MIAMI—Melo Group just launched sales for Aria on the Bay, a new 647-unit "ultra-luxury" condominium set to rise at 1770 North Bayshore Drive in Downtown Miami's Arts & Entertainment District. Designed by Arquitectonica, the 53-story tower should break ground in early 2015 and wrap up in 2017.

Aria on the Bay will offer one-, two- and three-bedroom condos and exclusive two-story penthouses. Prices range from the $300,000s to over $4 million.

Will the demand be there? It will if you believe the Miami Downtown Development Authority's (DDA) latest residential real estate study. The DDA study reports that while the Greater Downtown Miami market is experiencing a resurgence and is reaching mid-cycle, the Arts & Entertainment District is one of the areas with the most potential for long-term growth.

“With the momentum building in the Arts & Entertainment District, Aria on the Bay will offer residents the opportunity to enjoy a walkable, family-friendly neighborhood surrounded by world-class cultural attractions,” says Carlos Melo, a principal at Melo. Aria on the Bay marking the firm's 14th residential tower in the Greater Downtown Miami area.

Melo was the first developer in Miami to use the buyer financing model to build a condominium project. The firm made headlines in 2011 when its 23 Biscayne project raised Miami's first condo construction crane in nearly three years using the 50% cash-down financing model it leveraged to build its projects in Argentina.

“Melo's track record of delivering successful residential developments in Miami and throughout the Americas carries invaluable weight with buyers from the US and abroad looking to establish a primary or secondary home in South Florida while market fundamentals remain favorable,” says Alicia Cervera Lamadrid, managing partner of Cervera Real Estate, the project's exclusive sales and marketing brokerage. The project will also feature 40,000 square feet of commercial space in the lower floors, including office, retail, and restaurant space at the ground level.