Finvarb JV scores $45M in financing for Miami Beach Thompson Hotel-anchored project

Developer is planning a mixed-use building with 150-room hotel on Washington Avenue

Finvarb's Ronny Finvarb and 1685 Washington Avenue (Finvarb Group, Google Maps, iStock)
Finvarb's Ronny Finvarb and 1685 Washington Avenue (Finvarb Group, Google Maps, iStock)

A Finvarb Group joint venture can rev up construction on its Thompson Hotel-anchored mixed-use project in South Beach after obtaining $44.6 million in financing.

Banesco USA provided a $22.3 million construction loan to the Finvarb Group affiliate that owns the vacant redevelopment site at 1685 Washington Avenue, records show. The 0.6-acre property is adjacent to Soundscape Park and the New World Symphony building designed by Frank Gehry.

Finvarb Group, led by principal Ronny Finvarb, is partnering with Chahine Investment Group, a Luxembourg-based family office specializing in office buildings and luxury hotels, to develop the mixed-use project. Chahine, managed by Agathe Chahine, also provided the project with a $22.3 million mezzanine loan, according to a press release.

The proposed development has been in the works for several years. In 2018, the Miami Beach Historic Preservation Board granted final approval for an eight-story building with a 150-room Thompson Hotel by Hyatt.

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Designed by French architect Rudy Ricciotti, the project would also feature a 116-space parking garage, ground-floor retail spaces, a rooftop restaurant, and a pool and deck overlooking Soundscape Park.

The Finvarb affiliate paid $19.2 million for the site in 2017, records show. The property previously housed a bank building and parking lot that the developer tore down in 2019. The city of Miami Beach approved a construction notice of commencement in November, records show.

Founded more than 40 years ago in Bay Harbor Islands, Finvarb Group’s portfolio is made up of 13 hotels and restaurants, primarily in Miami Beach, but also in other parts of Florida, according to the company’s website. Its holdings include the Courtyard by Marriott South Beach and Kimpton Hotel Palomar South Beach. Finvarb also owns properties in Arizona and Texas.

Last year, Finvarb Group paid $10 million for The Landon Bay Harbor-Miami Beach, a 46-key hotel in the company’s home city, Bay Harbor Islands.