Block E In Downtown Miami's Arts & Entertainment District Trades For $19.75 Million

A 37,252-square-foot development site known as Block E at 1550 NE Miami Place in the heart of the Arts and Entertainment District has traded for $19.75 million. The site is located within the boundaries of the opportunity zone and is zoned T6-24a O which allows the developer to build up to seven times the property land square footage and up to 500 units per acre.

Colliers’ Executive Managing Director Mika Mattingly and Senior Associate Cecilia Estevez of Collier’s Urban Core Divisionrepresented the seller, Kluger Family Trust, in the transaction. The buyer, Jenny Bernell of Clearline Real Estate, is a developer of multifamily and mixed-use real estate projects in the growing areas of Florida, New York and New Jersey. Clearline Real Estate currently has 1,500 multifamily units in the development pipeline. This transaction marks Clearline’s third development site acquisition in Miami in the last year with plans for multifamily development.

“This transaction showcases the continued growth of demand for development sites in Miami and emerging neighborhoods like the A&E district,” said Mattingly. “In a very short time we have seen the Arts and Entertainment District radically transform from a deserted, bleak industrial area, into a neighborhood with a thriving pulse.”

Block E is uniquely located 1,000’ away from the Metro mover, which provides connection to the Brightline station, downtown Miami, and Brickell. The access creates prime pathways of mobility so that tenants can embrace the “work, live, and play” aspect of the area. The district is also home to several landmarks such as the Adrienne Arsht Center for performing arts, the Perez Art Museum and the Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science, all within a five-minute walk from Block E. Over the last three years, the A&E district has experienced tremendous growth with proposed developments on every corner and a number of surrounding residential projects at 100% occupancy within weeks of opening.

With the A&E district’s rapid growth capturing global attention from investors, developers, new tenants and the world’s most renowned creatives, the city of Miami made the development of the district a top priority with new zoning to allow residential and commercial density construction. Over the last two years, the number of multifamily units grew more than 20%, office inventory increased 50%, and the number of hotel rooms more than doubled. The district is quickly densifying with arts, retail and restaurants, vibrant new office development and new-to-market tenants as well as an influx of people, creating one of the most exciting new urban areas in the United States.

Image via Collier’s International Florida Urban Core Division

Moishe Mana Closes On Five Properties In Downtown Miami's Flagler District For $59.62 Million

Moishe Mana is steaming forward on plans for Downtown Miami’s Flagler District after closing on five properties in the past week for $59.62 million. Construction is progressing at several other of his properties in the neighborhood as the demand for office, retail and entertainment spaces in Miami increases. Moishe Mana first acquired three buildings at 100 N Miami Avenue, 173 NE 1st Street and 124 NE 2nd Avenue for $25,375,000. Together the properties total 50,197 sq. ft., situated on 28,750 sq. ft. of land. One week later Mana acquired the Shoreland Arcade building and 1 West Flagler following the acquisition of another three buildings in the neighborhood just last week. The Shoreland Arcade is located at 120 NE 1st Street. and spans 89,994 sq. ft., situated on a 37,994 sq. ft. lot of land. It was acquired for $29.5MM and 1 West Flagler, a 7,900 sq. ft. building was acquired for $4,750,000.

“The Flagler District is the only destination fully equipped to respond to the sky-rocketing demand for office, retail and entertainment space. We’re moving forward with development and approaching completion of key assemblages, adding historic pieces that are central for carrying out our vision for this neighborhood,” said Moishe Mana.

Colliers Urban Core Division Executive Managing Director Mika Mattingly and Senior Associate Cecilia Estevez represented both the buyers and sellers in each off-market transaction. The sellers of the first three building assemblage were SG&S Inc and Flexini Investments Inc. and the second properties were sold by Broks Center LTD.

“Transformative developments taking shape in downtown Miami, along with organic growth of quality retail and restaurants in the area, have resulted in a migration of people seeking a true work, live, play environment,” said Mattingly. “After years of being ignored by the investment community, everyone is rushing to own a piece of downtown Miami, fueling an insatiable desire for real estate in this submarket. Transactions like this are reducing the inventory available for investment, with very few opportunities of this size and scale remaining in downtown.”

Moishe Mana, CEO of Mana Common, is the largest private landowner in Miami with a significant assemblage of over 60 properties spanning more than 1.3 million square feet in downtown Miami’s Flagler District. Under his real estate division, Mana Properties, the visionary entrepreneur has begun construction on several sites in downtown Miami including at the Nikola Tesla Innovation Hub, the first building on track for completion.

“The Flagler District is on its way to becoming the best neighborhood in America,” said Moishe Mana. “We are turning the downtown core into Miami's economic engine. What the people of Miami really need are jobs-- high-paying, long-term, wealth-creating jobs, so those that built Miami into a global destination can benefit from its prosperity.”

As downtown Miami continues to flourish with the return of global capital and major developments underway, Moishe Mana intends to transform the neighborhood into a global hub for tech and innovation, connecting North and Latin American markets. The vision comes from a thoughtful intent to support commercial development in the downtown core as the demand for office and retail spaces in Miami increases.

