Welcome to NAI/Merin Hunter Codman's commercial real estate focused press releases, news pickups, market reports, transactions, property and social service event postings.
94% of teachers pay an average of $500-$1,000/year out of pocket on classroom and student supplies – The New York Times
At NAI/Merin Hunter
Codman, Inc. we take pride in supporting the communities that we live and
do business in. We’re writing today to ask for YOU to be a part of our
next community service project.
The South Florida Business Journal released their 2019 Power Leaders in Real Estate list, spotlighting 100 outstanding South Florida real estate professionals.
It’s no surprise that Neil made the list – along with our friend Jeremy Larkin, Co-chairman at NAI Miami. We want to extend a heartfelt congratulations to all of the professionals listed! Your hard work, expertise and determination have truly shined and we’re happy to recognize you as leaders in our market.
West Palm Beach, Fla. – NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, one of South Florida’s leading commercial real estate firms, has completed nearly 33,000-square-feet of lease transactions at 1EBroward on behalf of 1 E Broward Owner, LLC, who purchased the property in the fourth quarter of 2018. The property is a Class-A, 19-story, 351,705 square foot downtown Fort Lauderdale professional office building.
1 E Broward delivers Class-A Office Space in Downtown Fort Lauderdale
NAI/Merin Hunter Codman Chairman,
Neil E. Merin, SIOR, CCIM who leases the property with Associate, Maxwell Pawk
stated, “It is no secret the downtown Broward office market is exploding. 1 E
Broward is located on the hard corner of Andrews Avenue and Broward Boulevard,
a short walk, Uber or scooter ride from the Brightline station. Its location is
what drives interest in the property. It is the first-class amenities, like the
property’s shuttle service, concierge and state-of-the-art fitness center that
allow the property to edge above its competition.”
Recent lease transactions include:
17,000 SF lease renewal to national law firm, Hinshaw Culbertson
7,000 SF lease to Mystic Cruise Lines, the Portuguese cruise expedition company’s US headquarter location
5,200 SF lease to information and technology company, Beesion Technologies
2,200 SF lease to national general contractor, Falcon Construction
NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, Inc. and Tricera Capital had the honor of hosting the BDB‘s Commercial & Industrial Real Estate Round Table at the former Palm Beach Post building, now being rebranded as “The Press”. While there will be a retail/industrial component, Scott Sherman (Principal of Tricera) shared renovation plans for the office portion which will be called “Workplaces at The Press”. He detailed how the common areas will focus on fresh, innovative design that encourages community like flexible work and meeting spaces, pods/phone booths, and a lounge/event room. NAI/Merin Hunter Codman is excited to handle the property management and leasing assignment for this exciting new concept.
Rendering of proposed lobby renovation at “The Press”
The BDB shared their 2018-2019 fiscal and marketing goals, which includes creating new jobs, attracting capital investments and bringing more than 1 million square feet of newly leased/constructed space to the County. An exciting note mentioned was biotech company Beacon Pharmaceutical, which is planning to build a state-of-the-art life science/healthcare complex in Jupiter.
There’s a building boom in West Palm Beach, as more multifamily, hotel and office projects are built across the water from the billionaire playground of Palm Beach.
It’s easy to see why.
As many Florida municipalities aim to lure residents looking to relocate from higher-tax states, recent U.S. Census Bureau data shows that, compared with Miami-Dade and Broward counties, Palm Beach County has excelled at drawing residents from elsewhere in the U.S.
Experts credit its attractive housing values, lifestyle and growing accessibility to Fort Lauderdale and Miami for that uptick. It’s a combination that’s made West Palm Beach one of its fastest-growing cities.
West Palm Beach has better housing values compared to most of South Florida – without a lot of congestion, said Raphael Clemente, executive director of the West Palm Beach Downtown Development Authority. Expansion projects at its cultural venues, including the Norton Museum of Art and the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, have made the city more of a leisure destination.
Also, West Palm Beach is the northernmost stop – so far – of the Virgin Trains USA passenger rail that connects with Fort Lauderdale and Miami. So people can live in West Palm Beach at a lower cost, but still have easy access to the entertainment destinations of Miami and Fort Lauderdale – and, eventually, Orlando.
The city is also revamping Clematis Street, its dining and entertainment district right near the train station, which could draw more Miami and Fort Lauderdale residents north.
“West Palm Beach has lagged Miami in terms of development and is starting to catch up a bit,” said Gopal Rajegowda, senior VP at the Related Cos., owner of Rosemary Square in the city. “While Miami might be overbuilt in some categories, West Palm Beach has a huge runway for more buildings to happen downtown.”
It’s been over a decade since a major Class A office building was delivered in downtown West Palm Beach, but two are now under construction, with a combined 502,000 square feet coming to market, according to NAI Merin Hunter Codman.
The Related Cos., led by billionaire Miami Dolphins owner Stephen M. Ross, is building an office complex at Rosemary Square, its mixed-use project formerly known as CityPlace. Billionaire Jeff Greene will include offices in his mixed-use One West Palm, slated to be the tallest building in Palm Beach County.
Many companies are looking to relocate to West Palm Beach, and the 360 Rosemary building will provide a modern building a short walk from the Virgin Trains station, Rajegowda said. Related Cos. is also completing common area improvements to Rosemary Square, and will soon break ground on an apartment tower.
Comvest Partners is the first tenant to sign a lease at 360 Rosemary.
Greene said the heavy preleasing activity for One West Palm probably won’t start until the building is about a year from completion.
“This is not a big preleasing town,” Greene said. “It’s smaller firms looking for 3,000 to 7,000 square feet.”
When you consider the new buildings and 285,000 square feet of vacant Class A space downtown, there’s a huge amount of office space to absorb over the next few years, said Neil Merin, chairman of NAI/Merin Hunter Codman. The two new buildings may attract tenants, but it will be at the expense of the older office buildings, he added.
“I wouldn’t want to buy an office building in downtown West Palm Beach now, thinking I can raise rents,” Merin said. “Because they are building on cash, they can undercut the market on rent.”
The Bristol Palm Beach has raised the bar for West Palm Beach condo prices, and inspired more developers to target the city.
The 69-unit Bristol smashed the city’s price record in March by selling a full-floor penthouse for $42.56 million. The prices per square foot there are comparable to Miami Beach.
For years, Palm Beach owned the luxury home market, and wealthy buyers wouldn’t consider West Palm Beach – but that has changed, said Taylor Collins, managing partner of West Palm Beach-based condo builder Two Roads Development. The Bristol proved wealthy buyers will pay premium prices for high-end projects downtown, he said.
The island of Palm Beach has virtually no land left for condo development, so most of the existing condo buildings are decades old, Collins said.
“If you want a new high-rise condo, the only place to get it is West Palm Beach,” Collins said.
Two Roads Development plans to launch sales this fall for the Forte, a 48-unit condominium along the Intracoastal Waterway. Collins said units at Forte will range from the high $3 millions to $8 million. The buyers are mostly Palm Beach homeowners seeking to downsize from their mansions and wealthy people relocating from the Northeast, he said.
Great Gulf has already started construction on the 84-unit La Clara, also along the water.
In addition to the condos, there are 1,069 apartments completed or under construction downtown, according to NAI/Merin Hunter Codman.
West Palm Beach has three hotels with a combined 602 rooms under construction downtown – the Canopy Hotel, the Ben, and a hotel in One West Palm.
“West Palm Beach is offering people an alternative for a staycation,” