Building A, where these renovations are planned, totals 220,000 sf. All four floors of class A office space--the top four floors in the six-story building--are being renovated. The other two floors are covered parking. The office space, with views of Biscayne Bay, can accommodate 500 sf to 30,000 sf of contiguous offices. The third floor's north section offers executive suites from 500 sf to 1,200 sf and a shared receptionist, conference room facilities and kitchen/lounge.

In addition, Palmetto Bay Village Center is renovating the dining room to accommodate banquets, lunch receptions and conferences for up to 100 people, and indoor nighttime events for a maximum of 300 people. The facility will be able to accommodate 1,000 people also using outdoor terraces. Other renovations include new landscaping and modified security to provide 24-hour security to tenants.

Also, Gardner's Market, a gourmet grocery store that has signed a lease for 21,000 sf in the building for 10 years for its administrative offices, plans to renovate and operate the cafeteria, offering breakfast and lunch to tenants as well as the general public.

Developer Scott Silver expects the renovations to be finished by early summer and tenants to start moving into the building July 1. Silver and Fredric Garvett, through their real estate investment company, Grouper Financial Inc., closed on their purchase of the entire 80-acre property for $18.5 million on Oct. 15.

The property, located at 17777 Old Cutler Rd., also includes two other buildings—the 51,000-sf Building B and the 34,000-sf Building C. A private school is in negotiations to lease Building B, while Building C potentially will be home to city hall for the new municipality of Palmetto Bay. In Building A, South Dade Rehab Inc. also has signed a lease for 23,016 sf, and attorney James S. Usich PA signed a 1,613-sf deal.

According to Pam Smith and Mia Stierheim of Coral Gables, FL-based Abood Wood-Fay Real Estate Group, the exclusive leasing agency for Palmetto Bay Village Center, there are signed leases and letters of intent for nearly one-third of the 300,000 sf of office space. Rents range from $17 to $24 per sf.

Stierheim says while it's hard to say for certain, she expects the space to be leased within about a year. "The response we've been getting has been super," she says. "We've had a lot of response due to the fact that we have a lot of CEO's of companies living in Pinecrest and Palmetto Bay. … And we've been targeting them."

The local businesses and residential growth doesn't hurt, either. "We have people looking at alternative locations," she says. And the rates at Palmetto Bay Village Center are good, she adds.

Instant Insights /

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