Month: May 2018

Redevelopment of CocoWalk advances as demolition starts on property’s east side

Demolition work is under way on the east side of the CocoWalk complex in Coconut Grove to make way for a five-story office building and street-level retail space. It will be the first new office building to open since 1989 in Coconut Grove, where the office vacancy rate is 1 percent, according to research by Blanca Commercial Real Estate. Construction of the 85,000-square-foot office building, called One…

New Hotel Chain for Digital Nomads Opening Soon in Little Havana Like A Backpackers’ Hostel With Coworking

In September, an outpost of Selina will open in Miami’s Little Havana neighborhood at 1450 SW Seventh Street, the site of the former Tower Hotel. The hospitality company, which already operates 24 locations throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, is like a travelers’ hostel that comes with coworking space and a cool tour guide, designed for today’s globetrotting, Instagram-happy laptop junkies.

33-Year-Old Jon Paul Perez Will Eventually Take Over Related Group. For Now, He’s Transforming Wynwood

33-year-old Jon Paul Perez is the eldest son of Related Group Chairman and CEO Jorge Perez, the so-called “Condo King” of Miami. As a kid raised in South Beach and later Coral Gables, the younger Perez was mildly aware that his dad had transformed South Florida. Jon Paul Perez is learning how to run Related Group. At 33, he already oversees multiple condo projects. “When you’re growing up around it, you…”

Downtown Miami Expected To Undergo Construction Spike: Study

The Magic City has 12 acres of buildable potential in the downtown area, according to a recent study. That puts Miami on par with Los Angeles in terms of available land. The study also predicted that downtown Miami would undergo a construction spike in the years to come. “As with most Floridians, Miami respondents indicated they prefer improved bus transport, better walkability and more bike lanes…”

More Developers, Investors Turning To Parking As An Industrial Product Type

Tom Barbera formed Industrial Outdoor Ventures in January 2017 with one goal: to carve a niche within industrial real estate from truck and trailer lots, container yards and freight terminals. The assets he is considering are parking only — no property on-site beyond maybe some truck repair services — often where access to warehouses is short. Trucks from haulers and shipping and logistics companies can…

JV Kicks Off Work at Coconut Grove Mixed-Use Project

Federal Realty Investment Trust, Grass River Property and Comras Co. have commenced the redevelopment phase of CocoWalk, a retail-driven lifestyle center in Miami’s Coconut Grove submarket. The partnership revealed its plans for CocoWalk in May 2017 and recently kicked off the transformation program of the eastern… with an expected delivery date set for late 2019. Located at 3015 Grand Avenue…

Miami Mayor to Host Quarterly Miami 21 review

Mayor Francis Suarez will host the first quarterly Miami 21 Review and Enhancement Group on June 1. City residents, property owners and development professionals with interests in real estate development in the City of Miami are encouraged to attend. The purpose of the quarterly meeting is to provide a venue for real-time feedback relative to practical application of policies and procedures that affect the…

A Pricey Drafting Error in a Jewelry Store Lease

Many of the topics we cover in this space ultimately come down to problems in drafting (such as here, here, and here).  Of course, these drafting issues aren’t apparent when the parties execute the lease, contract, or other document. A new case about an exculpatory clause (a provision that limits or eliminates the liability of one of the parties to a contract to the other) in a lease is a good example.  In Obsessions…

Deco Capital will again seek approval for mixed-use Sunset Harbour project

Deco Capital Group is returning to the city of Miami Beach seeking approval for its mixed-use project in the Sunset Harbour neighborhood. The developer submitted plans to the Miami Beach Planning Board for a 65,000-square-foot project, which would have more than 20,000 square feet of retail space, 12 residential units and parking. RWN Real Estate Partners, a New York-based private equity…

United States Sailing Center keeps Olympic training site

It wasn’t easy but the United States Sailing Center Inc. was able to keep its piece of the Coconut Grove waterfront for at least another decade. The Florida not-for-profit corporation had campaigned for more time. The US Sailing Center Miami is one of only 18 official US Olympic Training sites sanctioned by the US Olympic Committee, and the only one for sailing in the US. The city is the owner of real…