‘The sleeping giant that was Downtown Miami is finally roaring awake after a hundred years of slumber,” said Mika Mattingly. “Downtown is evolving organically into the coolest place in Miami. What other location has those exquisite historical buildings?”

Multifamily Development Site For Approved M Tower Sells For $10 Million In Downtown Miami

The New York-based Lions Group has acquired a development site in Downtown Miami for $10 million which has a project known as M Tower approved to be built. M Tower is planned to rise 53-stories and offer 440-unit apartment units, located at 56 SW 1st St and 65 SW 2nd Street. Colliers' Urban Core Division Executive Managing Director Mika Mattingly and Associate Cecilia Estevez represented the seller, the Aventura-based S2 Development, and EP Realty’s Estrella Perez represented the buyer, Lions Group, in the transaction.

“The downtown Miami market has never been more active than it is right now,” Mattingly said. “This market is poised to see the largest influx of investors ever from other states and this transaction highlights that trend. New York-based Downtown 1st Street LLC’s purchase of this development site proves that the migration from the Northeast has only accelerated as the vibrant downtown neighborhood continues to evolve.”

M Tower will consist of 622,783 SF of gross building area, with 25,732 SF of office space and 1,089 SF of retail. The development site also includes a parking garage owned by the Miami Parking Authority (MPA), located at 70 SW 1st St. The 16,718 SF site includes air rights, waivers, and the ability to build residential units over the adjacent parking garage. The proposed units are targeted toward students and young professionals looking for a connected urban experience, currently the largest market of downtown residents.

The project has Urban Development Review Board (UDRB) approval, which it obtained through an extensive RFP process. The entitlement provides additional air rights, waivers, and the ability to construct a residential tower over the adjacent Miami Parking Authority (MPA) garage.

Downtown Miami continues to experience robust demand as it attracts a younger, wealthier and more educated population. Downtown is the largest employment center in Miami-Dade, with more than 175,000 employees and a day-time population of 235,000. The city is home to the highest concentration of banks and financial institutions outside of Manhattan, and tourism is at an all-time high with more than 6 million visitors per year. M Tower stands to benefit from the area’s rapid population growth. Since 2010, the population of Downtown Miami has increased approximately 52% and is expected to increase another 16% by 2024.

Beach Towing Purchases Sunset Harbour Commercial Property For $6.5 Million

Longtime Sunset Harbour tenant Beach Towing has acquired a commercial property South Beach’s Sunset Harbour neighborhood for $6.5 million. The property is located at 1349 Dade Boulevard in Miami Beach and consists of a 2,600 SF building and a 17,932 SF lot.

The transaction was overseen by Colliers Urban Core Division led by Colliers' Executive Managing Director Mika Mattingly and Associate Cecilia Estevez, who represented the seller Festa Family Trust. Eric A. Gonzalez of Roca Gonzalez, P.A. was legal counsel representing the Festa Family Trust in the sale of the property.

“Sunset Harbour has undergone an incredible transformation,” said Mattingly. “This is the first neighborhood I farmed, selling a good chunk of the market’s available land at the time. The area has exploded with development since then.”

Beach Towing has operated an automobile storage and towing company at the property since 1986. The towing company began operations when the property was within an Intensive Commercial District (C-6), which grandfathered the company in when the zoning was changed three years later to Commercial Medium Intensity (C-5). Beach Towing operates as a legal, non-conforming business.

Sunset Harbour has been one of South Florida’s most in-demand neighborhoods in Miami. Miami Beach developer Ronny Finvarb recently acquired a 10,200 SF Sunset Harbour site at 1790 Alton Road for $4 million. Down the road Eighteen Sunset, a mixed-use residential and commercial building featuring office space and an ultra-luxury penthouse, is currently being developed by Deco Capital Group.

Ironstate Development Closes On Wynwood Development Site For $15.6 Million

Ironstate Development has closed on the acquisition of a 1.29-acre development site in Miami’s trendy Wynwood neighborhood for $15.6 million. Miami Beach-based developer Lucky Shepherd had put the development site under contract prior to the pandemic but the contract was ultimately assigned to Ironstate Development. Lucky Shepherd had planned to build an eco-friendly project with a 150-key hotel, and up to 48 private residences.

Real estate broker Andy Charry, with Metro 1, represented the seller, Art By God, Inc. Real estate brokers Mika Mattingly and Cecilia Estevez with Colliers International Florida’s Urban Core Division represented Lucky Shepherd.

“My client had a great property located on a great street, and it became even better because of the proposed Brightline station,” said Andy Charry.

The development site is currently home to Art By God, a 30-year-old business that has become one of the largest retailers of nature products, artifacts and wildlife items in the U.S., from a wide collection of fossils and bones, to an assortment of rough or polished rocks and minerals, and unique art and sculptures from all over the world. The 21,155-square-foot Art By God is located at 60 NE 27th St. The acquisition also includes the following addresses: 26 NE 27 St., 25 NE 26 St., and 61 NE 26 St.

“This is one of the last great sites in Wynwood,” Ms. Mattingly said. “This transaction is a prime example of a Covid-ravished deal that, at the end of the day, came back to life thanks to Miami’s tidal wave market.”