Two bidders step up to buy Miami administrative headquarters building on river

Two companies have reportedly entered the running to buy the city of Miami’s administrative building on the Miami River, which it’s vacating in hopes of finding a newer and larger home.

The city began shopping its three-acre riverfront property at 444 Southwest Second Avenue as far back as last summer, according to the Miami Herald, looking to trade-up for larger and more modern offices, or have a developer renovate the current building through a purchase and lease-back arrangement.

Its most recent move to get the deal done was hiring commercial broker CBRE in March to help market the property.

Now, two companies have submitted bids by the Monday deadline, according to the Herald. Lancelot Miami River LLC, headed by Adler Group’s President David Adler, and Panther Capital LLC, which lists its managing members as Aaron Adler, Jason Adler and Lawrence Adler.

Rachel Schapiro, an Adler Group spokesperson who’s related to David Adler, told The Real Deal that the other team is totally separate from the Adler Group.

The bids are sealed so both teams’ plans are yet unknown. Adler Group is developing a 36-story Nexus Riverside tower next door with 462 rental units.

City officials previously said the administration has outgrown its current offices and is looking to move into a Class A office building measuring 375,000 square feet within city limits.

The 3.15-acre site is prime territory along Miami River, which has seen a surge of interest from developers seeking affordable waterfront land as sites in neighborhoods like Sunny Isles Beach and Miami Beach become both scarce and expensive.

An Argentinian family has revived plans for the Epic East site at the mouth of the river, and the Chetrit Group is gearing up to launch sales for its $1 billion mixed-use project nearby.

CBRE’s marketing material says the site is zoned for up to 1,574 residential units. [Miami Herald] — Sean Stewart-Muniz