RadioShack store in Miami (Source: Yelp.com)

The parent company of RadioShack filed for bankruptcy and plans to close about 200 stores, and Staples Inc. announced plans to close about 70 stores.

Neither national retailer identified which stores will be closed.

Their websites show that RadioShack has 24 stores in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties, and Staples has 11 stores in tri-county South Florida.

RadioShack’s corporate company, General Wireless Operations Inc., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Wednesday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

The company will close about 200 of its 1,500 RadioShack store while evaluating options for the other 1,300 stores.

General Wireless, which acquired RadioShack in April 2015, plans to sell RadioShack store leases at auction and has retained A&G Realty Partners to assist.

Staples store in Miami

The privately held parent company also announced that a list of RadioShack store leases to be auctioned will be posted at www.agrealtypartners.com. The list hadn’t been posted as of 5:30 p.m. Saturday.

Staples announced plans to sell about 70 stores in a financial report for its fiscal fourth quarter, ended January 28. The retailer of office supplies and equipment reported a fourth-quarter loss of $615 million from continuing operations.

Staples said in a filing Thursday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that the 70 store closings planned this year would follow the closures of 48 stores in 2016 and 242 stores in 2015 and 2014 combined.

The Hollywood Beach Resort at 101 North Ocean Drive in Hollywood

Miami-based Related Group may buy out condo owners at Hollywood Beach Resort and redevelop the aging, mixed-use property with hotel rooms, residences and commercial space.

The landmark property, built in 1925 by Hollywood founder Joseph Young, has a beachfront location where the eastern end of Hollywood Boulevard intersects State Road A1A.

Clotilda Sepe, a retired accountant who has owned a condo at Hollywood Beach Resort since 1990, told the Sun-Sentinel that Related Group has circulated offers to buy out the owners of condos in order to redevelop the property.

Two weeks ago, Related informed the condo owners that 60 percent of them were willing to sell their units, Sepe told the newspaper.

Sepe also told the Sun-Sentinel that Related probably will succeed in buying most of the condos at Hollywood Beach Resort because “they are offering a fair price” and because the resort has building code violations that will cost $10 million to fix. “If we don’t sell out to Related, we are going to get hit with a huge assessment,” Sepe told the newspaper.

A spokeswoman for Related Group declined to comment.

Hollywood Beach Resort, which spans a 10-acre parcel at 101 North Ocean Drive, has multiple owners, including 360 condo owners and 36 timeshare owners. A two-story retail building on the property has two different owners.

A parking garage on the property has yet another owner, who is represented by Lon Tabatchnick, the developer of the Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort at 1111 North Ocean Drive.

Tabatchnick told the Sun-Sentinel that Hollywood Beach Resort is “in a state of disrepair” with a “failing condominium in the middle of the property,” and most of the commercial space there is either “closed or failing.” [Sun-Sentinel] — Mike Seemuth

Central Baptist Church at 501 North Miami Avenue in Miami (Source: Wikipedia)

A Turkish company paid $18.1 million for part of a parking lot near the historic Central Baptist Church in Miami.

Istanbul-based Okan Group plans to build a mixed-use development on the 37,500-square-foot site.

Okan bought part of the church’s parking lot, not the church itself, a neo-classical structure at 501 North Miami Avenue with a listing on the National Register of Historic Places.

Engin Yergin and Steven Brodsky of Common Capital Partners represented Okan in the $18.1 million transaction. Joel Rodriguez of Global Investments Realty represented the church.

Yergin told the South Florida Business Journal the 37,500-square-foot site is zoned for a 1,000-foot-tall building and could have as much as 1.3 million square feet of space for retail stores, offices, hotel rooms and condos.

Yergin also told the business journal that the site’s location is “the epicenter of future development in Miami.” It is just south of the 27-acre Miami Worldcenter mixed-use development and several blocks east of the site of a Brightline and TriRail passenger train station now under construction. [South Florida Business Journal] — Mike Seemuth

The hhgregg store at 20841 State Road 7 in Boca Raton (Source: Yelp)

Investment research firm Morningstar Credit Ratings identified 10 commercial real estate loans with a heightened default risk since retailer hhgregg Inc. filed for bankruptcy, including a loan of almost $7 million on an hhgregg store in Boca Raton.

