South Florida real estate projects in the pipeline for the week of March 20
03.23.2020 | South Florida Business Journal

South Florida real estate projects in the pipeline for the week of March 20

Shops, offices slated for Hallandale Beach

Grupo Eco is seeking approval for the third phase of Atlantic Village in Hallandale Beach with a mix of shops, restaurants and offices.

The first phase – 31,144 square feet of shops and restaurants – opened in fall 2018 and is now fully leased, said Daniel Chaberman, head of Grupo Eco. The second phase, with 38,000 square feet of offices and retail, is under construction.

The $18 million third phase, pending approval, would total about 125,000 square feet in six stories and have a 400-space parking garage. It would go on the 2.26-acre site at 601 N. Federal Highway.

Chaberman said the third phase would have 30,000 square feet of primarily food and beverage outlets on the third floor, 30,000 square feet of retail on the second floor, and 65,000 square feet of Class A offices on the top four floors. There would be a host of amenities for office tenants, including a soccer field on the roof, and locker rooms with showers and saunas.

Mixed-use project planned in Wynwood

New York-based East End Capital proposed a mixed-use project in Miami’s Wynwood.

The 525,000-square-foot project would be developed in two 12-story towers at 2400 and 2500 N. Miami Ave., Managing Principal Jonathon Yormak said.

The southern site would have 12,000 square feet of retail and 236 apartments, most of them micro units ranging from 360 to 400 square feet. It would include 30 co-living units, with rent by the bedroom.

The northern site would have 6,000 square feet of retail, plus a 140,000-square-foot office building.

Auto dealership proposed in Delray Beach

James O’Neill, the managing principal of Delray Acura and Delray Hyundai, wants to rezone a vacant property in Delray Beach for an automotive dealership.

He has the 3.85-acre site at 2419-2605 N. Federal Highway under contract from Adoodledoo LLC. The rezoning would permit a full-service dealership up to 167,754 square feet. The application didn’t disclose the automotive brand.

Grupo Eco is moving forward with the third phase of Atlantic Village in Hallandale Beach with a mix of shops, restaurants and offices.

Landlords brace for requests from struggling tenants

The COVID-19 pandemic is hitting many restaurants, entertainment establishments and hospitality-focused retailers in South Florida hard. Their headache will become their landlords’ headache as the businesses have trouble paying rent.

The combination of drastically reduced travel and tourism, restrictions on operating hours and capacity at many businesses, the cancellation of most events, people working from home when they would otherwise be dining out for lunch, and general self-isolation is an unmitigated disaster for South Florida’s largest industry. No doubt, service workers and small-business owners will be hit hardest.

While there hasn’t been much disruption for tenants yet, it’s likely coming soon, said Katy Welsh, senior director of retail services at Colliers International South Florida and state operations chair for the International Council of Shopping Centers.

“At this point, we are all bracing ourselves and preparing to help tenants make it through this time,” she said. “I’m sure tenants will ask for rent relief, like they did in the downturn of 2008 and 2009.”

Most landlord-tenant agreements include a clause allowing the landlord to terminate the lease early, she said. Landlords rarely have an obligation to help tenants impacted by a pandemic.

Jaime Sturgis, founder and CEO of Native Realty in Fort Lauderdale, said COVID-19 concerns will hurt business at many restaurants, stores at enclosed malls, and movie theaters.

He added that many small businesses don’t have 30 or 60 days of cash reserves, but some restaurants will try to make up for lost foot traffic by boosting their delivery business.

On the other side, property owners have their own bills to pay. Mortgages, insurance and property taxes don’t stop just because their tenants are struggling.

Gabriel Navarro, managing partner of Miami-based retail center owner MMG Equity Partners, said tenants that require assistance should share their financial statements so he can understand how much their sales have been impacted and whether they can still turn a profit or if they will be burning through cash.

If a tenant is quickly depleting their cash reserves, a landlord could offer a short-term rent deferment, where the reduced amount is paid back once the economy improves, Navarro said.

“The most important thing in any good landlord/tenant relationship is transparency, sharing both the good things and bad that are occurring in the business, in order to together best determine how to manage through it,” he said.

Doral industrial property could be seized

An electronics maker could lose its Doral headquarters facility over a $3.64 million foreclosure lawsuit.

First Citizens Bank filed a foreclosure lawsuit against 4636 Falcon LLC, Vioss Electronics, Vioss Vision and Vioss Camera Production, plus loan guarantors Jose A. Maldonado, Jose S. Rivero and Angel O. Rivero.

The lawsuit targets the 13,271-square-foot industrial condo at 4636 N.W. 74th Ave., Unit 1.

Attorney Emily A. Dominguez, who represents the lender, didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Vioss Vision makes LCD and LED displays, often for showing ads in waiting rooms and public areas. Vioss Electronics makes security cameras for homes and businesses. Officials with the company couldn’t be reached for comment.

4636 Falcon acquired the industrial condo for $1.5 million in 2015. The same year, the company secured a $1 million mortgage on the property from Biscayne Bank, which was acquired by First Citizens Bank in 2019.

In 2017, Biscayne Bank granted two $1.5 million loans to Vioss Electronics, Vioss Vision and Vioss Camera Production. Those loans were cross-collateralized with the mortgage on the industrial condo.

According to the complaint, the borrowers missed payments starting July 15, 2019, and owe a combined $3.64 million in principal, plus interest.

$45.5 million

Price that Slate Office REIT agreed to pay for Cypress Financial Center in Fort Lauderdale

182,000 square feet

Size of Turnpike Commerce Center, which Cadence Partners and RREEF started building in west Miami-Dade County

$32.5 million

Price that Vital Pharmaceuticals paid for 23.2 acres at South Florida Distribution Center in Pembroke Pines

436

Homes that 13th Floor Homes plans to build on the Villa Del Ray Golf Course after buying it for $5.6 million

$28.5 million

Price that Starwood Capital Group paid for the Villa Biscayne apartments in south Miami-Dade

24,000 square feet

Size of Addison Medical Centre, which Azure Development started building near Delray Beach