed because the project led by retired soccer star David Beckham would essentially kills FXE's proposal to use the derelict stadium on 65 acres at 1350 NW 55th St. near Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport.

“Once historic Lockhart Stadium is demolished, plaintiff's competing bid is moot, and there will be no remedy,” FXE Futbol's Miami attorney David Winker wrote in a motion.

Winker argued demolition already has begun, but the city denied it, saying only some stadium lights have been removed.

FXE's arguments amount to asking the judge to strip the city of its power to decide the best use of its own property, Miami Beckham's attorney John Shubin said.

“You would still have to ask yourself the basic question, 'Do I as a judicial officer, do I have the authority under the separation-of-powers doctrine to essentially interfere with this core governmental decision as to how it's going to handle its own property,' ” Shubin, a founding partner at Shubin & Bass in Miami, told Singhal.

MIami Beckham CEO J.P. Reynal testified about litigation by the losing bidder against the city and the winning bidder when the same property was in line for a water park, which never materialized.

“ This assertion that courts are somehow constitutionally prevented from reviewing disposition of property is a new one for me,” Winker said Wednesday. “I think that case is another example involving the exact same property and the exact same circumstances.”

FXE also raised asbestos as an issue, but the city's attorney, Nabors, Giblin & Nickerson shareholder Edward Dion in Fort Lauderdale, rejected it.

“Plaintiff's proposal is already moot and was unanimously rejected by the city,” Dion wrote. The City Commission on April 2 unanimously voted to approve the interim agreement with Miami Beckham United.

The city has argued FXE didn't raise concerns during meetings when the two proposals were considered, a claim that Reynal disputed at the hearing.

“When the ranking process began and the proceedings began, our lobbyist objected to the proceedings, arguing there was not enough time given to analyze the bids,” Reynal testified.  “The process wasn't fair, and I raised this concern to the commission and mayor.”

He said FXE has been working with the city on a plan to redevelop the site for years but felt rushed to submit a formal proposal after Miami Beckham United delivered its unsolicited plan Jan. 28.

FXE's $35 million stadium restoration plan includes a sports and entertainment complex, while Miami Beckham United plans an 18,000-seat stadium and soccer training facility.

Beckham's Major League Soccer franchise, Inter Miami, plans to play at Lockhart for two years beginning with the 2020 season until its permanent home at Miami's Melreese golf course is finished.

Shubin resisted Singhal's initial idea to rule Monday.

“We are under some very, very serious deadlines,” Shubin said. “Any time we agree to cease construction activities or preparation activities, it slows us down, and we have a soccer season that we have to be able to prepare for.”

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