MIAMI—River Landing Shops & Residences, a 345,000-square-foot mixed-use development is on track to open during the first half of 2020. The project will have retail/commercial space, 135,000 square feet of office and 528 market-rate apartments.

Andrew Hellinger, principal at Miami-based Urban-X Group, who along with Coralee Penabad, is developing River Landing, recently answered a few questions about the project.

What prompted Urban-X to initially invest along the Miami River and propose the development of River Landing Shops & Residence?

River Landing Shops & Residences is on a 10-acre parcel along the shores of the Miami River and the location is almost hard to replicate anywhere in Miami. The parcel, near the Jackson Memorial Hospital west of downtown Miami, was once owned by Miami Pioneer Henry Flagler. When we were looking for opportunities for development almost a decade ago, we wanted to go to areas where other developers were not building just yet. We wanted our development to become a catalyst of change and spur economic activity. Our goal wasn't just to build a project. We wanted to build a community with River Landing at the heart of it, pumping life into the community by providing quality retail, dining opportunities, cultural events, entertainment, market-rate apartments, Class A office space and, more importantly, access to the bustling Miami River. Prior to developing River Landing, the area lacked a cohesive environment and had few conveniences, despite being home to the country's second largest Health District. The area has one of South Florida's largest day-time populations of nearly 50,000. River Landing is also within easy access to Downtown Miami to the east and the Miami Airport to the west giving it a central location within the marketplace.

Because this property offered us very little competition in development, we saw the opportunity to reshape a portion of the City of Miami by building a modern urban lifestyle center with national retailers, shops, restaurants, office, entertainment and a waterfront linear park for residents and visitors alike to enjoy. If you think about it, there are very few places – if any – on the river for the public to access and hang out. My business partner, Coralee Penabad, and I wanted to recreate Henry Flagler's concept of opening the riverfront in the Mid River District for the people of Miami-Dade County. The first thing we did was to design a 50-foot wide linear park on the river landscaped with canopies. The next step was to design a project that would offer the same kind of conveniences that you find in suburbia in terms of retail and dining options.

Since construction began, how has River Landing Shops & Residences helped to unlock Miami's river culture and give rise to the Mid River District?

River Landing has helped unlock Miami's river culture by creating an all-encompassing waterfront residential, office, shopping and dining destination to serve the neighboring communities of the Miami Health District, Allapattah, Little Havana and Downtown Miami. River Landing will be one of the only large-scale retail and dining destinations with direct water access in the greater Miami area.

Water itself is an attraction for visitors, but we have taken several steps to further enhance the river as a community asset. We decided early on in our development to invoke the days of Henry Flagler — who first developed our land as a shipping port for his hotels — by creating a concept that is welcoming to the public. First, River Landing will be providing boaters access to retail and restaurants, helping reduce traffic congestion. It will also offer its own river shuttle service from Downtown Miami/Brickell to residents, shoppers, and visitors.

We have also doubled the size of River Landing's portion of the Miami Riverwalk to open the river to visitors to anyone who wants to see it. We are also incorporating Riverwalk Park, the newest and one of the largest greenspaces along the Miami River, into the project.

What has the Mid River District's emergence meant for development along the Miami River and what do you think the future holds for further development for river adjacent districts in Miami?

The development of River Landing Shops & Residences – along with the growth of the Mid River District – has been a game changer for Miami. As a result of River Landing's development, we are seeing this section of Miami become more of a 24/7 community and as such more private and public investment is following. Since we began construction of River Landing, multiple developers and investors have followed our lead, trying to capitalize on the untapped discretionary income along the Miami River, the Health District and surrounding neighborhoods with pent up demand for quality retail, restaurants and local culture.

We expect development in the surrounding neighborhoods to continue with the Mid River District serving as the anchor as development moves west of Downtown Miami. Consumers are increasingly demanding more residential, office, retail and dining options in this area.

What are some of the other high-profile developers and investors who have in recent time migrated to the Mid River District from Wynwood, Brickell, Miami Beach and other trendy markets?

Several high-profile developers have recently entered the Mid River District and adjacent neighborhoods. Case in point: the Rubell Family Collection moved their art museum from trendy Wynwood to the area as well as condo king Jorge Perez opened his private El Espacio 23 museum. Robert Wennett, the developer behind the award-winning 1111 Lincoln Road in Miami Beach, has announced a major mixed-use development called the Miami Produce Center also in the vicinity of River Landing. Other developers such as Lissette Calderon and Mast Capital are also developing projects along the Miami River.

Instant Insights /

The Story Behind River Landing Shops & Residences

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