Tricera Capital, LNDMRK and Related Group Break Ground On The Dorsey In Wynwood

The Related Group, Alex Karakhanian’s LNDMRK Development, and Scott Sherman’s Tricera Capital have broken ground on The Dorsey in Wynwood. The Dorsey is a mixed-use project which will rise 12-stories and will feature 306 apartment units; 35,000 SF of retail; 70,000 SF of office and 476 parking spaces. Units will range in size between 500 and 700 square feet with some micro-units in the 400 square foot range. The project was designed by Arquitectonica and will be located along one of the planned Woonerfs as part of Wynwood’s new ArquitectonicaGEO-designed streetscape, which open up space for pedestrians while also allowing car access.

“We are proud to partner with Related and Alex karakanian on this mixed use project in the most dynamic and growing neighborhood in Miami,” said Scott Sherman of Tricera Capital.

The Dorsey will be built at the site of the former Coca Cola plant and was previously owned by Thor Equities and Rockwood Capital who had proposed a Touzet Studio-designed project. The JV, which purchased the 2-acre site in late 2019 for $32 million, demolished existing buildings on the site, some of which were originally built in the late 1920’s including the former Coca Cola plant. The Dorsey will be located at 280 NW 28th Street.

Wynwood's Newest Class-A Kobi Karp-Designed Office Building, The Gateway, Tops Off

The Gateway at Wynwood has just topped off at 13-stories by R&B Realty Group. The project is a Class-A office building in Wynwood’s emerging neighborhood and new office submarket. The Gateway will feature 195,000 sq.ft. of leasable office space, private rooftop terrace and 25,900 sq.ft. of retail space on the ground floor. 

Shelby Rosenberg, Principal of R&B Realty Group, said, “This is one of the most important moments in the construction of a commercial project, especially as we are ahead of schedule amidst the pandemic. We are excited to see The Gateway at Wynwood is a step closer to reality. Our project will contribute to the transformation of Wynwood into a 15-minute city, where people can access their office, home, the grocery store, restaurants, and more within a 15-minute walk. We want to thank the city, the area’s stakeholders, our construction and design team, and all our partners for trusting us and helping The Gateway at Wynwood reach this important milestone.”

Plaza Construction is The Gateway’s general contractor and Kobi Karp is the architect. The 13-story building is estimated to be complete in the second half of 2021 and is currently ahead of schedule. 

"Despite the challenges that COVID-19 has posed across our industry, we are proud to have been able to reach this milestone on time and without incident,” said Brad Meltzer, president of Plaza Construction. "We prioritized the health and safety of all stakeholders with great success, and we look forward to continuing to deliver exemplary construction services to the South Florida market and beyond."

Wynwood is Miami’s newest and emerging office submarket and a hub for creative and innovative businesses. Many well known companies have already re-located office space to Wynwood including Spotify, WeWork, and Live Nation with other big names including Google, Apple Music and Dentsu looking to move into the area.

Stephen Rutchik, Colliers International Florida’s Executive Managing Director who handles office leasing for The Gateway at Wynwood said: “We are actively engaged with prospective tenants that are attracted to Wynwood because of its ‘live, work, play’ environment. This area has become a mecca for art, food, and entertainment just north of downtown Miami. While a few companies are hesitant to sign new leases just now, they do know exactly where they want to be … and that is Wynwood. We expect many of the deals in the pipeline for The Gateway at Wynwood will come to fruition as we get closer to completing the building later next year.”

The Gateway at Wynwood is located at 2916 N Miami Ave, a desirable location just a few minutes away from Downtown Miami, Aventura and Miami Beach. The area is also very close to Miami Internation Airport and PortMiami attracting many visitors and tourists all year round.

West Aventura Developers Proposes Mixed-Use Development In Newly Rezoned Ojus Urban Area District

West Aventura Developers, led by Marina Kessler and Gustavo Lumer, have proposed there mixed-use buildings in the newly rezoned Ojus Urban Area District, just west of Aventura. The area which sits just north of Greynolds Park, was recently rezoned by Miami-Dade county to allow mixed-use development and more density. The 7.9 acre site is located at 2375 NE 186th St.

