The 1.91 acres of land sold for $4.225 million, or about $2.21 million per acre, and the seller was Citibank FSB.

The property, located at 1770 Biscayne Blvd., includes one older building, which broker Rosendo Caveiro of Grubb & Ellis calls "functionally obsolete." Citibank has a branch in the building and will be there for a minimum of 18 months, says Caveiro, who represented Citibank FSB in the sale. Eventually, plans are to close it, he adds.

The property, across the street from the Omni center, is known as Biscayne Plaza and fronts Biscayne Boulevard with a full block.

Morrocco Enterprises sold an apartment property and is using the proceeds from that sale to buy this property. "He didn't want to trigger a taxable event, so he reinvested" in this property, Caveiro says.

The company has no immediate plans to develop the land; however, Caveiro says, it will probably do so in the future. One option, which the property is "perfect" for and which the city wants, according to Caveiro, is to build retail space on the ground floor facing the street and multifamily units on top of the retail.

"It's what the area needs and what the city wants," Caveiro says. "What the city wants is to continue its development."

"There's a lot of multifamily (development) going on right now," and this is a "very choice" property with its Biscayne Boulevard frontage, he adds. The property could accommodate about 200 apartment units and approximately 50,000 sf of retail space, he says.

Robert Lloveras of New Urban Realty in Miami represented Morrocco Enterprises in the transaction. He could not be reached for details about the new owner's plans for the property.

Instant Insights /

Morrocco Enterprises Buys 1.91 Acres; Future Development Possible

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