Design District assemblage hits the market for $38M

An assemblage of more than an acre of land in Miami’s Design District hit the market for $37.5 million, as demand continues to rise in the neighborhood, Metro 1 announced on Wednesday. 

Tony Cho

The 43,756-square-foot assemblage fronts North Miami Avenue and breaks down into six parcels, including the “Living Room” at 4000 North Miami Avenue. Tony Cho, CEO of Metro 1 Commercial, is listing the assemblage.

A company tied to Portland, Oregon-based Living Room Theaters owns the 4000 North Miami Avenue property. Alex Birkenstock, heir to the eponymous sandal company fortune, owns the retail building at 4030 North Miami Avenue. Coral Gables-based Courtney Parking LLC owns the lots on the western side of the assemblage, records show.

Cho said the properties are also available individually: the 21,400-square-foot “Living Room” for $19.4 million; the 11,856-square-foot property next door at 4030 North Miami Avenue for $12.9 million; and the 10,500-square-foot property at 20-24 Northwest 41st Street for $5.3 million.

“There’s really not much left in the Design District that hasn’t already been assembled or developed,” Cho told The Real Deal.

Cho said the highest and best use for the development site is for a more “value-driven” five-story retail project that could generate up to $150 triple-net rents on the ground floor, and rents up to $75 per square foot triple-net on the upper floors.

While the “Living Room” site was on the market as a joint venture or lease opportunity before, this is the first time it’s for sale individually and as part of an assemblage. “Given the price of what’s been trading, it’s a tremendous value,” he told TRD. “This is under $1,000 a foot.”

The listing breaks down to $857 per square foot. It could also be an office, mixed-use or hotel project, Cho said. Current zoning allows for up to 161,490 square feet and five stories.

Last month, developer Remy Jacobson paid $10.5 million for the building at 4141 North Miami Avenue. That sale broke down to about $660 per square foot for the building and $1,082 per square foot for the land.

By the end of next year, the Design District is expected to have more than 120 luxury-brand stores, a boutique hotel, 15 to 20 restaurants, luxury residential condos and lofts, galleries, furniture showrooms, as well as large-scale public art, design and graphic art installations.

“This is one of the best locations on 40th Street,” Cho said.