Aventura office complex Optima inks new leases

Four companies signed leases for a total of 36,000 square feet at Optima, a three-building office complex in Aventura, including the first tenant of the complex’s 28-story tower that is still under construction.

Blanca Commercial Real Estate, which brokered the deals, declined to disclose lease terms for space at the complex at 21500 Biscayne Boulevard.

But brokerage founder Tere Blanca said that Class A office market rental rates in Miami-Dade County haven’t been negatively affected by the pandemic. “We expect continued leasing momentum at Optima as companies evaluate their next move,” she said via email.

Blanca added that the leases are not short-term deals. “We are finding that most companies are eager to get back to the office, and are looking ahead to provide a long-term workplace experience that especially gives employees flexible spaces to work safely,” she said.

Kawa Capital, an asset management firm, was the first to sign a lease in August for Onyx Tower, which is under construction at 1010 South Federal Highway in Aventura, according to a press release.

The tower has an expected delivery of the first quarter of 2021. An online listing for the tower says 15,200 square feet of space starting at the tower’s 10th floor are available in January. Rents from the 10th floor to the top of the tower range from $55 a square foot to $60 a square foot, according to the listing.

WM Partners, a middle-market private equity firm focused on the health and wellness industry, signed a lease in March for 11,401 square feet of the finished nine-story White Tower. Aurele Properties, a real estate investment firm, signed a lease in August for 2,000 square feet of space at the tower.

Medical spa and clinic Makeover Aesthetics signed a lease in September for 4,000 square feet of space in the finished four-story medical office building called the Red Tower.

Other tenants in the Optima complex include Luxe Residential, Soffer Health Institute, SimpleMD and the headquarters of Benihana.

Developers Jose Bromberg and Ariel Bromberg acquired the 1.6-acre site for $5.5 million in July 2008, records show.

Employers are signing office leases despite Covid-19 leading to more remote work. Investment management firm J. Goldman & Co. recently signed a lease expansion at a South Beach office building for $92 per square foot, reportedly a record for South Florida.

And even with an onslaught of new office supply and the economic impact of coronavirus, office landlords did not give tenants a rent break during the second quarter, according to a report from JLL.