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L&L, Oak Row Land New Tenants, Start Construction On 1M SF Wynwood Plaza

Developers broke ground on The Wynwood Plaza on Thursday, a 1M SF mixed-used project that is the largest yet in Miami’s Arts District.

The Wynwood Plaza at 95 Northwest 29th St. is being developed by L&L Holding Co. and Oak Row Equities, which acquired the site — where the former Rubell Museum once stood — in December 2021 for $53M. California developer Shorenstein Properties and Claure Group, the family office of former SoftBank and Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure, joined the project as partners.

The development team held a groundbreaking ceremony Thursday evening commemorating the start of construction after securing a $215M loan from Bank OZK, according to a press release.

“Recognizing the need to create something of lasting value to Miami, we assembled an all-star team capable of cultivating an environment that is every bit as unique, artistic and sophisticated as the colorful neighborhood that surrounds it,” L&L co-founders David Levinson and Robert Lapidus said in a joint statement.

When it opens, which is expected to be in 2025, the Gensler-designed Wynwood Plaza will feature a 509-unit apartment building, 32K SF of retail, 6,600 SF of outdoor dining and a half-acre public plaza designed by renowned landscape architecture firm James Corner Field Operations, which designed Brickell’s Underline and Manhattan’s High Line.

 

Source:  Bisnow

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Intervest Seeks to Convert Historic Miami Beach Rental into Hotel

According to a document submitted to the city’s Historic Preservation Board, an Oklahoma-based investor wants to transform a historic apartment building in Miami Beach into a boutique hotel.

The 1926 construction of the 56-unit rental building in the Mediterranean Revival style is located at 337 20th Street, one block south of the Bass Museum. Eight years after investing $11.8 million in the 34,979-square-foot structure, Intervest Properties is requesting permission to convert it into a 76-room hotel.

According to Intervest’s attorney Michael Larkin, who did not immediately respond to Commercial Observer’s request for comment, the proposed plans will maintain a large portion of the three-story building’s exterior and interior, keeping “at least 75% of the front and street wide walls” and “at least 66 percent of the remaining interior side walls.” This complies with the district’s historic redevelopment regulations.

The rooftop will have a deck with a pool and a garden.

The Miami Beach Historic Preservation Board will hear the bid March 14.

 

Source:  Commercial Observer

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Wynwood Business Improvement District Marks Decade Of Success

The Wynwood Business Improvement District (BID) is the largest one of its kind in Florida.

It covers a 50-city-block neighborhood that has experienced an exciting transformation that has taken it from an abandoned industrial zone to a bustling arts and nightlife destination and, more recently, a desirable location for new office and residential development and now a major new hotel from the world-renowned Arlo brand. This spring, the Wynwood BID, which began in 2013, is up for a recertification vote by all property owners within its boundaries.

BIDs function as special tax districts that allow for an additional assessment to support initiatives and programs that governments cannot fully cover. In addition to Wynwood, they have been successful locally in places such as Miami Beach, Coconut Grove and Coral Gables, and other major cities like New York.

In partnership with area businesses, owners, developers and residents, working with the City of Miami, the Wynwood BID has been a significant catalyst in the neighborhood’s growth, improving quality of life, and in ongoing synergies between new investors, and existing businesses and cultural venues.

“We are excited to work with our area property owners to recertify the BID,” said Manny Gonzalez, long-time executive director of the Wynwood Business Improvement District.

“The district has entered a new phase, with the ongoing expansion of residential and office capacity that did not exist previously. The BID is embracing change like urban planning and landscape design while also working to maintain Wynwood’s place as an appealing cultural destination and creative center.”

Today, Wynwood garners 10.3 million visits annually, supports 5,000 jobs and generates more than 20 percent of the City of Miami’s parking transactions. The BID represents more than 400 property owners who continue to believe in the neighborhood’s appeal and the wisdom of investing in infrastructure enhancements, safety initiatives, forward-thinking planning and destination branding that are key to the BID’s work.

In the arts, Wynwood continues to thrive and be the home of the iconic Wynwood Walls, the Museum of Graffiti, the Margulies Collection, Mana Wynwood, and many more. The neighborhood remains a center for unique retail, restaurant and nightlife businesses, including Zak the Baker, 1-800-Lucky, Gramps and UNKNWN. Annual special events such as Miami Art Week, Miami Music Week and Wynwood Pride fill the community with pedestrian traffic and excitement.