The Indianapolis-based retailer of appliances and electronics filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy March 6, just days after announcing plans to close 88 stores including 11 in South Florida, plus a distribution center in Miami and two other locations.

The bankruptcy filing raised the default risk on $156.8 million of loans in the form of commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) on 10 properties where hhgregg has been operating, according to Morningstar.

Morningstar also reported that hhgregg is the sole occupant of its location in Boca Raton, the collateral for a CMBS loan with an outstanding balance of $6.96 million. The retailer’s address in Boca Raton is 20841 State Road 7, according to its website.

All of the other nine CMBS loans that Morningstar red-flagged are backed by retail properties where the loss of hhgregg as a tenant wiould lower the occupancy rate below 80 percent, “our threshold for at-risk occupancy,” the Chicago-based investment research firm reported.

The Orchid Grove apartment complex in Homestead, one of four with inflated project costs, according to prosecutors.

Federal prosecutors won a $5.2 million settlement after accusing a South Florida construction company of stealing federal money by inflating the cost of housing projects for low-income residents.

Five partners behind the now-closed construction company, called DAXC, avoided federal charges but agreed to pay the seven-figure settlement to the federal government to resolve the case through a deferred prosecution agreement, the  Miami Herald reported.

Louis Wolfson III, Mitchell Friedman, David Deutch, Michael Wohl, and Felix Braverman were partners in DAXC, a construction company headed by Braverman and affiliated with Miami-based Pinnacle Housing Group.

Pinnacle formed DAXC in 2009 and went on to qualify for tax credits from the Florida Housing Finance Corporation for four apartment complexes for low-income tenants, three in South Florida and one in Central Florida: Cypress Grove in Winter Haven, Vista Mar in Miami, Orchid Grove in Homestead, and Avery Glen in Sunrise.

“Recently, the federal government contacted Pinnacle about DAXC, and indicated that profits generated by DAXC on these four developments were unwarranted,” Pinnacle said in a company statement. “Upon learning of this, DAXC voluntarily returned the profits along with a fine, thus concluding the inquiry.”

In a deal with prosecutors, the five uncharged partners behind Pinnacle’s DAXC affiliate agreed to pay a $1 million fine to the government and to repay $3.4 million of inflated federal tax credits plus $800,000 in fees for development and construction of the four low-income apartment projects. [Miami Herald] — Mike Seemuth

Pierre Carreau

From the New York site: A lavish Caribbean estate with a private beach and coconut grove has come onto the market for $67 million.

Originally built by banker and businessman Benjamin de Rothschild, the so-called “Girasol” is set on more than seven acres of land on the Caribbean island of Saint Barthélemy, or St. Barts.

Its current owner is former hedge fund manager Bruce Kovner, who bought the estate in 2005 and gave it a major makeover, adding in a new pool and deck. The property includes two villas that have a total of six bedrooms and two pools.

Christian Wattiau of Sibarth Real Estate has the listing, while Christie’s International Real Estate is providing global marketing services.

Let’s take a tour of the incredible estate.

Girasol is set on seven acres of land on Marigot Beach in St. Barts and includes 175 yards of private beachfront. According to the listing, these waters are classified as a natural protected area.

Pierre Carreau

“Girasol truly is a work of art with every detail perfectly and meticulously executed. The setting is truly a paradise, graced with the sounds and floral aromas which define St. Barth’s living,” Rick Moeser, executive director of Christie’s International Real Estate, said in a press release.

Pierre Carreau

A view from above shows its two mini mansions nestled in the middle of a green oasis that is home to nearly 600 different plant species.

Pierre Carreau

The two villas are hidden behind a coconut grove.

Pierre Carreau

The main villa has a modern feel to it. In the main room, Kovner’s private collection of art lines the walls.