The proposal includes three buildings designed including an 8-story building with 378 apartment units, 31,375 square feet of retail and 585 parking spaces designed by Corwil Architects; a 12-story building with 114,385 square feet of leasable office space, 16,715 square feet of retail and 552 parking spaces designed by Arquitectonica; the final building would rise 8-stories offering 247 apartment units, 19,160 square feet of retail, 386 parking spaces and a rooftop pool, also designed by Corwil Architects.

Miami Beach Issues Request For Letters Of Interest For Developers To Develop Lincoln Road City Owned Lots

The City of Miami Beach has issued a request for letters of interest from developers to develop three city-owned lots on the north side of Lincoln Road. Miami Beach is seeking a developer to build class A office buildings with on-site parking garages via a public-private partnership with the city with the goal of creating a business district to help diversify Miami Beach’s economy which is heavily reliant on tourism and hospitality. The properties are currently operated as parking lots located at 1664 Meridian Ave., another between Lenox Avenue and Michigan Avenue, and a lot at the southwest corner of 17th Street and Lenox Avenue. The development sites span a total of 3.35 acres can be combined to develop up to 383,439 square feet of office space. Voters would still have to approve any project on city owned land through a referendum. Developers must submit letters of intent by 3 PM on January 11.

Avison Young’s Florida Capital Markets Group Oversees Sale Of Concept II Towers In Lake Worth

Avison Young’s Florida Capital Markets Group has overseen the sale of Concept II Towers in Lake Worth for $10.9 million to local real estate investor Allen Chelminsky. The 6.6-acre complex, located at 2290-2328 10th Ave., features a pair of office towers which were developed in 1985. The recently renovated complex offers a total of 96,674 square feet of office space overlooking Lake Worth. The seller, KAS Lakeworth, was represented Avison Young’s Florida Capital Markets Group lex by David Duckworth, John K. Crotty, Michael T. Fay, Brian C. de la Fé, Emily Brais and Berkley Bloodworth. KAS Lakeworth acquired the property for $7.4 million in 2015.

“The buyer for Concept II Towers secured an outstanding value-add office asset which consistently performed well during the pandemic and increased occupancy to 82.5%,” said Duckworth. “Situated in an ideal central Palm Beach County location with Lake Worth in the midst of revitalization, the property boasts strong in-place cash flows with a synergistic mix of quality medical and professional tenants, and there is and tremendous upside potential through lease-up.” 

“The Concept II Towers sale is a sign of growing investor confidence in the commercial real estate market,” said Crotty. “Many investors are looking to get back to the business of buying assets that fit their overall strategy. The office market remains incredibly resilient, and collection rates are tracking similarly to pre-pandemic levels.” 

Ness Realty Proposes The Gateway Mixed-Use Project In Aventura

An entity tied to Raphael Ammar and Ness Realty have proposed The Gateway, a mixed-use project that would feature office space, retail and a hotel. The developer has filed an Administrative Site Plan Review Application with Miami-Dade County for the 1.35-acre site located at 2630-2600 NE 203rd Street. The developer is seeking a zoning change to move the property entrance from NE 203rd Street to NE 26th Avenue. The property sits across Biscayne Boulevard (US-1) from Aventura Mall, adjacent to Beacon Tower, and is located within the Ojus Urban Area District. There is currently an older office and apartment buildings on the site.

The Gateway is designed by International Design Engineering Architecture (IDEA) and would be built in two phases. The current proposal calls for 100,800 square feet of office space, 7,200 square feet of retail, 21,760 square feet of convention space, 167 hotel rooms and 492 parking spaces. Phase 1 would include the construction of the 6-story office building and Phase 2 would include the 12-story hotel. The Gateway is expected to break ground in Q3 2021 pending approvals and obtaining building permits.

Gatsby Enterprises Acquires DiVosta Towers Office Complex In Palm Beach Gardens For $80 Million

A joint venture led by the New York-based real estate investment firm Gatsby Enterprises has acquired the DiVosta Towers office complex in Palm Beach Gardens for $80 million. Gatsby Enterprises is led by Nadar Shalom and the complex was acquired in partnership with Master Mind LLC, led by Babak Ebrahimzadeh. DiVosta Towers was reportedly 70% leased at the time of sale with tenants including JP Morgan and the law lawfirm Comiter, Singer, Baseman & Braun LLP. The seller was represented by Tony Hollis of Hollis Realty Group. Jon Blunk of Tower Commercial Real Estate will oversee leasing of DiVosta Towers.

