A-Rod’s UFC Gym Chain Expands to Doral Retail Center
“Doral is really coming into its own right now,” said Ron Castan, who represented Miami-based real estate developer Terra in the deal.
An Ultimate Fighting Champion franchise chain owned by former Major League Baseball star Alex Rodriguez, commonly known as “A-Rod,” has signed a lease at Miami’s Doral Square retail center.
Rodriguez’s UFC Gym will sit in the 150,000-square-foot shopping center located on the southeast corner of Doral Boulevard and 87th Avenue, which is in its final stages of construction. This is the fifth South Florida UFC Gym location, with one soon to open in Pembroke Pines and others in Kendall, Midtown and North Miami.
The 36,5000-square-foot space for UFC Gym was originally leased by 24 Hour Fitness, but the company declared bankruptcy shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic started in 2020. Rod Castan of The Courtelis Co., who represented Miami-based real estate developer Terra in the deal, says UFC Gym quickly stepped in, negotiated the lease and completed the deal last fall.
Terra did not disclose the amount of the lease.
This is the second lease that Terra has signed with UFC Gym. The first was a 40,0000-square-foot lease in Pines City Center in Broward County.
“Things went very smoothly,” said Castan. “They were able to use the same footprint that 24 Hour Fitness used. Even some of the areas that were designed for 24 Hour Fitness worked out really well for them. We didn’t have to make a lot of changes to make it happen for them.”
The fitness center is a part of a three-level project at Doral Square and will be located on the third level of the shopping center. Marshalls and Ross Dress for Less will be on the second floor, and restaurants and shops will be on the first floor. Other signed tenants include Panda Express and World of Beer.
Terra CEO David Martin says Doral Square will be a great addition to the community.
“Doral Square will contribute to the City of Doral’s live-work-play environment by providing secure open-space amenities such as plazas, public seating areas, and pedestrian promenades that promote walkability, connectivity, and the pedestrian urban experience,” Martin said in a written statement.
Over the past few years, Terra has invested in Doral with multiple high-profile projects, including Doral Commons retail center, an adjacent 319-home Modern Doral complex, a luxury residential community called Neovita, and Doral Atrium, a lifestyle-oriented retail development.
Castan says after seeing a lot of success in Kendall, where the UFC Gym brand was established in South Florida, the company is actively looking to expand.
“We’re pretty confident about the success of the project and the visibility it has for the market,” Castan said. “Pretty excited about the timing of its opening because Doral is really coming into its own right now.”
Rodriguez’s investment firm A-Rod Corp. has had the right to develop UFC-branded fitness centers in Miami-Dade County since 2017. UFC Gym has more than 150 fitness centers worldwide with facilities that offer group fitness classes, private MMA training, personal and group dynamic training, and MMA-style youth programming.
“They bring a lot to the center,” Castan said. “They bring both a family customer and a younger customer who likes some of the different types of amenities that they have at UFC Gym.”
The UFC Gym in Doral is expected to be open for business in early 2022.