Leonard Abess

Leonard Abess, former owner of City National Bank of Florida, has increased his South Florida land holdings to 747 acres. Abess, who has a history of making big land grabs since selling his bank for $945 million in 2009, has made five purchases this year totaling 143 acres and $4.5 million, the South Florida Business Journal Reported. In 2010, he purchased 584.4 acres and a total of 28 properties for $21.1 million. [more]

A new Keiser University campus is slated for Pembroke Pines, after a $4.66 million purchase secured a 7.6-acre swath of land for the project. Demeter Pembroke Pines, a Fort Launderdale-based developer and affiliate of Keenan Property Group, purchased the land from Duke Realty, for roughly $14 per square foot. NAI Rauch, Weaver, Norfleet, Kurtz & Co. represented the buyers, while Duke Realty represented the seller. The developer has secured a $14.5 million construction mortgage from City National Bank of Florida. The new campus will join more than a dozen existing locations across Florida. [SFBJ]

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