Miami’s hopes to be a World Cup city rest on a vote in Moscow

Miami-Dade’s hopes to be a World Cup city during the 2026 soccer tournament rest on whether the United Bid Committee (UBC), comprising the US, Canada and Mexico, secures enough votes June 13 to be the host nations. The county’s mayor and commissioners, who voted unanimously in favor of Miami hosting a match, await the votes to see if further action can be taken. On June 13, a day before…

Miracle Mile streetscape wins a thumbs-up

Newly widened sidewalks and updated features along Miracle Mile and Giralda Plaza in Coral Gables are inviting pedestrians to visit their favorite sites and linger long enough to discover new ones. Merchants rate the overall changes positively, with a few recommendations for improvements. The Miracle Mile and Giralda Avenue Streetscape project spans from Douglas to LeJeune roads on the Mile and from…

Shelved condo projects shrink pipeline of new construction in Miami, Fort Lauderdale: report

Miami’s preconstruction inventory is shrinking, thanks in part to a handful of canceled or paused projects, a new report shows. About 83 percent or 16,714 of the roughly 20,000 units in the pipeline were presold as of April, according to the ISG Miami Report. While the percentage is up from the 80 percent that ISG reported last May, the total pipeline shrunk by about 3,200 units. ISG surveys the sales…

Contractor sues owner of bayfront Edgewater tower for $6.5 million in allegedly unpaid work

The contractor tasked with completing a $7 million renovation of a luxury apartment tower in Edgewater is alleging it was only paid a pittance, and is owed nearly the full amount for unpaid construction work. Sierra Commercial Construction is suing Properties of Hamilton Inc., the owner of the Hamilton on the Bay at 555 Northeast 34th Street. State records show the Hamilton company is controlled by…

Where we’re going, we don’t need drivers: Developers pushing for driverless tech

Developers across the country are pitching their mixed-use developments as incubators for driverless-car technology, which they hope could allow them to pack in more product. Developers are hoping that autonomous vehicles will free up space now allocated to parking spaces for other uses like residential and commercial. And some institutional investors are paying close attention to how ride-sharing…

City Of Miami Population Up 15.6% Since 2010, The Sixth Most In Nation

Thousands of new residents moved into the City of Miami again last year, according to newly released Census data. Since 2010, the city’s population has increased at the sixth fastest rate of any big city in America, at 15.6%. As of July 1 2017, the city’s population was estimated at 463,347. That is an increase of 1.47% over the year before, when it was 456,632 (from 2015 to 2016 the increase was 2.9%…

London-based Chotto Matte Opens on Miami Beach, Other Restaurant News

Developer Craig Menin and restaurateur Dennis Max are planning a massive, 30,000-square-foot food hall in Delray Beach. The developers will submit proposals for Delray City Market next month, according to SouthFlorida.com. The food hall will have 30 vendors with about 400 square feet each in the ground floor retail space of a building planned for 33 Southeast Third Street. Menin Development’s…

Miami adviser: Sea-level rise may inflate federal flood insurance premiums by 2021

Premiums charged by FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program might surge in two to three years if they start to reflect the risk of sea level rise, according to the chairman of the Miami city government’s task force on rising seas. The cost of flood insurance could double in two to three years if the FEMA program starts assessing the risk of sea level rise in setting premiums, said Miami attorney Wayne…

A frontrunner for Amazon’s HQ2 seems to be emerging

If it weren’t enough of a giveaway that Amazon has got serious designs on the capital, what with shortlisting three cities in the Washington metro area in its search for its new home for its second headquarters, even more evidence has emerged that seems to be hinting towards a winner in the vicinity. According to Business Insider, Northern Virginia’s reputation for housing data centers–it is…

Construction phase of the old Fashion Mall’s redevelopment may start soon

Construction of an eight-story building with rental apartments and retail space may start soon at the old Fashion Mall property in Plantation. It will be the first of three new buildings on the former site of the Fashion Mall, which closed in 2007 and was demolished last year. Encore Housing Opportunity Fund, led by developer Art Falcone, acquired the Fashion Mall for $37.7 million in a 2015 bankruptcy…

Fire and Hurricane Irma ravaged the Deauville Beach Resort, but owners won’t make repairs, Miami Beach officials say

Ten months after a fire shut down the Deauville Beach Resort in Miami Beach, followed by water damage caused Hurricane Irma, city leaders want to force the owners of the historic Miami Modern-style building to speed up renovations and repairs. The city commission’s land use committee this week directed Miami Beach City Manager Jimmy Morales to devise an aggressive action plan — including the…

