Riviera Point secures $16.5M loan for Radisson Red hotel near Miami airport

Riviera Point Development Group just secured a $16.5 million construction loan from Centennial Bank to help finance construction of a Radisson Red hotel near Miami International Airport.

In all, Riviera Point will spend $34.5 million on construction of the 155-key hotel at 3401 Northwest 25th Street. The developer, led by Rodrigo Azpurua, broke ground on the project in December and recently topped out the building. It’s expected to open in the second quarter of next year.

Radisson Red is a millennial-focused hotel under the Radisson brand with five locations throughout the world, including one in the U.S. in Minneapolis.

Riviera Point paid $3 million for the 1.1-acre development site in November 2015, according to property records.

Azpurua’s company has raised nearly $6.5 million in private equity and $11.5 million in EB-5 funds for the development, according to a press release. EB-5 allows foreign investors to invest at least $500,000 in job-creating projects in the U.S. in exchange for the US residency.

While the program was a popular way for South Florida developers to finance projects a few years ago, fewer developers are relying on the program as part of their capital stack.

Since 2012, the Riviera Point has raised $68 million in EB-5 funds and completed five office buildings in Doral and Miramar with the funds.

The lender, Arkansas-based Centennial Bank, has grown its presence significantly in South Florida after it acquired Pompano Beach-based Stonegate Bank in September in a deal worth $820 million. – Keith Larsen