Edgewater Opportunity Zone site hits market, could sell for more than $100M, broker says

UPDATED May 2, 11:45 a.m.: A block-long Opportunity Zone development site in Miami’s Edgewater neighborhood just hit the market and could go for more than $100 million, the listing broker says.

The 3-acre property at 1700 Biscayne Boulevard currently has a Burger King and a commercial building owned by a Florida company Biscayne Arts. The investment group spent more than $7.5 million between 1999 and 2009 assembling the property.

But the site will likely be redeveloped into a major mixed-use project.

Avison Young’s Michael T. Fay, John K. Crotty, David Duckworth, Brian C. de la Fé and Berkley K. Bloodworth are listing the site.

The property has a T6-36B-O zoning designation. That will allow a developer to build a mixed-use high-rise of up to 60 stories, consisting of 500 residential units per acre or 1,000 hotel keys per acre, as well as office and retail space, according to Fay.

The property is currently unpriced. “We’ve already received tremendous interest above the $100 million mark,” he said.

The Edgewater site is in one of the hottest Opportunity Zones for developers in South Florida, where there are already major apartment, hotel and condo developments. It sits in front of the Hilton Miami Downtown hotel and near a Publix.

Opportunity Zones, a federal program that is part of President Trump’s 2017 tax plan, gives investors and developers tax benefits for investing in distressed areas throughout the country. The program has received criticism over some of the Zones such as Edgewater, where major development is already occurring.

The neighborhood is seeing a wave of new condo developments.

Two Roads Development is currently constructing its 57-story, 100-unit Elysee condo project at 788 Northeast 23rd Street. Nearby, Russian billionaire Vladimir Doronin’s OKO Group is building the 57-story Missoni Baia condos at 777 Northeast 26th Terrace.

Last year, Related Group topped off its fourth condo building at its Paraiso project. Gran Paraiso Residences, a 317-unit tower is 480 Northeast 31st Street.

Close to Edgewater, developers are also eying property in the nearby Arts & Entertainment District because of its Opportunity Zone designation. In March, TSG Group closed on a development site in an Opportunity Zone in the A&E district, where it plans to build a multifamily project. The firm, led by managing partners Camilo Lopez and Jorge Escobar, paid $5.9 million for the 30,000-square-foot site at 1765 North Miami Avenue.

In April, the U.S Treasury and the IRS released regulations on Opportunity Zones. The new rules give investors and developers the clarity they need to start deploying capital and putting shovels into the ground at Opportunity Zone sites, according to industry experts.