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JV buys One Biscayne Tower in downtown Miami for $225M
Office building is 65% leased after spike in vacancies over past year
UPDATE, June 30, 11:40 a.m.: A joint venture paid $225 million for One Biscayne Tower, an office building in downtown Miami, The Real Deal has learned.
CP Group, which until recently was called Crocker Partners, along with funds managed by Rialto Capital Management and Sabal Capital Partners, bought the high-rise at 2 South Biscayne Boulevard, according to a news release.
The seller was Dow Chemical, with L&R Realty managing the property on Dow’s behalf, according to the release. Dow Chemical is a multinational chemical producer based in Midland, Michigan and a subsidiary of Dow, according to its website.
The release did not include the price, but it was confirmed by two sources familiar with the deal.
Christian Lee and José Lobón of CBRE represented the seller in the deal. Brian Gale and Andrew Trench of Cushman & Wakefield, who are part of the One Biscayne leasing team, also assisted with the sale.
The 38-story office tower with 691,980 rentable square feet is 65 percent leased, according to the release. It was built in 1973 on nearly an acre, property records show.
Boca Raton-based CP Group plans a slew of renovations, including to the exterior façade, lobby, gym, lower basement level, tenant floors and the existing café. Also, it will retrofit part of the space into a conference center.
Brett Reese, senior vice president at CP Group, said the building historically has been well-leased, but had a “fallout” during the pandemic. CP Group hopes to increase occupancy following renovations and capitalize on company relocations and expansions to Miami.
“It’s a Class A office [building] in downtown, so I would expect we will see a mix of financial services, insurance, technology and some real estate-type companies,” Reese said.
CP Group has purchased and managed more than 157 properties totaling 48.6 million square feet, representing $6 billion in investments since 1986, according to its website. Angelo Bianco is managing partner and Chris Eachus is partner.
Miami-based Rialto Capital, founded in 2007 by CEO Jeff Krasnoff, is an investment and asset management firm and a rated CMBS special servicer, according to its website. Its investment management arm oversees Rialto’s flagship Rialto Real Estate Fund series, as well as other specialized funds and separate accounts. Investors have committed nearly $6 billion in Rialto funds and another $4.5 billion in private equity funds, partnerships, and separate accounts, according to its website.
Irvine, California-based Sabal Capital Partners, founded in 2009 and led by Pat Jackson, has several commercial real estate investment, lending and servicing subsidiaries and affiliates, according to the release.
The One Biscayne Tower purchase comes on the heels of several high-priced office purchases throughout South Florida. Monarch Alternative Capital agreed in May to buy 90 percent of Citigroup Center, another downtown Miami tower, for $300 million.
CP Group retained its ownership stake in Citigroup Center and is also an ownership partner with PCCP in SunTrust International Center in downtown Miami.
In other big office deals, Related Companies this year bought two downtown West Palm Beach office towers, as well as half the ownership stake in a third. Related bought the CityPlace Tower for $175 million in May and the Phillips Point towers for $282 million in January. The group, led by Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, also purchased 50 percent of the interest in Esperanté Corporate Center for an undisclosed price.