A conversation with Kimco Realty’s David Jamieson

The stock market hasn’t been kind to REITs lately, and open-air shopping center operator Kimco Realty is no exception. Shares have fallen about 36 percent over the past 12 months, according to its Q1 2018 earnings report. Yet other metrics show that the New York-based company, which owns interests in 475 open-air shopping centers in the U.S., is otherwise doing quite nicely. Occupancy rates of its…

Alex Karakhanian buys Wynwood building leased to GoPro, Scripps Network

Alex Karakhanian’s Lndmrk Development paid $12.2 million for a commercial property in Wynwood. Property records show Forte Capital Management affiliate New Wynwood 25 and other companies tied to Forte’s Chaim Cahane sold the 20,730-square-foot office and retail building at 48 Northwest 25th Street for nearly $590 per square foot. It last sold for $5.3 million in 2013, according to property records.

Who Will Bankroll the $4B American Dream Miami?

Now that American Dream Miami has the blessing of county commissioners, the question becomes: How will the developer pay for the $4 billion behemoth? Triple Five Worldwide officials are revealing little about financing for the 5 million-square-foot planned mega mall and entertainment center, except to say that it likely will involve multiple lenders, similar to American Dream Meadowlands. For that sister…

After Hurricane Irma, officials approve $43.6M for Miami restoration

The bulk of the funding comes from FEMA-approved grants. The City of Miami is one step closer to being awarded funds to help restore countless of parks and facilities that were damaged by Hurricane Irma. Today, the Miami City Commission approved a resolution that authorizes the city to accept $34,193,228 in grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and $9,429,373 from an insurance…

Public money in play for park to combat sea level rise at Crescent Heights 5th and Alton development site

Some Miami Beach commissioners are open to the idea of using taxpayer dollars to buy a portion of Crescent Height’s Alton Road redevelopment site between 5th and 7th streets to build a park that combats sea level rise. Any acquisition would be part of a deal in which Russell Galbut’s Crescent Heights would still be allowed to build one of the tallest residential towers in South Beach. The Miami…

Following Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods, competitors are wondering what’s next for the notoriously secretive e-tailer

Ask any broker who’s dealt with Amazon to tell you what it was like, and they’ll present you with an airtight nondisclosure agreement prohibiting them from speaking. “Under the radar” doesn’t even begin to describe the company’s ultra-discreet approach to its real estate deals, especially as it’s bought up, or leased, more and more property with each passing year. Second only to Apple as the world’s most…

Developers could make bank from rollback of Dodd-Frank

Nearly a decade after bad real estate loans helped thrust the U.S. economy into a major recession, the House of Representatives passed a bill to roll back a number of regulations for banks. The changes, experts said, could become a catalyst for increased commercial real estate lending, opening up many new sources of funding to developers. On Tuesday, the House voted 258-159 in favor of a bipartisan…

South Florida Broker on Bubbies, Bubbas and Brightline

In the 1970s, Neil Merin was making $160 a week running a production line for a toy manufacturer in the Northeast when he quit to move to Palm Beach County for a property manager position that paid 10 percent more. The new gig would be short-lived. “The company I went to work for down here went out of business six months after I joined, so I went and got a real estate license and started…”

Beaker & Gray owners to open BoomBox in former Bardot site in Midtown

The owners of Beaker & Gray have signed a lease to open a new bar and lounge called BoomBox at Bardot’s former site in Midtown Miami. BoomBox will open in a 3,264-square-foot space at 3452 North Miami Avenue late this summer, Marc Sirkin of Engel & Voelkers told The Real Deal. Sirkin and Asi Cymbal of Cymbal Realty represented the owner of the building, North Miami Avenue LLC, led by…

In this video from America’s Commercial Real Estate Show, Jeremy Cohen of leading commercial real estate law firm Hartman Simons discusses commercial real estate legal trends in retail properties. Among the topics that are discussed are the ICSC RECon 2018, new trends in retail and mixed-use development, changes in leases and lease clauses, parking related challenges, and trends in retail property operations

Triple Five’s $4 Billion American Dream Miami Project Wins Final Approval from County Officials

