�BankAtlantic is proud to be able to take the lead in this large project underwriting,� says Allen Harvell, Senior Vice President and Manager of Corporate Banking for BankAtantic�s  Tampa Bay Region.   �We�ve been providing construction loans to Florida developers and businesses for over 48 years, and The Ritz-Carlton Hotel is certainly a name with whom we are proud to be associated.�  �This remarkable project will be a major attraction to the city of Sarasota and we�re very proud to be a part of it,� Harvell added.

The new hotel, located on approximately eight acres overlooking Sarasota Bay, Bayfront Island Park and Downtown waterfront will include: 266 luxury guest rooms, each featuring spectacular views of Sarasota, elegant ballrooms and conference facilities, a full-range of world-class recreational facilities, including: championship golf, a Lido Key beach club, a 20,000 square-foot luxury spa, tennis and fitness center and many other luxuries and services you�ve come to expect from the prestigious Ritz-Carlton Hotel.

Located on the top eight floors of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, will be �The Residences I� which is fifty private, Mediterranean style luxury condominium homes to be managed by Ritz-Carlton.  Residents of these condominiums will take advantage of a number of impeccable personal hospitalities offered by the Ritz-Carlton and its staff.   These condominium homes were marketed worldwide, and have all been successfully pre sold.

The new Ritz-Carlton Hotel will be situated on the historic site of the former John Ringling Hotel, adjacent to Sarasota Bay and upscale St. Armand�s Circle.  The project is scheduled to be completed in November of 2001.  A ground-breaking ceremony held earlier in February was attended by Sarasota city and county officials, condominium purchasers and executives from Ritz-Carlton and the participating lenders.

BankAtlantic has been providing commercial and retail banking services to businesses and individuals throughout the state of Florida for over 48 years and is progressively establishing a strong presence in the Tampa Bay area.

Firstar Bank, Missouri is owned by Firstar Corporation the 14th largest banking company in the U.S. and second largest in the midwest.  Head-quartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Firstar Corporation owns more than 1,200 banking offices in 13 states.

Ocean Bank is an independently owned commercial bank head-quartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida with over $3 billion in assets and 18 full service banking offices in South Florida.

Raymond James Bank, FSB, with $682 million in assets, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Raymond James Financial, Inc., a diversified financial services holding company with more than 1,700 locations throughout the United States and internationally.  

Raymond James Financial�s asset management subsidiaries manage over $17 billion in assets. Raymond James Bank offers its products and services nationwide directly to the general public, and to clients of Raymond James financial through its more than 4,000 affiliated Financial Advisors, as well as from its headquarters in St. Petersburg, Florida.

BankAtlantic operates 68 full-service banking offices in 17 Florida counties, six of which are located in the Tampa Bay area.  The bank has nearly 800 ATMs throughout Florida, Georgia and Alabama.   BankAtlantic Bancorp, Inc., the largest independent financial institution based in Florida with $4.3 billion in assets is the holding company for BankAtlantic.  BankAtlantic Bancorp�s common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol �BBX�.