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The commercial real estate market outlook for Miami-Dade: Sunny, as long as more mass transit is on the horizon, said industry experts at the Building Owners and Managers Association of Miami-Dade’s 2017 Commercial Real Estate Outlook event.

In the office market, rents are at an all-time high in certain sub-markets, said Brian Gale, Cushman & Wakefield’s vice chairman of Brokerage Services who represents nearly 5 million square feet of office space in South Florida.

On Brickell, office space is hitting around $60 a square foot for Class A space; back in 2008 the high was in the upper $40s, said Gale, during the panel discussion at the East Miami in Brickell. Downtown Miami is just behind it, and Aventura and Airport West have also hit all-time highs, too, he said. Coral Gables presents a different story, he said. In 2007-08, rent in the trophy buildings was $46-$48 a square foot; today it’s the low $40s.

“For many years, Coral Gables was the darling of the office market. I would say it has a temporary black eye with less demand and blocks of spaces still existing. But Coral Gables also has the most to gain,” Gale said.

Gale sees the South Miami market as vaulting too, once new mass transit options fully kick in for the area.

“The traffic on Useless 1 is not getting any better. … Miami Beach needs to figure out a way to get light rail over there.” Gale said. “Rental rates will continue to increase in 2017. Looking further out, being a gateway city … there is no reason to believe we couldn’t be a $70 rental market in 2022.”

Growth in shared office spaces has exploded — for instance, WeWork recently leased 65,000 feet at Brickell City Centre and there are now more than 20 shared workspace centers in downtown Miami alone. Sometimes these shared office centers can act as an incubator for a building; when the companies grow out of the co-working space they take space on other floors, Gale said. In the broader office market, expect more smaller offices, with more open spaces and cubicle areas on the outside of the floor with the glass-walled offices in the center, he added.

In the industrial sector, with job growth projected to slow in 2017 and 2018, is that a concern with 1.8 million square feet coming online in 2017 and 1.4 million in 2018?

“That’s actually less than half of what we have seen in 2015 and 2016.” said JLL Managing Director Brian Smith, who led the team representing NBC Universal/Telemundo Enterprises in the record breaking lease of over 550,000 square feet for a world headquarters broadcast center in western Miami-Dade.

He said he looks more closely at population growth. In both the office and industrial markets, new-to-market tenants are pushing the records. The last three years have brought more than 700,000 square feet of new-to-market office tenants. But that’s more than the previous 15 years combined, Gale said.

The last two years saw 300,00 square feet of new-to-market industrial tenants, but this year it will be 2 million and perhaps 3 million square feet.

“John Deere, new names. We have quickly become one of the most important industrial markets on the globe,” said Smith. “Three large deals in the works may be the biggest ever, in addition to the NBCUniversal deal.”

To be sure, urbanization has transformed the retail landscape, with Miami’s downtown population now approaching 90,0000 people, a 30 percent increase since 2010, with an incredibly affluent demographic, said David Moret, president of Highline Real Estate Capital, which acquires and redevelops office and retail properties with capital partners.

Retail rents are in the stratosphere on Lincoln Road, surpassing $300 a square foot. They are hitting $200 in the Design District and Coconut Grove and Wynwood are flirting with $100 a foot, Moret said. How far will they go?

“I think we have gotten ahead of ourselves,” Moret said. “ I think there will be a reset. … We are already seeing resistance. We are seeing leasing volume way down on Lincoln Road.”

He sees the biggest impact coming from millennials, a group that will have the most spending power by 2017. This means tenant mix is more important than ever.

“Successful centers are going to be about creating experiences, to give people a reason to go there instead of click on their phone,” said Moret.

 

Source: Miami Herald

MiamiWorldcenter_6

Miami officials will consider the design plans of five new projects in the booming city, including the redesigned Miami Worldcenter, an apartment tower with no parking by a prominent developer and a mixed-use building in Midtown.

All five items will go before the city’s Urban Design Review Board on July 25.

The 27-acre Miami Worldcenter is a major mixed-use project that would reshape the north side of downtown. Construction has already started on its first phase, although it hasn’t gone vertical yet. The master developer is Miami Worldcenter Associates, led by Art Falcone and Nitin Motwani, with Los Angeles-based CIM Group as an equity partner.

The main public plaza at Miami Worldcenter

The main public plaza at Miami Worldcenter

The new design reflects Miami Worldcenter’s transformation from big-box, enclosed retail to “high street” retail that is integrated with the urban street grid and incorporates public space and art.

Other major projects proposed or under construction in downtown Miami and Brickell can be found on the Business Journal‘s interactive Crane Watch map.

The new Miami Worldcenter design was partially inspired by Dacra’s work in the Miami Design District, as its presentation includes numerous photos from that upscale retail district to the north. Miami Worldcenter would have a long paseo that crosses several streets, capped with public plazas at both ends – similar to the Paseo Ponti/Palm Court Plaza/Paradise Plaza stretch of the Miami Design District.

The Miami Worldcenter paseo would start around Northeast 1st Avenue and stretch from Northeast 7th Street to Northeast 10th Street. It would have a 25,000-square-foot main plaza of public space on the south side and a 14,000-square-foot plaza on the north side. Those plazas could be used for special events and performances, the application said. The public spaces would be lined with trees, water features and art. There would be a vehicle drop off circle at Northeast 2nd Avenue.

Miami Worldcenter was designed by Elkus Manfredi Architects and ADD, with Kimley Horn as the landscape architect. Greenberg Traurig attorney Ryan Bailine represents the developer in the application.

The lot coverage of Miami Worldcenter’s first phase, encompassing about 10 acres, would be reduced from 88 percent to 81.5 percent. The density would decrease.

The first phase would total 3.91 million square feet, down from 4.73 million square feet in the previously-approved design. That reduction would mostly come on the commercial/retail side, with 338,036 square feet planned instead of 1.09 million square feet. Most of the retail would be on the ground floor, with some extending to a second floor. The retail buildings would have parking on the upper floors, and in most cases restaurants or amenities on the rooftops.

The residential unit count in Miami Worldcenter phase one would increase to 1,011, from 914, and the parking spaces would increase to 3,998 from 3,901. The 58-story Paramount Miami Worldcenter condominium could have up to 577 units in 1.34 million square feet, instead of 485 units, and the 44-story Luma apartment tower would have 434 units in 545,762 square feet, instead of 429 units. Luma would be developed in partnership with Orlando-based ZOM.

Paramount would rise atop a podium filled with amenities and it would be connected via an elevated bridge to a parking structure with even more amenities atop it. Luma would also have an amenity deck. The features would include multiple pools, a soccer field, two tennis courts, a half-court basketball room, two racquetball rooms and fitness areas. The condo tower would also have a yacht-shaped amenity deck on its top floor.

The application notes that up to 8.24 million square feet could be developed in the future phases of Miami Worldcenter. The next phases of the project would include a 386-unit apartment tower along Northeast 7th Street, a mixed-use tower in partnership with Newgard Development and the Marriott Marquis Hotel and convention center in partnership with MDM Group. Representatives of Miami Worldcenter couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

Moishe Mana Proposes Apartments Without Parking

New York developer Moishe Mana wants to build 328 apartments with no parking in downtown Miami.

49-story apartment tower rendering

49-story apartment tower rendering

The 49-story would total 322,355 square feet at 200, 218 and 222 N. Miami Ave. Not counting the amenities and common areas, it would have 277,536 square feet of residential space, so that averages 846 per unit.

Downtown Miami allows developers to forgo parking requirements within close proximity of public transit. This property is near the Government Center Metrorail Station and a public parking garage. That garage is slated to be redeveloped with an apartment building incorporated into it.

Mana’s North Miami Avenue Realty LLC acquired the 14,325-square-foot site in 2014 for $4.2 million. It currently has some small retail buildings constructed from 1922 to 1925. They would be demolished to make way for the apartment tower.

Zyscovich Architects designed Mana’s project, which would feature a rooftop pool deck, a gym, a social room, an exterior courtyard on the 15th floor and micro amenity spaces of around 900 square feet on some residential floors. Mana is one of the largest landowners along Flagler Street in downtown Miami and has proposed a massive redevelopment in the Wynwood neighborhood.

Mixed-Use Project Could Rise In Midtown

Midtown 8 rendering

Midtown 8 rendering

A 28-story building in Midtown Miami would combine residential and retail space. Midtown 8 would total 389,989 square feet on the two-acre site at 2901 and 2951 N.E. 1st Ave. That would break down to 387 apartments, 29,549 square feet of ground-floor retail and 519 parking spaces.

The project would have an amenity deck featuring a pool on top of the eight-story parking garage, which would be connected to the apartment building by a series of elevated bridges. There would be an open-air driveway through the center of the project and a linear park with an art along the FECI rail line behind the building.

The property is owned by Midtown Opportunities VIB, but it’s under contract to developer Wood Partners, with offices in Atlanta and West Palm Beach. Midtown 8 was designed by StantecGreenberg Traurig attorney Ryan Bailine said his client hopes to apply for building permits for Midtown 8 in August or September and obtain them before the end of the year.

Wynwood Attracting Major Projects

Wynwood 26 rendering

Wynwood 26 rendering

The UDRB will also consider two new proposals in Wynwood, which has attracted many development applications after the neighborhood was rezoned. The Wynwood 26 apartment/retail building by the Related Group was previously covered by the Business Journal when the plan went before the Wynwood Design Review Committee.

Wynwood 25 rendering

Wynwood 25 rendering

East End Capital‘s Wywnood 25 with apartments and retail was also considered by the WDRC shortly after it was announced.

 

 

For a slideshow for the new renderings of Miami Worldcenter, plus the other projects, that will be presented to the UDRB, click here.

 

Source: SFBJ

Miami is a city that seems to reinvent itself every ten years or so.

Change is a constant. Neighborhoods are always reinventing themselves. Cranes and jackhammers are always busy erecting new buildings.  We’re so used to it, sometimes we don’t even notice when it happens.

In fact, looking back just 10 years ago, some areas of the city are nearly unrecognizable. So Miami New Times decided to take a tour back in time thanks to Google Map’s street views and compared ten neighborhoods to what they looked like less than a decade ago.

WYNWOOD

Then: A warehouse district that had a couple of art galleries moving in.

 Now: A pedestrian-friendly, “art-themed” tourist destination and creative business district with a few art galleries still hanging around.

Ten years ago artists space and galleries had already started moving into the neighborhood, but the only time people actually went was during the Second Saturday art walk. (Of course, at that time you could actually see lots of good art  —and drink lots of free booze.) Now, many of the galleries have moved out. The best art is painted on the buildings, and the former warehouse spaces are now lined with boutiques, cafés, and office space

27th Street

27th Street

27th Street

27th Street

Wynwood Building Before and After

Wynwood Building

N.W. 2nd Avenue

N.W. 2nd Avenue

N.W. 2nd Avenue

N.W. 2nd Avenue

N.W. 2nd Avenue

N.W. 2nd Avenue

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DESIGN DISTRICT

Then: A shopping district focused on all your interior design needs.

Now: A shopping district focused on all your designer clothing needs.

The Design District pulled off a neat trick in which it completely changed what it is without having to change its very specific name. A decade ago the area was where rich people sent their interior designer to shop for furniture. Then developer Craig Robins came in and turned it into an area where rich people shop for clothes.

N.E. 39th Street

N.E. 39th Street

N.E. 39th Street

N.E. 39th Street

N.E. 39th Street

N.E. 39th Street

 

 

 

 

 

 

SUNSET HARBOUR

Then: A place tourists only went because their car was towed.

Now: A place tourists go because they read about a cute café on Yelp.

Sunset Harbour used to be where South Beach hid its blight. Now the area is home to some of Miami Beach’s best restaurants, two brand new grocery stores, and more construction to come.

Bay Road

Bay Road

Bay Road

Bay Road

 

 

 

 

 

 

COCONUT GROVE

Then: Losing its soul.

Now: Finding a new soul.

Once Miami’s “hippie” neighborhood back in the day, Coconut Grove served as a warning of what can happen to a neighborhood when it allows chain stores and restaurants to come in and take over. At least ten years ago, Coconut Grove still had its reputation as college kid’s go-to drinking spot, but a 2008 ordinance pushedlast call up to 3 a.m., taking much of the remaining fun out of the area.

Now Coconut Grove is finally trying to get its groove back.

Main Highway

Main Highway

Main Highway

Main Highway

 

 

 

 

 

 

EDGEWATER

Then: Cheap neighborhood with old homes in a good location.

Now: Expensive neighborhood with new luxury high-rises in a good location.

It seems one Russian billionaire or another buys up a plot of land with plans to turn it into an exclusive luxury high-rise in this neighborhood every other week.

N.E. 28th Street

N.E. 28th Street

NE 28th Street

NE 28th Street

 

 

 

 

 

 

BRICKELL

Then: High-rises

Now: Lots, lots, and lots more high-rises.

Brickell’s character hasn’t actually changed that much, there’s just a lot, lot more of it nowadays.

U.S. 41

U.S. 41

S. Miami Avenue

S. Miami Avenue

 

 

 

 

 

 

LINCOLN ROAD

Then: Quirky shopping district

Now: Miami’s fast-fashion capital

Lincoln Road’s renaissance began in the late ’80s, and by the 2000s the pedestrian mall had taken on a unique, quirky flavor. Sure, there was a Gap and Johnny Rockets, but there were also theaters, gay clubs, jazz hangouts, and New Age crystal shops. Now it’s completed its metamorphosis into a home for shopping mall stores like H&M, Forever 21, and Lululemon. At least there’s a really cool parking garage now.

Lincoln Road

Lincoln Road

Lincoln Road

Lincoln Road

Lincoln Theater

Lincoln Theater

 

 

 

 

 

 

UPPER EASTSIDE

Then: Abandoned motels and blight

Now: Boutique motels and charm

The Upper Eastside’s MiMo architecture was always charming, but locals seemed to have forgotten for a while. Now, developers have restored some of those old motels, and with them, the character of the neighborhood.

73rd Street

73rd Street

MiamiNeighhoods- Upper Eastside - ne_73rd_st_- 2

73rd Street

 

 

 

 

 

 

SOUTH OF FIFTH (SoFi)

Then: South Beach’s quiet neighborhood

Now: South Beach’s neighborhood full of jackhammer noise.

With the revitalization of South Pointe Park, scores of new nightclubs and restaurants, and new construction, the South of Fifth area isn’t quite as quiet as it used to be.

Ocean Drive

Ocean Drive

Ocean Drive

Ocean Drive

 

 

 

 

 

 

MID-BEACH

Then: Destination for New York grandmothers

Now: Destination for New York hipsters

Ten years ago, the area was the beach’s forgotten district. Now it’s booming with boutique hotels, craft cocktails bars, private clubs, and some of the city’s hottest night spots.

Collins Avenue

Collins Avenue

Collins Avenue

Collins Avenue

 

 

 

 

 

 

Source: Miami New Times

Miami’s urban core markets generated $1.2 billion in retail property sales last year, with more than half of the total occurring in Brickell, downtown and Wynwood, according to a recent commercial real estate report prepared for the Commercial Industrial Association of South Florida.

From left to right: Moderator and Downtown Development Authority Executive Director Alyce Robertson, Tony Cho, Raymond Fort, Andrew Frey and Jon Paul Perez

From left to right: Moderator and Downtown Development Authority Executive Director Alyce Robertson, Tony Cho, Raymond Fort, Andrew Frey and Jon Paul Perez

The findings were made public Friday during a panel discussion sponsored by the association that featured Tony Cho of Metro 1, Raymond Fort of Arquitectonica, Andrew Frey of Tecela, and Jon Paul Perez of the Related Group.

On the leasing side, the Biscayne Boulevard corridor, Brickell, downtown Miami, the Design District, Midtown, MiMo, Little River and Wynwood accounted for a combined 10 million square feet of leased space. Vacancy rates range from as low as less than 2 percent in Brickell to 12 percent in the Design District.

Miami’s urban centers will continue to experience rapid growth in the commercial retail sector in 2016 as the market for luxury condo sales slows down, the panelists told audience members huddled inside an unfinished office suite at Three Brickell City Centre.

