Turnberry, LeFrak refinance SoLe Mia land with $67M loan

Turnberry Associates and the LeFrak organization just refinanced the North Miami land where they’re building SoLe Mia, a $4 billion mixed-use project, with a $66.5 million loan from HSBC.

County records show Oleta Partners, the ownership entity for SoLe Miami, took out the mortgage on its 183-acre development site at 15045 Biscayne Boulevard. The loan is a boost from Turnberry and LeFrak’s existing $37 million loan from Wells Fargo, which county records indicate was transferred to HSBC.

Jackie Soffer, CEO of Turnberry, said in a statement that the loan is “standard, low-level financing” that’s within the developers’ business plan for the sprawling project. HSBC has lent to major South Florida developments in the past, including the nearby Marina Palms Yacht Club & Residences, as well as Eduardo Costantini’s upcoming Oceana Bal Harbour.

The loan is a rare piece of financing for LeFrak and Turnberry, who told the Wall Street Journal last year that they would foot the bill for nearly all of the project’s $150 million worth of infrastructure improvements such as roads and sewers.

Construction began in June 2015, with the early work consisting of building the development’s “spine road” and filling in the property’s lakes.

The ambitious project is slated to bring 12 residential buildings totalling 4,390 units, more than 1 million square feet of commercial space, 37 acres of parks, two swimmable lagoons, and 4,171 parking spaces to North Miami when it’s completed over several phases.

Soffer said LeFrak and Turnberry are in the predevelopment stage, securing tenants for the commercial component and already receiving commitments from retailers like auto dealer Warren Henry.

When asked whether there were any changes in the project’s timeline, Soffer said “We are on time, on budget, and on pace.”