Magic City Tech Boom? Microsoft In Negotiations At 830 Brickell And Elon Musk Wants To Build Tunnels Under Miami

Miami, the magic city, is on track to become the next Silicon Valley as the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic has brought people flocking to South Florida. Florida saw the second highest population growth over any other state in 2020, following Texas, adding over 240,000 new residents in a single year. The influx of new residents is being driven by those looking to take advantage of remote-working opportunities or seek a state that has let business remain open and has pro-business tax structure. This has led to Miami and Palm Beach real estate pricing and absorption reaching near record highs.

Not only are the new residents flocking from the high-tax New York, at the same time as South Florida’s population boom, the San Francisco Bay Area has seen an exodus of venture capitalists and tech entrepreneurs. Mayor Francis Suarez has opened up the city to tech entrepreneurs and has expressed interest in bringing innovative companies to the magic city and making Miami a global tech hub. Mayor Suarez recently announced he will be appointing a Chief Technology Officer for the city.

Miami’s office market is being a surge in demand and setting record high pricing. Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) is one of the major tech firms looking to move to Miami, the multinational software provider is actively in negotiations to lease 30,000 square feet of space at OKO Group’s 830 Brickell, a 56-story office tower adjacent to Brickell City Centre which is currently under construction. Pricing is still relatively cheap compared to other major markets, asking rates at 830 Brickell are reportedly in the $70’s PSF range. Ken Griffin’s Citadel Securities hedge fund is also reportedly looking at office space in 830 Brickell as is the Chicago-based law firm Baker McKenzie.

The biggest news came when Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted that he had talked with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis about building a tunnel system underneath Miami to eliminate traffic and pollution. Mayor Suarez tweed that “we will do it,” and invited Musk to visit him at City Hall. In the past Miami has had success building tunnels at a comparatively low cost. The initiative would be led by Elon Musk’s Boring Company, who is getting ready to reveal the Vegas Loop to the public, a 4,475’ tunnel loop under the Las Vegas Convention Center. In the Las Vegas Loop passengers will reach speeds up to 155 mph and will ride in Tesla Model X’s, Model 3’s, and a 16-passenger modified Model 3. Las Vegas in now working with the Boring Company to build a citywide network of tunnels.

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Inside The PROFILEmiami Fall Real Estate Showcase & Forum 2018

PROFILEmiami, Miami's leading real estate news platform, hosted its first annual PROFILEmiami Fall Real Estate Showcase & Forum on November 13, 2018. The evening was filled with education and networking, bringing together Miami’s local real estate leaders: top architects, brokers, developers, investors, real estate professionals, luminaries and government officials. The forum featured four informative topic panels including Miami’s Private Use of Public Land, Opportunity Zones, Sustainable Development as well as The Tokenization of Real Estate.

“We choose topics to explore that are having a major effect on Miami real estate today,” said Demetri Demascus, Founder & Publisher of PROFILEmiami. “Our goal is to provide an atmosphere of education where the general public and real estate professionals can learn from some of the leaders in their field as well as have the opportunity to connect with them in person.”

Our panelists for Miami’s Private Use of Public Land featured John Greco, Deputy City Attorney - City of Miami, and Xavier E. Albán, Assistant City Attorney - City of Miami, who explored the process that the city, state and county take when it comes to private developers approaching them about operating on public land.

An Exploration Into Opportunity Zones featured Thomas Volpe, CEO of Sikari Fund, Sheri Colas-Gervais of the Beacon Council, and Miguel Pinto, President & Managing Broker of Apex Capital Realty. The panel introduced the economic incentives of investing in Opportunity Zones in Miami and how to find opportunity zone properties and the tax advantages.

The Sustainable Development panel brought together Jon Cardello, Vice President at Stantec, Martin Pinilla, Managing Partner of Barlington Group, and Jeremy Waks of Oak Ventures and developer of Arbor Coconut Grove, to explore sustainable technologies and design in Miami real estate.

The evening capped off with The Tokenization of Real Estate, which brought together Kim Prior of Shutts & Bowen, Peter Debs of Bitfinance, and Jorge Guerra, President of Miami Association of Realtors; together they explored how tokenizing real estate assets can make access to capital and equity easier, while unlocking secondary liquidity and value for investors. The panels were moderated by Demetri Demascus, Founder & Publisher of PROFILEmiami as well as Katya Demina, Editor of PROFILEmiami.

Thank you to our partners Tesla, Apex Capital Realty, RealDax, BB Capital Group, Hallandale Beacon, Miami Design District, Game Day Skincare and our panelists.

Tesla Introduces New Powerwall Integrated Solar Panels for Homes to Roll-Out This Summer

Tesla has introduced new Solar Panels designed for residential home use which are integrated with their Powerwall home battery storage system. This major shake-up makes Tesla's solar power technology more attainable for those who do not wish to replace their entire roofs. The Solar Panels will be low profile with no visible mounting hardware and front skirts to hide the panels. They link directly into Tesla's Powerwall home battery storage system. Tesla acquired SolarCity last year in a merger that had many skeptical, but since the partnership has been progressing quite nicely as the panels will be available to consumers this summer. 

Tesla Building New Miami Design District Showroom

Construction is moving along at Stardust East, which will feature a brand new, sixth, Tesla showroom in Miami that will be located in the the Miami Design District. The 4,602 SF showroom is designed by Stantec and will feature a lush, garden rooftop. The location required special city approval requested by Miami Design District Associates.