DiVosta Towers was the first new office complex to be delivered in Palm Beach in over a decade. Located at 3825-3835 PGA Boulevard., the project was developed by Otto DiVosta and was completed in 2019. The 6.6-acre complex features two 11-story towers topped with iconic white steel pyramid statue structures overlooking The Gardens Mall. DiVosta Towers offers 220,000 square feet of luxury Class A office space and 889 covered parking spaces with a full-time concierge, secure elevator access, 10’ ceilings, floor-to-ceiling impact glass windows, a ground-floor patio with public art and car charging stations. The South Tower features suites ranging from 2,500 - 10,000 square feet while the North Tower offers 10,000 square foot floor-plates for custom tenant build-outs.

Otto DiVosta was the founder of DiVosta Building Corp., which sold in 1998 to Pulte Homes for $155 million. DiVosta acquired the site in 2015 for $8.5 million. Gatsby Enterprises entered the South Florida market in 2019 when they acquired 800 Brickell for $125 million and is currently redeveloping the tower into a modern office building.

Nuveen Brings In Proptech Startup Lane To Manage Waterford Business District In Miami

Nuveen Real Estate­ has announced that they will bring in proptech startup, Lane, to manage the Waterford Business District in Miami. Lane will implement their workplace experience platform and mobile app at Waterford Business District which is one of the most prominent corporate office complexes in the Southeast U.S. Located near Miami International Airport, Waterford houses more than 100 multinational corporations and has one of the highest concentrations of regional and Latin American headquarters in South Florida. Waterford Business District is a joint venture between Nuveen and Allianz Real Estate

“Launching our technology across seven office buildings in the midst of a global pandemic was no small feat, but we were inspired by Nuveen’s commitment to creating a unified workplace culture within the District,” said Clinton J. Robinson, CEO and Co-Founder of Lane. “It’s not every day that you get to help revitalize one of the country’s leading corporate destinations, and we are very proud to help bring the future of work to Waterford.”

“We are excited to put an expanded digital and on-site amenity offering at the fingertips of our tenants,” said Chad Phillips, Managing Director, Head of U.S. Office & Portfolio Manager, Nuveen Real Estate. “We want the professionals in our buildings to have a go-to mobile-friendly source for building announcements, amenities, and programming. The app is also another avenue for tenant feedback. We want to facilitate clear, consistent communication with our tenants, and hear directly from them on how to provide the best workplace experience. This is a part of a programmatic initiative to engage with our tenants both onsite and online. This year we are rolling out tenant engagement apps at nearly 20 office buildings in our U.S. portfolio, with more digitization projects planned for years to come.”

Designed to transform the workplace into a thriving, connected ecosystem, Lane integrates building systems into a single, centralized and user-friendly digital platform. Lane streamlines all aspects of day-to-day office life for tenants and property managers alike, from room bookings and guest registration to maintenance, communications and tenant engagement, all optimized using data to drive insights.

At Waterford Business District, Lane’s web and mobile platform will help streamline per-building and District-wide communications and empower tenants to access new amenities and services with ease, including the free shuttle service, Freebee; bike-share program, Zybra; FlashParking, a smart-parking program exclusively for District tenants; and virtual yoga. 

In the midst of Covid-19, the Lane platform is also helping property teams coordinate efforts for their tenants amid the evolving global health pandemic by managing occupancy through room bookings, ensuring tenants feel safe through surveys and real-time feedback, sharing building and cleaning protocols, safety measures, and other important updates, engaging tenants remotely through virtual content, amenities, and events. 

“Formerly known as Waterford at Blue Lagoon, Waterford has been synonymous with the biggest businesses, not only in Miami, but in the Southeast U.S., for decades,” said Charles Russo, Senior Director, Southeast Regional Head, Office Americas, Nuveen Real Estate. “In 2019, we embraced the office park’s business-focused identity and re-emerged as Waterford Business District. Since then, we have invested significantly in capital improvements focused on setting a new standard as a cutting-edge hub for global business in Florida.” Russo added, “Our strategic partnership with Lane has now allowed us to bring our new amenities and services into one seamlessly connected platform where tenants can access everything the District has to offer from their computer or mobile device.”  