Pierre Carreau

The main suite has a lounge area with deep sofas and armchairs.

Pierre Carreau

Attached to the master bedroom is a marbled bathroom, which overlooks the lush greenery.

Pierre Carreau

The three bedrooms in the main villa are connected to mini terraces decorated with plants and bordered by Japanese basins.

Pierre Carreau

The villa also has its own private pool, which is 10 foot deep. Next to the pool is a fitness room with a cross trainer, bicycle, and treadmill.

Pierre Carreau

The second villa, known as the Caribbean Villa, is a separate guest house that has three large bedrooms. The main lounge looks out onto the private pool through large open doors.

Pierre Carreau

The pool has an uninterrupted view of the crystal waters and out across the bay towards Turtle Island.

Pierre Carreau

The interior is made with exotic Brazilian wood.

Pierre Carreau

Each of the three large bedrooms has an ensuite lava-stone bathroom.

Pierre Carreau

“Whether entertaining guests or enjoying immediate family, the estate will serve as a haven for its new owners,” Moeser said.

Pierre Carreau

An elvevated stilt house on Big Pine Key (Credit: Nancy Klingener / WLRN )

Monroe County may raise the maximum heights of buildings in such unincorporated areas as Key Largo and the Lower Florida Keys.

The county proposal is a response to more frequent flooding, ongoing sea level rise, and costly property insurance.

Maximum building heights in Monroe would rise by up to three feet for new homes. Owners of existing homes in unincorporated areas would be permitted to raise their property’s height by up to five feet.

Forty feet would be the maximum building height under the new county rule, if they’re implemented.

The Monroe County Commission is preparing for upcoming public hearings on the proposed building-height increase in Key Largo and Marathon.

The height increase would constitute an amendment to the county’s land use plan, and it would be subject to state review because the state has designated the Florida Keys as an “Area of Critical State Concern.”

Key West residents voted in 2014 to increase the maximum height of buildings by four feet. [WLRN] —  Mike Seemuth

A Publix store

Lakeland-based Publix Super Markets increased the percentage of company-owned stores in its grocery chain for the tenth year in a row in 2016 to almost 30 percent, the Palm Beach Post reported. Store acquisitions increased the company-owned percentage to 29.1 percent at the end of 2016 from 25.9 percent a year earlier.

An analysis by the Post shows that only 10.7 percent of Publix stores were owned by the company in 2006. The newspaper analyzed annual reports that Publix must file with the Securities & Exchange Commission because of the large amount of Publix stock owned by the company’s employee stock ownership program. In its 2016 annual report, Publix said it netted $2 billion of earnings on $34 billion of revenue last year.  [Palm Beach Post] — Mike Seemuth

VistaBlue Singer Island

The developer of a condominium on Singer Island in Riviera Beach has topped off the 19-story building and expects construction to conclude by January 2018.

The developer, Third Palm Capital, also announced plans to open four fully furnished units for prospective buyers to tour while construction of VistaBlue Singer Island continues.

VistaBlue will have 58 units priced from $1.4 million to almost $8 million for penthouses.

“Sales continue to be brisk as prospective buyers are able to see firsthand the high-quality workmanship,’ Randall Tuller, executive director of Third Palm, said in a prepared statement.

The project’s architect is GliddenSpina, and its interior design firm is Interiors by Steven G. Realty firm Douglas Elliman is marketing VistaBlue.

VistaBlue’s common-area amenities will include an elevated pool terrace overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, a fitness center with saunas, a social lounge, two bars and two gas-fire pits. The condo units feature wrap-around terraces, floor-to-ceiling windows, and kitchens with Poggenpohl cabinets and Miele appliances.

Rendering of Seaglass Tower

A Texas real estate developer proposed building a riverfront observation tower in Jacksonville at a height of 1,000 feet, which would make it the tallest building in Florida.

Dallas-based Presidium Group proposed building an art museum and an aquarium together with a steel-and-glass observation tower called Seaglass Tower.

The proposed development Is one of three for city-owned land along the St. Johns River in Jacksonville.