Major developments include the recent opening of the Arlo Wynwood hotel and The Dorsey and upcoming projects such as The NoMad Residences and The Wynwood Plaza. Companies committing to office space in Wynwood include Founders Fund, Spotify, Technology SA Blockchain.com and Pricewaterhouse Coopers.

The BID itself runs numerous initiatives for safety and cleanliness, including state-of-the-art interactive outdoor digital kiosks, neighborhood-wide security cameras and a dedicated Clean Street Team.

“Wynwood is a great community to invest in, to visit, and to work and live in, and the BID looks forward to being part of the district’s story for years to come,” Gonzalez concluded.

 

Source: Community Newspapers

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Related Group’s Nick Perez On Wynwood’s Transformation And The Future Of Development In This Burgeoning Neighborhood

The Wynwood Arts District, famously known for its striking graffiti walls and vibrant arts and entertainment scenes, is now one of Miami’s most desirable places to live, work and play, with some of the biggest names in tech, dining, fashion and hospitality setting up shop in the neighborhood.

Leading this charge is real estate powerhouse, Related Group, the first developer to enter Wynwood in 2019 with the area’s first ground-up rental community, Wynwood 25, and the firm behind the premier Class-A office building, Wynwood Annex.

Now, Related is betting big on the future of Wynwood’s luxury residential market with NoMad Residences Wynwood, the first hospitality-infused condominium from the iconic brand, NoMad Hotels.

PROFILEmiami had the opportunity to speak with Related Group’s Senior Vice President Nick Pérez to learn more about this exciting new development and what the future holds for the area.

PROFILEmiami (PM): What initially attracted Related Group to Wynwood?

Nick Pérez (NP): JP Pérez, the President of the Related Group, initially convinced our father, Jorge Pérez, to enter the Wynwood neighborhood, which has been one of our most successful plays to date. When Related chose to build Wynwood 25, our first large-scale rental development in the neighborhood, we were impressed by the art district’s popularity with locals and tourists alike. We recognized that while millions of people were visiting Wynwood each year, there were no existing large-scale residential communities that catered to locals. It was this lack of quality housing supply that compelled us to deliver Wynwood 25, which opened four years ago, and has since ignited a wave of residential development that has transformed the area into one of the hottest rental markets in the county.

Thanks to JP’s visionary foresight, our bet paid off in a big way and today we are the single most active developer in Wynwood. Related alone has a total portfolio, including units completed and under development, of more than 1,250 luxury rental apartments in the neighborhood. Similar to our rental projects, we hope that the NoMad Residences Wynwood will set an example for other condominium developers to follow. Not only are we creating a high-quality building that our buyers will be proud to call home, but we are incorporating a wealth of food and beverage options that will be open to the public and contribute to Wynwood’s dynamic community.

We’re exceptionally proud of the progress we’ve made to date and look forward to the building’s groundbreaking later this year.

PM: Talk to us more about NoMad Residences Wynwood. How did the project come to be?

NP: As one of the pioneers behind the branded residences trend in Miami, we recognized the potential for a partnership with a reputable hospitality brand to envision a new type of condominium offering in Wynwood. The philosophy behind NoMad Hotels is grounded in the idea of the hotel as a great home, which spoke to us as residential developers. The brand’s expertise in creating and activating artfully-lived spaces made it the ideal partner for this project.

Furthermore, the NoMad New York was credited for transforming Manhattan’s North of Madison enclave into one of the city’s most in-demand neighborhoods, and we feel strongly that the NoMad Residences Wynwood will further contribute to Wynwood’s incredible evolution, leading it to become one of Miami’s most inspired and sought-after destinations.

We developed NoMad Residences Wynwood in partnership with New York-based Tricap and collaborated with our globally-renowned design partners, DesignAgency and Arquitectonica. In addition to a full suite of resort-style amenities, the nine-story building will include two signature food and beverage offerings that will be open to the public, including the rooftop restaurant and mixology bar, The NoMad Bar. On NoMad Wynwood’s ground floor, residents and the community can enjoy a Casa Tua Cucina, an expansive open-kitchen concept offering simple, yet expertly crafted Italian and Mediterranean fare.

PM: Wynwood is rapidly transforming into Miami’s tech epicenter. How have Related’s properties contributed to this growth?

NP: In the wake of the pandemic, Wynwood became a major hub for innovators within the tech and finance spaces, including Founders Fund, Atomic Venture Capital and Live Nation Entertainment, which opened offices at The Annex.

The range of forthcoming hospitality and residential offerings, including the Arlo Hotel, Moxy Hotel and the Related communities, will cater to the needs of this growing workforce, much of which is looking to put down roots in the neighborhood.

