Gateway at Wynwood

MIAMI—Balance sheet lender 3650 REIT and Berkadia Commercial Mortgage have arranged a $76 million bridge loan for the construction of Gateway at Wynwood, a Class A office and retail complex at 2916 N. Miami Ave here. The property is being developed by New York-based Rose & Berg Realty Group LP, a family-owned real estate management, leasing and construction company.

Berkadia brokered, and 3650 REIT originated, the loan, which closed on Dec. 26.

3650 REIT Co-Founder and Managing Partner Jonathan Roth tells GlobeSt.com that while there has been interest from both large and small users, no tenants have been secured for the project to date. The developer will formally launch its marketing campaign concurrent with project groundbreaking on Jan. 17, he says.

"Wynwood has established itself as the creative hub of Miami and is recognized globally as a premier destination for art, fashion, innovation, and creative enterprise," Roth says. "It is emerging as the preferred office market for creative and technology firms in the region given its creative energy and live/work/play dynamics. The project is also expected to attract tenants seeking proximity to Midtown Miami, a dynamic mixed-use neighborhood that lacks Class A office product, located across North Miami Avenue from the project site."

Designed by architect Kobi Karp, Gateway at Wynwood will be located at the convergence of the rapidly developing Wynwood and Midtown office submarkets in Miami, just minutes from Miami's Central Business District (CBD), Midtown, the Arts and Entertainment District, Miami Beach, and a variety of mass transit options including the Miami Metrorail and new Virgin Trains commuter rail line connecting Miami to Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach. It will feature approximately 220,000 square feet of Class A office space encompassing roughly 27,700 square feet of space on each of its floors. "This is a transformational development in a section of Miami that, beginning with Wynwood Walls, has become world-renowned and showcases the best of Miami's live-work-play environment," says Charles Foschini, Berkadia senior managing director and Florida co-leader.

R&B Group assembled the development site for Gateway at Wynwood through a series of acquisitions in 2016 and later demolished the neglected industrial buildings that sat on the 1.1-acre parcel. The site is ready for the foundation work and vertical construction to commence. Gateway at Wynwood will open in the second half of 2021.

"This loan underlines the lender's and investors' desire to play an active role in the rapid evolution of Wynwood as a new office submarket," said Shelby Rosenberg, a principal with Rose & Berg Realty Group LP, also known as R&B Realty. "We are bullish on the Miami market, which we started targeting a few years ago to diversify our family's growing real estate portfolio in New York, New Jersey and other key CRE markets."