Waterford Business District is home to key players in healthcare, technology, manufacturing, transportation, finance, logistics, hospitality and insurance, as well as numerous local organizations and startups. 

Urban X Group Celebrates Grand Opening Of River Landing Shops & Residences On The Miami River

Urban X Group and the Toronto-based H&R Real Estate Investment Trust have officially celebrated the grand opening of River Landing Shops & Residences, located at 1400 NW River Drive along the Miami River. The announcement comes on the heels of the projects completion earlier this year where the first phase of retailers were allowed to open in May 2020. The ownership team delayed the official grand opening for the project until retailers were more comfortable with the economy in the post-COVID-19 world. The project originally broke ground in March 2017 and cost roughly $425 million to develop.

River Landing Shops & Residences brings in excess of 2.2 million SF of total development to the Miami River including 528 market-rate apartments; 135,000 square feet of office space; 345,000 square feet of retail; and, 2,200 parking spaces. The retail component of the project is currently 70% leased. Retail tenants include Publix, Chase Bank, Planet Fitness, TJ Maxx, AT&T, West Marine, Ross Dress For Less, Burlington Stores, Chick-Fil-A, Old Navy, Ficellas Bakery, Five Below and a Hobby Lobby. The project will also bring a 50’ wide linear park designed by Savino & Miller Design Studio, who is the landscape architect for the project.

Leasing for the office component at River Landing Shops & Residences launched in August 2020 with the first residents moving into the residential component in October. The residential component is managed by Lantower Residential, a subsidiary of H&R REIT.

Record Breaking Class A Office Lease Signed At Yukon Miami In Miami Beach's South of Fifth Neighborhood

The Yukon Miami, a class-A commercial office building at 119 Washington Avenue in Miami Beach’s affluent South of Fifth neighborhood, has shattered office leasing records in Florida despite the Covid-19 pandemic.

J. Goldman & Co., LLP, an independent investment manager, has signed an eight-year lease for 3,318 square feet of office space and a 700-square-foot private, covered terrace for a record-breaking $92 per square foot. This is an expansion for the financial services firm, which had already been leasing 1,223 square feet on the fourth floor. The lease was overseen by The Company Real Estate and The Global Consulting Organization.

“The Yukon Miami, whose office space is now close to 100% occupancy, is an asset that continues to outperform the market, not only in Miami but in the entire state of Florida,” says Cyril Bijaoui, principal and broker of The Company Real Estate, who represented the owner in the transaction and has handled the leasing for the property for the past eight years. “This is truly a building for the discriminating tenant, the top 1%, who appreciates the character and energy of the South of Fifth neighborhood.”  

The 88,148-square-foot Yukon Miami is the only Class-A office building located in the exclusive South of Fifth enclave. In addition to its prime location, the property features an enviable 9,500-square-foot rooftop development opportunity with 360-degree views of the Atlantic Ocean, Miami Beach and Downtown Miami.

Owned by Yantra 119 LLC and managed by Giulio Rangoni and Cinzia Zanella, The Yukon relaunched its sales effort this summer and is being marketed by Amit Egan Datwani, founder and chief consultant of The Global Consulting Organization, and Mr. Bijaoui for $45 million. Final offers for the property are due by Friday, October 2nd. The building’s 9,081-square-foot ground floor retail space has also just hit the market.

“It’s an ideal location to create a restaurant concept that you would expect to experience in either the Design District or at Bal Harbour Shops,” says Mr. Egan Datwani, “a place that could be infused with the early aughts buzz of Pastis in New York, the devout clientele of Joe’s Stone Crab in Miami and the exclusivity of Le Club 55 in St. Tropez.”

“The Yukon Miami presents a visionary investor with the ultimate opportunity to transform a value-add trophy asset into an absolute gem,” adds Mr. Egan Datwani. “This really is the Salvatore Mundi of the real estate world.”