UPDATED, Nov. 15, 6:05 p.m.: As part of the development wave overtaking south Miami-Dade County, Jorge Pérez’s Related Group wants to build a mixed-income apartment project in Princeton.
An affiliate of Related paid $7.8 million for 10 acres on the west side of Southwest 127th Avenue and less than a quarter mile north of 248th Street, according to records. Seller Princeton Land Investments is tied to the Korge family’s law firm in Coral Gables. The firm is led by Thomas Korge, Thomas Korge III and Christpher Korge.
The family, whose members include fundraisers for Democratic candidates, is involved in real estate ventures. Andrew Korge leads real estate development firm Korgeous Development and co-founded K2 Developers, which redevelops motels and hotels into multifamily.
In October, Andrew Korge bought a nearly 2-acre property on the western bank of the Miami River for $6.5 million, with plans to redevelop it, possibly as office-residential with industrial space.
A rendering of the apartment project in Princeton (Chisholm Architects)
Related wants to build a 307-unit apartment complex with an amenity building and retail on the Princeton site, according to an application submitted to Miami-Dade. The plan is for seven low-rise buildings and an eight-story building, according to Related.
The garden-style complex is to include market rate apartments as well as affordable and workforce housing, according to plans. The application is pending in front of the county.
In Miami-Dade, workforce housing is designated for earners of 140 percent to 60 percent of the area median income, which the federal government determined this year is $61,000 for the county. Affordable units are for earners of less than 60 percent of AMI.
Coconut Grove-based Related’s division for below-market rate multifamily projects, called Related Urban Development Group, has built more than 3,500 affordable, workforce and public housing projects. The projects are mostly in Miami-Dade, but also in Palm Beach, Hillsborough County and Orange counties, according to Albert Milo, who heads Related Urban.
Some of the other Related Urban apartment communities in south Miami-Dade are Colony Lakes in Homestead, with both affordable and workforce units, as well as Cutler Riverside with affordable housing in unincorporated Miami-Dade, according to Related’s website.
Much like the rest of south Miami-Dade, the Princeton area offers sprawling open land available for development, and at a lower cost than sites in urban cores such as Miami’s downtown and Brickell.
This has caught the eye of builders. Last month, Armando Bravo bought an Opportunity Zone development site at 503 South Krome Avenue in Homestead for $5.4 million. Last week, Alta Developers scored a $77.1 million loan for the construction of a 296-unit multifamily building it is planning just outside Pinecrest.