The city issued a notice in January stating it would accept development proposals for the land until March 8. The top-ranked developer would negotiate a project agreement with Jacksonville’s Downtown Investment Authority.

Shad Khan, owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars professional football team, last week proposed developing a hotel and convention center on the land, which encompasses a public park and a boat repair business called The Shipyards.

Another Texas-based real estate company called Wess Holdings also proposed a project for the city-owned land in Jacksonville and plans to disclose details of its proposal this week.

The City of Jacksonville will release details of the three proposals by April 10. [WKCT] – Mike Seemuth

Rendering of Sefira Capital’s 247-unit apartment development in Jacksonville

Miami-based Sefira Capital LLC and a partner began construction of a $49 million apartment development in Jacksonville.

Sefira and Atlanta-based Tribridge Residential broke ground for the not-yet-named, 247-unit apartment project on a 9.06-acre site opposite a regional open-air mall called St. John’s Town Center.

“The site is located in absolutely prime real estate. Within a few steps, there’s access to the most exciting retail and entertainment in Jacksonville,” Sefira partner Mijael Attias said in a prepared statement.

The Jacksonville apartment project is located in a mixed-use development called Town Center Promenade, which also is near eight million square feet of office space, the University of North Florid and interstates.

The project team includes Dwell Design Studio LLC of Atlanta, the architect and interior designer, and Prosser Inc. of Jacksonville, the civil engineer.

Attias and Aby Galsky formed Sefira Capital in September 2015 to establish a Miami-based investment boutique platform to acquire and develop commercial real estate.

Atlanta-based TriBridge Residential is a multifamily property owner, operator and developer with more than 10,000 units under management.

Dwell Nona Place in Orlando

A Boca Raton-based senior vice president of debt broker Meridian Capital Group helped to arrange $34.5 million of construction takeout financing for a multifamily development in Orlando.

Boca-based Max Beyderman and another senior vice president of Meridian, New Jersey-based David Cohen, negotiated the loan on behalf of The Klein Company.

Capital One Multifamily Finance made the seven-year Freddie Mac loan with a fixed interest rate of 4.07 percent and a repayment schedule that includes a year of interest-only payments.

The lender provided the construction takeout financing for a 274-unit, low-rise apartment development called Dwell Nona Place at 10207 Dwell Court in southeast Orlando.

The Klein Company developed Dwell Nona Place and recently completed the lease-up of the property, which features such amenities as cabanas, walking trails and a 10,000-square-foot clubhouse.

“We were able to capitalize on a dip in U.S. Treasuries to secure very efficiently priced long-term debt at the same time that the property began exhibiting its full potential,” Cohen said in a prepared statement.

Since inception in 1991, New York City-based Meridian has closed more than $270 billion in financing with a variety of lenders  including local, regional and national banks, CMBS lenders, agency lenders, mortgage REITs, life insurance companies, credit unions and private equity funds.

President Donald Trump and New York City Hotels (Credit: Getty Images)

From the New York site: With growing fears Trump’s policies will adversely affect visitor numbers, U.S. hotel operators are launching international campaigns aimed at convincing the world that America is still open for business.

Overall, 2 million fewer overseas visitors are expected to visit the U.S. in 2017, according to data from travel consulting group Tourism Economics cited by the Wall Street Journal reported. It will be the first time the country has seen declines in foreign visitors since 2009, and major cities like New York City and Los Angeles are expected to be the hardest hit. Tourism Economics predicts the direct economic losses from the decline to be about $2.4 billion in 2017, although the U.S. hotel industry is yet to make any projections.

Experts have said international fears about the Trump administration’s proposed travel restrictions — coupled with the strong American dollar — is making the United States less appealing to visitors.

New York City’s tourism and marketing organization NYC & Co., for example, is launching a $3 million international billboard and social media campaign called “New York City — Welcoming the World.” It will be rolled out this month in the U.K., followed by Germany, Spain and Mexico. The city is projected the number of foreign visitors will drop by 300,000, a figure that was cut after the travel restrictions were first imposed earlier this year. In LA, the city is predicting barely any growth in international travel this year, caused mainly because a decline of nearly 100,000 visitors from Mexico.