American Dream Miami will be a massive mall and entertainment center in northwestern Miami-Dade County. The first phase is expected to open in 2023.  Make way for American Dream Miami. The Miami-Dade County Commission did just that Thursday, granting a series of approvals for the mammoth mall and entertainment center after roughly nine hours of debate. The $4 billion development, to be built…

Miami Gardens Shopping Complex Fetches $12 Million

Macken Cos. has completed the $11.9 million sale of Palmetto Design Plaza, a 62,500-square-foot shopping complex in Miami Gardens, Fla. Rise Star LLC acquired the seven-acre property, which hit the market in the fall of 2017. According to public records, the seller was Palmetto Design Center LLC, an entity affiliated with Macken Cos. Located at 3791 NW 167th Street, the shopping center is anchored by…

US Shopping Center Demand Falls to Six-Year Low as Net Absorption Declines and Store Closures Pile Up

Demand growth for mall and shopping center space by retailers fell to its lightest level in six years in the first quarter of 2018 as retailers continued to focus on their top-performing locations and shed marginal stores, with announced store closures totaling nearly 100 million square feet so far this year alone. The balancing act was reflected in the first quarter 2018 U.S. retail vacancy rate, which at 4.6% was…

PCCP Shells Out $127 Million for Miami Downtown Miami Office Tower

The $127 million sale of SunTrust International Center, a nearly 450,000-square-foot, Class A office tower in downtown Miami, sold. PCCP acquired the asset from Crocker Partners, while Invesco Real Estate provided $101.8 million in acquisition financing. Located at 1 SE 3rd Avenue, the LEED Silver certified property was completed in 1973 and recently underwent a $13.5 million renovation program. Amenities…

Video: Bainbridge Companies VP/COO Kevin Keane Bainbridge Discusses Multifamily Properties for 2018

In this America’s Commercial Real Estate Show episode, Bainbridge Vice President and Chief Operating Office Kevin Keane discusses the multifamily sector, including demand drivers, development trends, regional trends, technology for units, issues with affordability, community access points, parking, ride share, labor shortage, construction costs, and rising rates. The Bainbridge Companies, founded…

Video: CCIM Institute Chief Economist KC Conway Bullish on U.S. Economy

In this video, KC Conway, Chief Economist at the CCIM Institute, joins the show host to discuss – if one could refer to such bubbling with enthusiasm as discussing – the U.S. economic state, including job market growth, home building affected by economy, interest rate volatility, net operating income (NOI) concerns, monthly jobs reports, truth of the retail sector, potential political big impacts on United…

Opposition mounts against Brightline’s pursuit of more than $1B in bonds

Phase two of Brightline’s Miami-to-Orlando train service is off to a bumpy start. Members of Florida’s congressional delegation are discussing whether project is eligible for $1.15 billion in tax-exempt bonds that the project’s parent company All Aboard Florida is seeking for the northern expansion of the service to Orlando. All Aboard received $600 million in private activity bonds for the first phase of the…

Mount Sinai Medical Center plans two major fall openings

A new surgical tower and emergency department at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach are on track to be completed by the end of November. Construction on a free-standing emergency department in Hialeah, also owned by Mount Sinai, is expected to be completed by the end of October, a delay by several months from the original expected opening period of this summer. Except for…

Dolphin Expressway getting double-decker elevated Viaduct

A new project on the Dolphin Expressway – State Road 836 – could improve access and alleviate congestion by creating a double-decker elevated bridge over the existing highway, tentatively named the Viaduct, along one of Miami’s most crowded thoroughfares. The project, funded by $186 million in toll revenue from the Miami Expressway Authority (MDX), is intended to modernize the 836 corridor between…

Study: What to Do with All the Vacant Land in Miami and Other Major US CBDs?

We combed Yardi Matrix and PropertyShark data, as well as online government records to determine the amount of land that currently remains undeveloped in the urban cores (CBDs) of 25 American cities: Atlanta, Ga.; Austin, Texas; Buffalo, N.Y.; Chicago, Ill.; Cincinnati, Ohio; Dallas, Texas; Houston, Texas; Indianapolis, Ind.; Kansas City, Mo.; Las Vegas, Nev.; Los Angeles, Calif.; Miami, Florida…

Renovations on Flagler Street delayed once again

Directors of Miami’s Downtown Development Authority have once again voted to delay the resumption of renovations on Flagler Street, this time for 30 days. But some signaled that they are getting weary of the postponements. “How much longer are we going to drag this out?” asked board member Alicia Cervera, managing partner of Cervera Real Estate. “I’ve had it. These things are devastating to the…”

Terra and AvalonBay buy Doral office park for mixed-use development

Terra and AvalonBay Communities just paid $33.5 million for a development site in Doral. The developers acquired the Atrium Office Park and adjacent restaurant at 3900 Northwest 79th Avenue in Doral, across the street from CityPlace Doral. Avalon Doral LLC paid $20 million for 4.6 acres of the site and Doral Atrium Retail Investments paid $13.5 million for the remaining 5.2 acres, property records show.

