Located at 7880 Biscayne Boulevard, Triton Center aims to become the epicenter of the upper Biscayne Boulevard area.

MIAMI—It long served as the US Immigration Naturalization Service (INS) in Miami. But the 12-story building is set to undergo a major redesign by architecture and design firm Stantec. When all is said and done, the INS building will be a 139-room Hilton Garden Inn.

The hotel is part of the mixed-use development project dubbed Triton Center. The commercial real estate development will also include three residential buildings with 325 multifamily units.

Located at 7880 Biscayne Boulevard, Triton Center aims to become the epicenter of the upper Biscayne Boulevard area. The neighborhood is just north of Miami's famous MiMo District, which is also seeing a revitalization.

Real estate developer Florida Fullview Immigration Building owns the asset. The 722,000-square-foot redevelopment will also feature 17,000 square feet of ground-level retail and 585 indoor parking spaces. A 20-foot pedestrian passage between the residential buildings and hotel complexes is also part of the plans. Each building will have its own pool and fitness center.

Stantec will maintain the building's vanguard spirit by integrating white stucco and metal panels highlighted with bright Miami accent colors and glass curtain walls. The developer is among for LEED Silver certification.

Originally built in the 1960s as the Gulf American, the building was recognized as a vanguard, mid-century modern tower with distinctive anodized aluminum sunscreens and tall transparent glass curtain walls spilling out to the street at its base. INS moved into the building in 1983 and vacated in 2008.

Stantec is working on several other residential projects in Florida. The Ritz-Carlton Residences in Miami Beach; Jade Signature in Sunny Isles; Luma at Miami Worldcenter; Solitair Residences in Brickell; and 330 Third Street in Downtown Saint Petersburg are among them.

Recently an AC Hotel by Marriott broke ground in Aventura. Suzanne Amaducci-Adams, the Real Estate & Hospitality practice group leader at Miami-based law firm Bilzin Sumberg, tells GlobeSt.com the booming South Florida hotel market has prompted hotel owners, both current and new, to take advantage of generationally-low interest rates and favorable loan terms.

“For example, several South Beach hotel owners have capitalized on large loans in the last few months, including Starwood, LeFrak, and Invesco,” she says. “They closed on a $250 million loan from Deutsche Bank secured by the 1 Hotel in South Beach.”

Instant Insights /

Immigration Services Building Morphs Into Hotel

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