A private school bought a Doral warehouse for $13.2 million, with plans to retrofit it and reopen the facility as a campus next year.
Shelton Academy, a Catholic school for students pre-K through high school, bought the property at 9455 Northwest 40th Street Road. It was previously used as cold-storage by food distributor Swiss Chalet Fine Foods, according to a broker representing the seller.
An affiliate of Elizabeth, New Jersey-based Gellert Global Group, Swiss Chalet’s parent company, sold the two-story building on 3.2 acres, property records show. It was built in 1991.
Swiss Chalet now is based at 11421 Northwest 107th Street near Doral.
Miguel Alcivar and Wayne Ramoski were part of the Cushman & Wakefield team that represented the seller. Lee Katsikos and Jack Katsikos were part of the Katsikos Group team that represented the buyer.
The property lends itself to the retrofit in part because it has a cafeteria and offices, Alcivar said.
“It’s not just a giant freezer box,” he said. “It’s an opportunity to get a building that has good bones.”
Shelton Academy, now at 11300 Northwest 41st Street in Doral, said the new location allows for growth to up to 1,500 students over five years, according to a news release. The campus will include an Olympic-sized pool, soccer field, indoor and outdoor basketball courts, volleyball courts, race track and gymnasium.
Property records show the new campus is 76,976 square feet, while Shelton’s current one is 47,472 square feet.
Doral is experiencing a population boom and a surge in new development, prompting the school’s move into a bigger campus, Alcivar said. One of the biggest projects completed in recent years is the mixed-use CityPlace Doral with several apartment towers and retail.
This may be the second Doral warehouse to be converted into a school, as the former Miami Herald printing facility might become a campus, Alcivar said. Aventura-based MG3 Group, an investor in multifamily and offices as well as charter schools, bought the building at 3500 Northwest 89th Court for $11.6 million in October.
Doral will see additional industrial buildings, as Easton Group scored a $12 million construction loan for a spec warehouse at 1500 Northwest 97th Avenue in March.