Crescent Heights to go before Miami Beach board for 5th and Alton tower

One of Miami Beach’s most controversial development plans is up for discussion again. Developer Russell Galbut will go before the Miami Beach Land Use and Development Committee on Wednesday for the site at Fifth Street and Alton Road. A rally is planned in opposition. Galbut, co-founder of Crescent Heights, is proposing three options for the 85,348-square-foot block, in exchange for…

The Long View: Why real estate tech won’t kill the middleman

Revolutions tend to promise one thing and deliver another. Think of the Jacobins paving the way for Napoleon, the Soviets toppling one autocracy only to ultimately replace it with another, or anti-corruption crusader Hugo Chavez building an empire of graft in Venezuela. Turns out this maxim also applies to real estate technology. Not too long ago, it seemed like the real estate business was about to enter…

Miami Beach Considers Annexing Scandal-Plagued North Bay Village

Since revelations surfaced last year of a blackmail plot against a commissioner with an undisclosed arrest for cocaine in his past, scandal after scandal has rocked tiny North Bay Village, a two-island town on the 79th Street Causeway. Now Miami Beach Commissioner Ricky Arriola is proposing a dramatic fix: He wants his city to take over the troubled village. “Frankly, North Bay Village residents that I’ve…”

Biscayne Bay Brewing to open at historic post office in downtown Miami

Biscayne Bay Brewing is opening a second location in a historic building in downtown Miami. The brewery, based in Doral at 8000 Northwest 25th Street, is opening a 6,200-square-foot brewery and taproom at the Old United States Post Office and Courthouse building, at 100 Northeast First Avenue. It’s slated to open this winter, according to a spokesperson. Stambul USA, led by Daniel Peña…

Apollo Provides $140 Million Refi for Miami Beach’s Faena District

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance has provided a $140 million floating-rate loan to Len Blavatnik’s Access Industries to refinance the Faena Group-developed Faena District properties in Miami Beach, Fla., Commercial Observer can first report. The Faena District—between 32nd and 36th Street on Collins Avenue—is the creation of Argentine developer Alan Faena and totals more than 1 million square feet…

South Florida commercial insurance rates ‘dodged bullet’

South Florida’s commercial insurance rates have “dodged a bullet” after weathering a series of natural disasters. It was expected for rates to spike from 10% to 25% in 2018, but after the first quarter, the increases weren’t what was assumed during a busy storm season. Instead, Miami is seeing 5% to 10% increases. Over the past five years there have been “bargain prices” where South Florida has seen…

New Hotel for Grove’s Commodore Plaza

The parking lot next to Greenstreet Cafe is slated to become a hotel. But nothing has been finalized yet and the announcement may be premature. The Arts & Minds school property has also been sold. Talk is that an office building is going in there. The hotel is called Commodore Place, located at 3102 Commodore Plaza. From their website: “Commodore Place is a new mixed-use edifice planned for…”

Cleaning up after Toys “R” Us

Retail real estate these days can seem like a choose-your-own-adventure of sorts, with a variety of plausible story lines for all the players involved. Pivot to be experiential? Yes. Rebrand? Yup. Relaunch online? Affirmative. Chapter 11? Check. This last ending — filing for bankruptcy — is among the most prevalent plot lines, affecting not just retailers but landlords, brokers and lenders. And it is certainly…

Partying and excess remain fixtures of ICSC, even as some companies opt for modest events

Looking out from a booth in the Wynn nightclub Intrigue, it was difficult to ignore a man on stilts dressed as a tree bounding between the aisles. From up there, the view certainly spelled excess: women dancing on podiums and a crowd of real estate folk bumping and bopping to a top 40 playlist. The party at the nightclub Sunday night set the tone of what was to come on the inevitable party circuit that…

