Aimco partners on Kushner’s $700M project, scores two big loans in South Florida

Apartment REIT reported nearly $20M loss in Q2

Aimco CEO Wes Powell and Laurent Morali, Charlie Kushner and Nicole Kushner Meyer of Kusher (LinkedIn via Powell, Kushner, Luarent Morali)
Aimco CEO Wes Powell and Laurent Morali, Charlie Kushner and Nicole Kushner Meyer of Kusher (LinkedIn via Powell, Kushner, Luarent Morali)

Apartment giant Aimco is partnering on the Kushner Companies’ massive downtown Fort Lauderdale development, The Real Deal has learned.

The company also secured loans for two South Florida projects, according to its second quarter earnings report. Aimco reported a loss of $19.7 million in the quarter ending June 30.

The Denver-based real estate investment trust, which stands for Apartment Investment and Management Company, took a 51 percent stake in the planned 3-million-square-foot, mixed-use project on Broward Boulevard. Swire Properties is in contract to sell the 4.2-acre site for $49 million.

Aimco, led by CEO Wes Powell, will pay $25 million for the 51 percent share of the property, the company said in its second quarter report. Aimco has paid $2.4 million so far, and the purchase is expected to close in January.

Kushner has made a big push into South Florida. The Fort Lauderdale project alone could include 1,300 apartments, office, retail and a hotel. The developer secured approval in May for a zoning change to the highest-density zoning in Fort Lauderdale. At the time, Kushner’s president Laurent Morali said the development will require debt plus equity investments totaling $700 million.

The four-tower project is expected to be built in phases, with construction beginning next year. It’s near the Brightline train station.

Kushner’s other South Florida projects include mixed-use developments Wynd 27 and Wynd 28 in Wynwood, as well as the multi-phased residential project at 2000 Biscayne Boulevard in Miami’s Edgewater neighborhood.

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Aimco has also been expanding its footprint in Florida. It secured two construction loans: a $150 million loan secured by the north tower of Flamingo Point in Miami Beach, and a $101 million construction loan for Hamilton on the Bay in Miami’s Edgewater.

The REIT spent an additional $19 million acquiring land surrounding the Hamilton. The company terminated the leases of all of its tenants at the Hamilton, with residents continuing to move out. Construction has been underway while tenants still live at the property. About 20 residents have not moved out or scheduled a day to move out, according to Aimco.

The Edgewater assemblage allows for more than 1.1 million square feet of development, Aimco said in its earnings report.

It is also hoping to build a luxury residential tower on the Flamingo Point property in Miami Beach, where it is renovating units at the north tower. At a Miami Beach Design Review Board meeting in early August, the board voted to continue an item for the construction of the new tower as well as other changes, after residents spoke out against Aimco’s plans.

In its earnings report, Aimco said it is continuing with its plan to invest $27 million at the north tower, where apartments will be delivered beginning in the third quarter of this year.