In fact, this growing tech population paired with the highly regarded NoMad brand has directly translated into robust sales activity at NoMad Residences Wynwood. More than 50% of the building’s 329 fully-furnished homes are already in contract, including one priced at roughly $2,000 per square foot, which shattered neighborhood price records.

PM: Why is the neighborhood attractive to companies wanting to open an office in Miami?

NP: South Florida has experienced tremendous population growth in recent years as many people relocated from New York City, Chicago, Atlanta and parts of Texas.

Wynwood is unique in that it offers a highly creative environment with proximity to the Miami Design District, Midtown and Miami Beach, making it an ideal location for companies looking to tap into the city’s diverse business and cultural communities. The neighborhood is home to acclaimed art galleries, luxury boutiques and Michelin-star and five-star restaurants, all of which contribute to its appeal.

Source:  Profile Miami

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One-Acre Office Building Dev Site In Aventura Trades For $10 Million

MG3 Group bought a development site in Aventura in a bet on the city’s growth as an office market.

MG3 paid $10 million for the assemblage at 21001 Biscayne Boulevard near Aventura Hospital, according to records and real estate database Vizzda. The firm plans to include medical office space in its project.

The deal breaks down to $9.5 million per acre.

Selling entity Jewish Outreach Center is tied to the Aventura Chabad based in the building immediately east of the purchased site. It had paid $781,800 for the land and other lots in 2019, records show.

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AT&T Could Sell Miami Beach Site To Developer

AT&T has sold an old BellSouth telecom site in Miami Beach to developers to build a condo.

The city’s Design Review Board will consider the application for the 24,800-square-foot lot at 6940 Abbot Ave. on March 8. Dallas-based AT&T agreed to sell the property to 6940 North Beach LLC, co-owned by Eduardo Otaola of Constellation Group and Jose Boschetti of Boschetti Group. Otaola said another co-owner in the deal is Rainer Viete of Vietmar.

Otaola noted the land is in Miami Beach’s North Beach Town Center district, which has a quicker development approval process. The project could receive final approval before the DRB on March 8, he said.

Otaola said his team recently acquired the property for $5.5 million. The deed has yet to appear in county records.

The site plan calls for a 10-story building totaling 134,573 square feet with 96 condos, 2,192 square feet of retail and 90 parking spaces. There would be a lobby on the ground floor with coworking space and a rooftop amenity area featuring a pool, a fitness center and a pickleball court.

Otaola said he’s also considering an in-house golf cart that would transport residents to the beach three blocks to the east.

The condos would range from 437-square-foot studios to 1,030 square feet with two bedrooms.

Otaola said the condos would start for under $1 million. He’s still working on a branding concept. His team is likely to permit short-term rentals in the building. The North Beach Town Center district permits short-term rental condos, he noted. Of course, each condo building has association rules governing the frequency of rentals.

“You are seeing all this development going up in Miami Beach with condos $1 million and above,” Otaola said. “You are leaving aside a lot of interest from buyers on the younger side or on the lower end of the income demographic where that’s above their price point. There’s a ton of appetite in Latin American to enter a gold standard market like Miami Beach.”

He plans to launch sales for the condo in the second quarter of this year.

Miami-based Arquitectonica designed the project and Miami-based attorney Tracy R. Slavens represents the developer in the application.

Source:  SFBJ

 

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Rilea Pays $6M For 13K SF Warehouse Property In Wynwood, Plans More Mohawk At Wynwood Loft Apartments

Rilea Group plans more loft apartments at its Mohawk at Wynwood mixed-use project after expanding its site.

The Miami-based developer paid $5.7 million for two warehouses at 31 and 37 Northeast 28th Street, said Rilea President Diego Ojeda. Both lots span 12,750 square feet, enlarging the overall development site at 56 Northeast 29th Street from 1.5 acres to 1.8 acres, Ojeda said.

In an off-market deal, Rilea bought the property from interior designer Michael Wolk, whose studio is based in one of the warehouses, Ojeda said. Alfredo Riascos with Gridline Properties represented Rilea, and Alfonso Jaramillo with Fortune International Realty represented the seller.

In 2002, Wolk paid $350,000 for the industrial buildings, which were completed in 1964 and 1970, records show.

“We negotiated what I think is a fair price and below market,” Ojeda said. “For us, it makes sense because it helps our project’s efficiency. For the seller, it was also good. It’s a small site that without our project didn’t have life for anything else.”