Duane Morris Opts for Smaller Miami Office in Move to Citigroup Center

Duane Morris is moving its downtown Miami office from the Southeast Financial Center to a smaller space at the nearby Citigroup Center, a relocation that reflects a national trend toward smaller law firm workspaces. Duane Morris is moving in September when its long-term, $16.8 million lease of the 34th floor penthouse begins at 201 S. Biscayne Blvd., offering views of Biscayne Bay, Bayfront Park and…

Faena District in Miami Beach scores $140 million refi

Len Blavatnik’s Access Industries secured a $140 million loan to refinance the Faena District in Miami Beach. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance is providing the floating-rate loan, according to the Commercial Observer. The financing is backed by the Faena Hotel Miami Beach, Casa Faena hotel, the Faena Hotel Residences, the Faena Forum, the Faena Bazaar and the retail and parking.

Miami’s hotel fortunes a tale of two years

Across the street from The Palm restaurant and across the bay from the Bal Harbour Shops is the Grand Beach Hotel Bay Harbor. Its position, between a carnivore’s bliss and a temple to the monied set, embodies the northern reaches of Miami Beach: relaxed, well heeled, traditional. In a city of disparate submarkets, Bal Harbour and the contiguous Surfside are respite from the more raucous South Beach.

Is Hialeah “the next big thing” for real estate investment in SoFla?

Hialeah is hot. The city has been experiencing a surge in real estate investment, bolstering its reputation as an industrial hub while also identifying it as a more welcoming place for multifamily and commercial construction following recent moves to encourage development.
But investors drawn to cheaper land prices and those who may be looking to make a quick buck on a flip could find it difficult…

Video: Baird’s Michael Bellisario on top line growth for hotels and hospitality

On this episode of America’s Commercial Real Estate Show, Michael Bellisario, Vice President and Senior Analyst at Baird, joins host Michael Bull to discuss the hospitality sector, including sector health, place in the cycle, top line growth, employment, leisure and business travel trends, year-to-date performance, land cost, tips for new construction, renovation costs, tax reform impacts, property level value…

Construction starts on 187 apartments near Florida International University

A 187-unit apartment building that will cater to college students is under construction near Florida International University. TD Bank made a $55.04 million loan to finance construction of the rental property at 400 Southwest 107 Avenue in Sweetwater. The borrower is an affiliate of CA Ventures of Chicago, led by CEO Tom Scott, and the development is called The Residence at University City. CA Ventures…

Video: The Hospitality Group’s President Tom French Discusses Whether it is Time to Sell hotels?

On this episode of America’s Commercial Real Estate Show, Tom French, President of The Hospitality Group, joins host Michael Bull to discuss the hospitality / lodging sector. Among the topics discussed are sector health, RevPAR (revenue per available room) trends, buyer and seller cycle concerns, investor opportunities that may exist, hospitality property market trends, developments in hotel financing…

Moishe Mana’s not done yet, picks up downtown Miami building for $13 million

Moishe Mana’s portfolio of properties in downtown Miami keeps growing. The investor and developer just paid $12.9 million for a two-story retail and office building at 201 East Flagler Street. The deal brings his total spent in downtown Miami to nearly $285 million. Mika Mattingly and Cecilia Estevez of Colliers International South Florida represented Mana in the deal.

Miami Beach to request proposals for a new convention center hotel — once again

The Miami Beach City Commission voted unanimously this week to issue a request for proposal for developers to submit designs and bids for a convention center hotel. The hotel would be built on the same site that a previous hotel design was proposed in 2016, which was ultimately turned down by voters. But under the new request for proposal, the hotel would be a third smaller than the previous design.

