MIAMI—Melo Group's latest high-rise development may be music to the ears of young professionals looking for a luxury apartment to call home in Downtown Miami's Arts & Entertainment District. Melo just announced plans to build Melody, a 36-story, luxury mixed-use multifamily tower that will rise from what is now a vacant lot next to the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts.

Located at 245 Northeast 14 Street, Melody is answering the call for luxury multifamily units for people working at the performing arts center, on Brickell Avenue, or in Downtown Miami. Melody will be one of the first luxury rental buildings to be developed in the greater Downtown Miami in decades

“With the Arts & Entertainment District building momentum as a world-class cultural epicenter in the Southeast, one thing is still lacking—a luxury residential community that serves young professionals who work in the area,” says Carlos Melo, a principal with the Melo. “At Melody, professionals seeking an urban lifestyle will enjoy a family-friendly atmosphere in a walkable neighborhood that will attract much-needed restaurants and retail to the district.”

To be sure, high-end multifamily units are hard to find in Miami's urban core. Most developers are focusing on luxury condos. The problem is many professionals that want to live close to their jobs in Downtown and Brickell, two of South Florida's largest employment hubs, can't afford them but don't qualify for the affordable housing projects rising.

Up until now, there's been plenty of talk about building luxury multifamily in the area. Gentig and Espacio USA have discussed plans to build apartment towers in Downtown Miami's Arts & Entertainment District. With Melody, Melo becomes the first to build a privately-funded project there.

Melody is currently in the permitting stages. It will break ground sometime in the second half of this year and is set to deliver 497 multifamily units, along with 8,500 square feet of ground floor restaurant and retail space, in mid-2015.

“Melo Group has built a reputation for entering emerging areas with luxury multifamily projects that help spark neighborhood revitalization, most recently Edgewater,” says Melo. “We see tremendous potential in the Arts & Entertainment District and believe our rental community—including prime restaurant space—will fill the demand among professionals who have a taste for world-class cultural events. Melody adds a missing dimension in this emerging district.”