Rilea’s latest acquisition allows his firm to add 35 more loft apartments to a 12-story project originally slated for 225 units, Ojeda said. Mohawk at Wynwood, now spanning almost an entire block, will also have 31,000 square feet of ground-floor retail, 3,500 square feet of office and 337 parking spaces. Knocking down the two warehouses will also improve the design of a paseo planned for the project, Ojeda said.

“Before, the paseo had a big wall on the south side,” Ojeda said. “Now that we own the site, the wall will no longer be there. You will have retail on both sides when you walk the paseo.”

 

Source:  The Real Deal

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Huge Flight Of Talent & Capital To Miami Continues, Investor Says

Miami is continuing to attract a major amount of investment and capital, a prominent investor said.

Jack Abraham, who is the CEO of Atomic Labs, made the comments in an interview yesterday with CNBC.

According to Abraham, Miami is “somewhat insulated from the larger economy.”

Abraham said that real estate was still going up in Miami, while it is going down in other major U.S. markets.

He also said that venture capital investment in Miami was up sharply in the past year, while it is down in other major U.S. tech locales.

“I like to think of Miami as a viral product with very high retention,” Abraham said, noting that his friends who had tried Miami had stayed. “I don’t know anyone who’s gone back to Silicon Valley or New York.” 

 

Source:  The Next Miami

 

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Florida Bill Turns To Developers To Tackle Affordable Housing

Florida Senate President Kathleen Passidomo (R-Naples) introduced on Thursday an $800 million affordable-housing bill designed to tackle soaring rents by providing incentives to the private sector, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

The sweeping, 93-page bill — called the Live Local Act of 2023 — would ease local regulatory laws by requiring municipalities and counties to approve multifamily and mixed-housing units in commercial areas, provided 40 percent of the housing is set aside for families whose incomes are up to 120 percent of the area’s median income, the outlet reported.

The bill also provides multiple tax incentives to developers who designate units as affordable. For example, owners of properties with at least 70 units that were built or remodeled within the previous five years would receive a tax incentive if they set aside apartments for low- to mid-income residents, according to the outlet.

Another provision allows counties and municipalities to offer a local tax exemption to developments with at least 50 apartments with 20 percent of the units dedicated to affordable housing, the Commercial Observer reported.

The bill would also prohibit local governments from instituting rent control, according to multiple outlets.

Florida rents have increased over 20 percent from 2020 to 2021, and rose even more through most of last year, according to the Sentinel.

Many residents who are employed in the hospitality industry — on which Florida relies heavily — were priced out of their local markets due to the significant rent increases, the Commercial Observer reported.

“We have great respect for the dignity of work. We know that a lower commute means a higher quality of life,” bill sponsor Sen. Alexis Calatayud, a Republican representing southern Miami, said, according to the outlet.

While Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis provided tentative support for the bill, some Florida Democrats and housing advocates decried the proposal as a giveaway to developers and landlords.

“Senate Republicans’ solution to the housing crisis is a state mandate banning local rent stabilization measures and too many developer handouts to count,” Ida Eskamani, a Central Florida affordable housing advocate, posted on Twitter, the Sentinel reported. “I’m not seeing any pro-consumer policies like tenant protections and stopping private equity monopolies.”

 

Source:  The Real Deal

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Mixed-Use Project Proposed To Replace Parking Lot In South Beach

The owner of the Washington Park Hotel in South Beach is proposing a 7-story mixed-use project on an adjacent municipal surface parking lot.

WPH Properties, LLC submitted the proposal for a 99-year lease of the city property.

The proposal include:

  • 135 structured parking spaces in three levels, including a single subterranean level
    utilizing mechanical lifts (triple the number of spaces in the existing lot)
  • ground level commercial space
  • three levels and thirty-three units of workforce housing units or office space (with the choice made by the city)
  • a top-level office/hotel use level
  • rooftop amenity area for hotel and building tenant use

In a letter, the developer wrote:

Our client has already invested over $52 million in the purchase and extensive renovations to
the Washington Park Hotel complex. We estimate the costs associated with the construction
of the new building at approximately $25 million.

This new project is not viewed by the Proposer as a profitable real estate development project
and the rate of return is not the primary motivation. Rather, because of the location of the
parking lot, the aim is to maximize and optimize the use of the combined properties as a single
unit.

Beilinson Gomez is the architect.

The city’s Finance and Economic Resiliency Committee is scheduled to discuss the proposal at a January 27 meeting.

 

Source: The Next Miami

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