Construction Starts on $500M COVID-Conscious Tower in Downtown Miami
Legacy Tower at Miami Worldcenter is also the first ground breaking at Miami Worldcenter since the start of the pandemic.
Adventist Health, Blue Zones, Accor Hotels and Royal Palm Companies have formed a partnership to build Legacy Tower at Miami Worldcenter, a $500 million tower in Downtown Miami. The property is the first COVID-conscious development, according to the developers, and it is the first ground breaking at Miami Worldcenter, a 27-acre community, since the start of the pandemic.
Once complete, Legacy Tower will be a 55-story tower with 310 MicroLuxe residences, 219 hotel rooms and 10-floors of medical facilities. The property is ready to take on another pandemic. According to Royal Palm Companies’ CEO, Daniel Kodsi, “Here you have a medical-wellness center, combined with a hotel, residences, all-in-one tower. This is, in essence, pandemic-ready. One day, in the future, you can shelter in-place right in the building.”
The anti-COVID features include hospital-grade ventilation systems and an effective air decontamination system, UV robots, touchless technology, voice-activated technology, water filtration system and antimicrobial material on all the furniture throughout the property. In addition, the property will have medical gases and ventilators onsite.
The onsite medical center also boosts the pandemic-friendly nature of the property. Called The Blue Zones Medical Center, the medical component alone represents a $100 million investment. The development team is aiming to build the “most technologically advanced health and well-being facility in the world.”
Downtown Miami has been a hotspot for development with several major announcements this year. New York-based developer Time Century Holdings entered the Miami market to transform the Metro Mall into a luxury jewelry center, for example. The developer secured a $23.6 million construction loan for the $50 million project through City National Bank of Florida.
The market has also had a surge in retail development. Marcus & Millichap’s second quarter 2021 outlook report forecasts nearly 1.5 million square feet of retail space will deliver into the market this year, the highest level since 2017.