“There is going to be a slowdown and a correction in ultra high luxury,” Metro 1 founder and CEO Cho said. “I think we will see a shift in type of projects [getting built]. I see more infill, mixed use projects catering to millennials.”

Frey, Tecela’s principal, echoed Cho. “With waterfront luxury high-rise condos, there is going to be an oversupply and there is going to be a decline in value,” Frey said. “I don’t think that is any real surprise to anyone. That is separate from the rest of the real estate industry, including multifamily, retail and office. I think [those sectors] seem to be doing pretty well.”

The panelists specifically singled out the ongoing transformation of Wynwood, which has morphed from an artist-driven warehouse community into a thriving, hip retail and office neighborhood over the last decade. With the new zoning overlay that was approved for Wynwood last year by the city commission, the neighborhood is poised for even more growth once developers in the area complete new residential buildings.

“I most recently fell in love with Wynwood,” said Perez, a Related vice president. “I didn’t understand it until about a year ago. You get this real sense of a new neighborhood that is truly transforming and changing.”

Frey said the new zoning overlay is good because Wynwood developers can now build projects with more density. “You will have actual residents, locals and repeat customers that live in the neighborhood,” he said. “With the new rezoning, you have opened a fantastic development opportunity there.”

According to the association’s market report, Wynwood experienced $165 million in retail property sales volume in 2015 and the vacancy rate is right at 6 percent. The average lease price for retail space is just above $80 per square foot.

 

Source: The Real Deal

One day Miami’s Design District may produce electricity using renewable energies, and have buildings adorned with rooftop gardens and structures that serve as indoor farms, with multiple levels of crops mixed with fresh markets and restaurants.

CraigRobins, Rodolphe-el-Khoury and Vicente Guallart

CraigRobins, Rodolphe-el-Khoury and Vicente Guallart

University of Miami architecture students are collaborating with Design District developer Craig Robins on ideas to make the neighborhood more technologically and environmentally friendly.

During a class at the university’s Coral Gables campus on Monday, the students — who are divided into six two-member teams — gave Robins their first presentations on how the Design District can become a prototype for how cities of the future can incorporate smart technology and sustainable energy.

“The university was very interested in working with the Design District to develop our vision on how we can add more value,” said Vicente Guallart, a visiting professor who was previously the chief architect in Barcelona, Spain. “Technology is not only about upgrading old systems, but also to introduce new principles.”

Architecture school dean Rodolphe el-Khoury said the students are participating in a class that teaches them to embrace emerging technologies in the shaping and the planning of Miami neighborhoods.

“Guallart was the obvious choice to lead this effort given his track record in transforming Barcelona into a smart city,” el-Khoury said. “The Design District has been very open to new trends and new thinking with a very enlightened developer. We recognized there is a synergy between our efforts and Craig Robins’ agenda in seeking innovation.”

Each team presented graphics and data on six topics: energy consumption, urban agriculture, urban re-industrialization, social interaction, the environment, and mobility. The energy consumption team presented a heat map and proposed how to produce electricity in the Design District using renewable energies. The urban agriculture team presented a proposal for rooftop gardens and new buildings that serve as indoor farms with multiple levels of crops mixed with fresh markets and restaurants.

The urban re-industrialization team showed renderings of digital fabrication factories that would produce products made of recycled materials. The social interaction team used geotagged social media posts to determine which pockets of the Design District lack human activity and proposed placing retail stores and restaurants along those areas. The two other teams are still developing proposals that will be finalized in December.

Robins, president and CEO of Dacra, told the students he was impressed with all their ideas. However, he said that some of the proposals would not be practical in the Design District. For instance, Robins commended the urban agriculture team for suggesting a multi-level urban farm on a property facing Biscayne Boulevard and abutting I-195.

“The land you identified will eventually have a building,” Robins said. “One thing to look at is the zoning and maybe get an additional two to three floors on top of the building for an urban farm.”

Robins also said a factory making products from recycled material would have a hard time staying in business.

“The challenge is  that you ultimately need a successful product,” Robins said. “The gap between being able to get to that from something that is thrown away is the hard part.”

 

Source: The Real Deal