Fred Dixon, CEO of NYC & Co., said that after the war in Iraq began in 2003, the city lost 1 million visitors, thanks largely to negative sentiment towards to the U.S.

“Words matter, and policies have an impact on people’s perceptions of a destination,” Dixon told the newspaper.

However, White House spokesperson told the Journal in a statement that it’s not surprising that New York and Los Angeles are “generally not supportive of the president’s agenda,” are “trying to make something out of nothing on this.” She added that “the president is confident that the United States will remain a hub of international tourism.” [WSJ] — Miriam Hall

Rendering of American Dream Miami

The South Florida Regional Planning Council voted Friday to submit to state regulators the developer’s application to build the proposed American Dream Miami shopping mall in north Miami-Dade County.

The advisory council’s unanimous vote pushed the big mall project a step closer to a decisive vote by the Miami-Dade County Commission to change the county’s comprehensive master plan for development to accommodate American Dream Miami, which would span six million square feet and would be the biggest mall in the nation.

In late January, Miami-Dade commissioners gave preliminary approval to a comprehensive master plan amendment for the nearly 195-acre development site.

Elected officials in Broward County joined in the South Florida Regional Planning Council’s unanimous vote Friday after pressing for more power in approving the mall development, which would unfold a mile south of Broward’s border with Miami-Dade and would attract about 70,000 daily vehicle trips. Elected officials in Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe counties comprise the membership of the planning council.

Broward officials said traffic-mitigation efforts by the mall’s developer should focus not only on Miami-Dade but also Broward because the development siteis a mile south of the county line, next to the interchange of Florida’s Turnpike and Interstate 75.

The regional planning council agreed to direct the mall’s developer to complete its analysis of American Dream’s impact on traffic congestion and to identify ways to mitigate the traffic impact on Broward County.

Triple Five, the developer of American Dream and the owner of the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, is planning to add or expand several intersections of roads around the development site and to install pickup and drop-off facilities on the property for bus passengers.

American Dream Miami will feature such non-traditional mall attractions as an aquarium with submarine rides and an indoor ski slope. [Miami Herald] – Mike Seemuth

625 Flagler Drive in West Palm Beach (Credit: Chris Salata/Capehart)

Berkadia arranged a $22.49 million bridge loan to the new owners of the former Bank of America office building in West Palm Beach.

Berkadia, a joint venture of Berkshire Hathaway and Leucadia National Corporation, secured the three-year, adjustable-rate loan to help the owners of the office building convert the property primarily to medical use.

Late last year, Bank of America vacated about 40,000 square feet of the 110,000-square-foot building at 625 North Flagler Drive in West Palm Beach.

The building, which opened in 1984, is located at the West Palm Beach entrance of the recently reopened Flagler Memorial Bridge to the town of Palm Beach.

FRI Investors acquired the building in an all-cash transaction after Bank of America relocated to a nearby office building late last year.

FRI Investors will use the $22.49 million loan from PCCP, LLC, to renovate and reposition the former Bank of America building, which is now 50 percent occupied. Recently signed medical tenants include Mount Sinai Hospital and Jupiter Medical Center.

Charles Foschini and Christopher Apone of Berkadia’s South Florida office arranged the loan on behalf of FRI Investors, led by chief principal Michael McCloskey. Foschini is a senior managing director of Berkadia, and Apone is a managing director.

“The new owners now have the necessary capital to execute their business plan of developing a medical or quasi-medical building,” Apone said in a prepared statement.

