The 1.24-acre site is now home to a 13-story office building, which was completed in 1981.
Surging housing costs and a fickle labor market, which by one measure still hasn’t recovered from the pandemic are sending many locals packing. Miami-Dade lost 79,535 people through net migration to other parts of Florida or other states between 2020 and 2022. Still, there are reasons for optimism.
The city previously appraised the property’s value at around $3.5 million, but South River Warehouse, LLC, the development firm led by Arturo Ortega that owns the property, has stated it believes the land is worth around $23 million.
The project will include up to 2,346 rental apartments, ground floor retail, amenities, and parking for about 2,078 cars.
A $170,000 study upon which to base the plan won unanimous Transportation Planning Organization approval with aims far broader than the most recent plan for the area, which was drawn in 2003 in vastly different times for a vastly different downtown.
The project changing nearly a full block hugged by West Flagler and Northwest First streets is composed of three buildings.
The 442,000-square-foot, unnamed property will be located at 1015 SW 1st Ave. and feature high-end amenities and 2,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space.
The Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce annual members meeting featured a presentation on smart cities and advance air mobility (AAM), an emerging field of transportation that uses electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft to transport passengers. The technology offers a more sustainable and efficient alternative to traditional air travel and could serve as a solution to traffic congestion in urban areas like Miami.
Sales will launch in late 2023, with prices starting at $3.5 million.
Miami’s office sector saw the greatest dropoff, registering just $6 million in sales in the first quarter of 2023, compared with $226 million in 2022, a 97 percent decrease.