MIAMI — Colliers’ Hospitality Practice Group has arranged the refinancing for EAST Miami Hotel, a 352-room hotel located in Miami’s Brickell district. The property is part of Swire Properties’ $1 billion Brickell City Centre development, which features more than 500,000 square feet of shops and restaurants. EAST Miami Hotel opened in 2016 and features meeting rooms, a fitness center, multiple pools and several dining options. Mark Owens of Colliers arranged the refinancing on behalf of the borrowers, Trinity Investments and Certares Management. The financing amount and capital source were not disclosed, but multiple media outlets report that Deutsche Bank and KSL Partners provided the debt totaling $185 million.
OPA-LOCKA, FLA. — The Integral Group has broken ground on Wellspring Apartments, an affordable seniors housing community in the Miami suburb of Opa-Locka. Wellspring Apartments will feature 99 units, 67 of which are reserved for residents earning below 50 percent of the area median income (AMI), and the remaining 32 units are for residents earning below 60 percent AMI. The 81,350-square-foot property will feature a computer and library room, fitness center, community center with a full kitchen, and covered terrace. The project is a public-private partnership between Integral, Miami-Dade County, the City of Opa-Locka and local businesses. PNC Bank is also a partner on the project, providing $13.4 million in equity through Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) funds.
TAMPA, FLA. — Joint venture partners The Bromley Cos. and Highwoods Properties have topped out Midtown East, an 18-story office tower situated within Bromley’s 23-acre Midtown Tampa mixed-use development in Tampa. Upon completion, the property will comprise 430,000 square feet of office and ground-floor retail space. Bromley and Highwoods will jointly own 143,000 square feet, and Tampa Electric and Peoples Gas will own and occupy the remainder of the building. Architecture firm Rule Joy Trammell + Rubio designed Midtown East, which will feature a heat-reflective roof, covered outdoor terraces, floor-to-ceiling glass, high-speed elevators and adaptable floorplans. Completion of the project is scheduled for 2025. Midtown East will serve as the anchor building of the $1 billion Midtown Tampa development, which also comprises residential, hospitality and retail space, as well as the Midtown Commons public space, a dog park, recreational trail and a lake.
ORLANDO, FLA. — JLL has brokered the $36.5 million sale of Silver Star Commerce Center, a 254,915-square-foot industrial park located at 3600-3802 Silver Star Road and 3717-3763 Mercy Star Court in Orlando. The property comprises eight buildings situated on 20 acres and features 18- to 20-foot clear heights and rear-load capabilities. At the time of sale, the park was 92 percent leased to 27 tenants. Denholtz Properties and Long Wharf Capital acquired the property. Luis Castillo, Cody Brais and Taylor Osborne of JLL represented the undisclosed seller in the transaction.
ORLANDO, FLA. — BWE has secured $24 million for the construction and permanent financing of Barnett Villas, an affordable housing development in Orlando. Peter Borstelmann and Jim Gillespie of BWE arranged the financing in the form of the purchase of tax-exempt bonds issued by the Florida Housing Finance Corp. (FHFC). The bonds feature a fixed interest rate, as well as three years of interest-only payments. Upon completion, Barnett Villas — which will be located at 1050 Barnett Villas Drive — will comprise 156 units in one-, two- and three-bedroom layouts. Of the units, 78 will be reserved for residents earning up to 60 percent of the area median income (AMI), 39 will be designated for residents earning up to 50 percent of AMI and 39 will be reserved for residents earning up to 70 percent of the AMI. Amenities at the property will include a fitness center, lounge and surface parking. The total project cost is $44.9 million, including $18.2 million in Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) equity syndicated by Enterprise Housing Credit Investments. A construction timeline was not disclosed.