Dynamic Tower (credit: Dynamic Architecture via YouTube)

From LLNYC: The city that has the tallest tower in the world, the largest indoor theme park in the world, Uber for yachts, passenger-carrying drones, may be getting  a rotating residential tower. [more]

Current reader favorites:

1. Downtown Miami to see nearly 3,500 new condos delivered in 2017 as resale pricing falls: report
2. Fort Lauderdale development likely to intensify south of New River: panel
3. Sneak peek of the Four Seasons Hotel and Residences at The Surf Club: PHOTOS
4. Sea levels are rising, so developers and governments need to band together: panel
5. Icon South Beach renter pursues class action lawsuit against condo association over application fees

1 Casuarina Concourse and Alan Potamkin

Auto magnate Alan Potamkin has sold his estate in Coral Gables for $43.7 million, marking the priciest sale in Miami-Dade County so far this year.

Records show One Casuraina LP, a Delaware entity with the address of the home, 1 Casuarina Concourse in Coral Gables, bought the property. It is unclear who the buyer is.

Both Potamkin and his wife Brigitt Rok Potamkin are listed as the sellers.

After listing the massive, 3.6-acre waterfront estate at 1 Casuarina Concourse in Gables Estates for $67 million in May 2015, Potamkin had decided to list the home on its own for $49 million in February 2016, with the option to buy the adjacent lot, which had been part of the same parcel.

The current sale appears to represent the entire property, which includes a 20,682-square-foot home on a 157,138-square foot lot with 937 feet of water frontage. The sale price equates to $2,113 for the home. Records show Potamkin paid $2.019 million for the property in 1987.

Coldwell Banker’s Jill Eber and Jill Hertzberg of the Jills had the listing.

Potamkin, who also has a residence in Aspen, had been living in the Gables Estates mansion with Brigitt Rok Potamkin, a psychologist who is Miami real estate investor Sergio Rok’s ex-wife.

She is listed on the deed as Potamkin’s spouse, and the couple’s current address is 9701 Collins Avenue, unit 2703S, which is the St. Regis in Bal Harbour. Penthouse South LLC, linked to Venturah Developments Limited, paid $5.4 million for the three-bedroom, three-and-half-bath unit in 2013. It is unclear if that company is tied to Potamkin.

Built in 2000, the Casuarina Concourse home’s three levels include a main floor with both a chef’s and separate family kitchen, a formal dining room with a 1,500-bottle wine room, a family room, corporate office with private bath, “a his office/den and hers office/library,” children’s playroom, three powder rooms and a guest bedroom and bath. Additional amenities include an elevator, three fireplaces, two built-in saltwater aquariums and an aviary.

Potamkin designed the mansion to include a lower level with a large game/billiard room with kitchenette, full gym, boxing room, massage room, two-bedroom nanny’s quarters, staff room and break room with kitchen, and an attached guest apartment with master bedroom, guest bedroom, office, kitchen, laundry area and separate entrance.

The estate’s grounds include a koi pond, lighted tennis/basketball court and a cabana with mini-kitchen, full bath and storage closet that could be converted to guest quarters. A heated pool and spa overlook the bay, and the 100-foot-long dock can accommodate boats up to 130 feet long.

From the New York magazine’s March issue:  Though residential real estate firms have been savvy about the importance of social media — and poured considerable resources into it — for at least the past decade, the competency and effectiveness of each firm’s and broker’s tweets, snapchats, instagrams and Facebook posts can vary widely.

Some, like Douglas Elliman’s Fredrik Eklund, have taken to it like a duck to water, while others seem not to grasp the difference between Twitter and a traditional advertising platform, logging on only grudgingly to promote their listings. [more]

Douglas Elliman opened its 19th office in the state in late February as the firm continues its expansion in Florida.

More than 150 agents, clients and guests attended the celebration, which Elliman hosted with the Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce.

Douglas Elliman acquired Tauriello & Co. Real Estate in November. Tauriello & Co. founder Sue Tauriello launched the firm in 2000, and by last year had 60 agents, all of whom joined Elliman as part of the new office.

Ingrid Carlos, manager of Douglas Elliman’s Boca Raton office, is the managing broker of the new Delray Beach operation. Elliman’s Florida CEO Jay Parker said last year that the office will expand with another 1,000 square feet of leased space and plans to boost its number of agents. – Katherine Kallergis