Treasury issues new LLC disclosure law

The Treasury Department has re-upped rules meant to crack down on money laundering in real estate — but don’t ask Uncle Sam for details. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has released another set of rules requiring title companies to disclose the identity of all-cash buyers who purchase luxury property under the guise of an LLC, sources told The Real Deal. But FinCEN has…

American Dream Miami wins county commission approval

Make way for American Dream Miami. The Miami-Dade County Commission did just that Thursday, granting a series of approvals for the mammoth mall and entertainment center after roughly nine hours of debate. The $4 billion development, to be built on 174 acres at Interstate 75 and Florida’s Turnpike in northwest Miami-Dade, will have more than 5 million square feet or retail and entertainment…

Okan Group launches Miami tower with fireworks display at PAMM

Hundreds of brokers, attorneys, bankers and industry insiders waited in a line that snaked around the entrance to the Pérez Art Museum Miami last week to celebrate the launch of Okan Tower, a new mixed-use tower planned for Miami’s Arts & Entertainment District. The developer, Bekir Okan of the Turkey-based Okan Group, hosted the soirée on the top floor of PAMM with drinks and hor d’oeuvres…

Developer plans mixed-use hotel for Coconut Grove lot next to GreenStreet Cafe

Metronomic Inc. is under contract to buy the parking lot next to the popular GreenStreet Cafe in Coconut Grove, where the developer is planning to build an Aloft hotel. Metronomic, led by Ricky Trinidad, will pay $4.8 million, or about $670 per square foot, for the nearly 7,200-square-foot lot at 3110 Commodore Plaza, broker Miguel Pinto said. The Coral Gables-based developer is expected to close on…

Miami Beach shelves plan to raise roads amid opposition from North Bay Road residents

The Miami Beach City Commission voted down a plan to elevate North Bay Road amid growing concerns from residents that it could ruin their property values and lead to flooding on their properties. The contentious move could delay the project for close to six years since the Florida Department of Transportation plans to start its Alton Road project in 2021. While Alton Road is under construction, drivers…

Retailers Finding a New Home in South Florida

One out of every 10 new multifamily developments throughout South Florida is now incorporating at least some retail space into its design. While this is also common in condominium and office developments, the trend of incorporating retail, and even small amounts of office space, in residential developments seems to be increasing in the market. In the Downtown Miami submarket specifically, 180,000…

Luxe condo breaks ground in Coconut Grove, nearly 50 percent sold

The 23-unit residency held its groundbreaking ceremony on May 10. Glasshaus in the Grove, Miami’s sexiest new boutique condominium, broke ground May 10. Located in Bayshore Village near Millionaire’s Row, the boutique project is walking distance from marinas, parks, shops, and restaurants. Glasshaus in the Grove, is a ‘livable residence’ that mixes outdoor and green space that evokes the tropics.

Silvia Coltrane, partners add condos to mixed-use North Beach hotel project

Miami Beach developer Silvia Coltrane is proposing changes to her North Beach hotel project, including adding condos to the mixed-use development. Coltrane’s 72+ Collins Hotel falls within the North Beach Town Center district. The Miami Beach Commission voted on Wednesday to pass an ordinance on second reading increasing the floor area ratio for the properties between 69th Street, Collins…

Developer of Ritz-Carlton Residences, Miami Beach sued over construction delays

Three condo buyers are suing the developer of the Ritz-Carlton Residences, Miami Beach over the project’s construction delays, seeking to get their deposits refunded. Since March, three separate civil lawsuits have been filed in Miami-Dade County Circuit Court against 4701 North Meridian LLC, which is a partnership between Ophir Sternberg’s Lionheart Capital and Elliott Management Corp. The three lawsuits…

In this America’s Commercial Real Estate Show episode, Bainbridge Vice President and Chief Operating Office Kevin Keane discusses the multifamily sector, including demand drivers, development trends, regional trends, technology for units, issues with affordability, community access points, parking, ride share, labor shortage, construction costs, and rising rates. The Bainbridge Companies, founded in 1993, is a leading owner, developer and manager of luxury multifamily apartment communities in the Eastern United States. A fully-integrated family of real estate companies, it is engaged in the development, construction, management and acquisition of residential and commercial real estate.

In this video, KC Conway, Chief Economist at the CCIM Institute, joins the show host to discuss – if one could refer to such bubbling with enthusiasm as discussing – the U.S. economic state, including job market growth, home building affected by economy, interest rate volatility, net operating income (NOI) concerns, monthly jobs reports, truth of the retail sector, potential political big impacts on United States economy, commercial real estate regulations by the Fed, and predictions for economic trajectory. The CCIM Institute is an influential commercial real estate related professional organization.

Commercial real estate investors interested in this topic should also check out the post Handicapping the End of the Economic Recovery for Commercial Real Estate Investors. It succingtly considers the possibility and timing of a recession and provides a number of links to help investors gain the information necessary to develop or refine their own opinions.