FORT PIERCE, FLA. — CBRE has secured a 1 million-square-foot lease on behalf of landlord SL Industrial Partners at 5001 Crossroads Parkway in Fort Pierce, a city in South Florida’s St. Lucie County. The tenant, Atlanta-based BroadRange Logistics, a third-party logistics warehousing and service provider, will occupy the space later this year. Robert Smith, Kirk Nelson, Jeff Kelly, David Murphy and Monica Wonus of CBRE represented SL Industrial Partners, a member of The Silverman Group family of companies, in the lease negotiations. This lease marks BroadRange’s third warehouse in Florida, adding to locations in Orlando and Ocala, as well as the largest industrial lease in Florida year-to-date, according to CBRE. Dubbed Interstate Crossroads Logistics Center, the newly delivered warehouse features 40-foot clear heights, LED lighting, ESFR sprinklers, 232 dock-high doors, four drive-in doors, 472 parking spaces and 412 trailer spaces. The property sits on a 132-acre site between I-95 and the Florida Turnpike.
ORLANDO, FLA. — TSB Capital Advisors has secured acquisition financing for Nine at Central, a 764-bed student housing community located near the University of Central Florida campus in Orlando. QuadReal provided an undisclosed amount of financing to the borrower, L3 Campus. Delivered in 2023, Nine at Central offers a mix of one-, two-, four-, five- and six-bedroom units with bed-to-bath parity. Each unit features a 55-inch smart TV, private balcony, energy-efficient stainless steel appliances and Bluetooth-integrated washers and dryers. Shared amenities include a swimming pool, hammock garden, outdoor barbecues, a wet bar, poolside cabanas, game-day jumbotron, putting green, fitness center, yoga studio, study pods on each floor and a full arcade room.
ORLANDO, FLA. — Red Lobster has voluntarily filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida. The Orlando-based seafood restaurant chain plans to sell its business to an entity formed and controlled by its existing lenders. Red Lobster, which was founded in 1968 and operates some 600 restaurants across North America, has received a $100 million debtor-in-possession financing commitment from its existing lenders to facilitate this plan. The company stated that it would use the financing and bankruptcy proceedings to drive operational improvements, simplify the business through a reduction in locations and pursue a sale of substantially all its assets. Earlier this month, Red Lobster announced that it would be closing between 50 and 100 restaurants nationwide, a statement that fueled speculation on an imminent bankruptcy filing. Restaurants that were not included in this announcement from earlier in May will remain open throughout the bankruptcy proceedings, and the company says that it is continuing to work with its existing vendors to minimize operational disruption. CNN reports that, at the time of the bankruptcy filing, Red Lobster listed more than $1 billion in debt and less than $30 million in cash on hand. …
The retail sector in South Florida is undergoing adjustments that reflect the region’s dynamic economic landscape and evolving consumer preferences. One notable trend is evident in the restaurant sector, where owners increasingly aim to expand by opening new locations and entering lucrative markets. This trend is primarily driven by consumer spending, particularly the continual growth of Miami’s tourism industry. Visitors directly inject capital into the local economy, leading to increased disposable income that often circulates back through experiential commerce such as restaurant sales. A clear indicator of the local market’s strength is the ongoing rise in rental asking rates, significantly surpassing national averages. A robust 4.6 percent upturn in asking rent this year, as reported by CoStar Group, demonstrates retailers’ ability not just to survive but to thrive in a market with elevated asking prices compared to the rest of the state. This upward trend in rent is accompanied by a low 2.8 percent vacancy rate, according to CoStar data, indicating a competitive landscape where profitable lease opportunities are increasingly scarce for tenants. The retail sector within the restaurant industry continues to thrive, showing significant activity and heightened interest. The influx of high-net-worth individuals and a post-pandemic resurgence in immigration …
ORLANDO, FLA. — Piedmont Office Realty Trust Inc. has signed Travel + Leisure Co., a timeshare hospitality giant, to a lease at 501 W. Church in downtown Orlando. The publicly traded tenant will occupy the entirety of the five-story, 182,000-square-foot building and utilize the space for its new corporate headquarters through at least 2040. Alex Valente and Ben Mullenix represented Piedmont Office internally in the lease transaction along with Michael Phipps and Colin Morrison of CBRE. Greg Katz and Jason Warren of Stream Realty Partners, along with Mike Hopper of Newmark, represented the tenant. According to Valente, the Travel + Leisure lease represents the largest lease in downtown Orlando since 2019. Piedmont Office plans to renovate and rebrand the building ahead of the tenant’s occupancy in 2025. Preparations will include adding signage and modern amenities — including a new fitness center, conference center and café — to create a experience tailored for Travel + Leisure’s 900 expected employees.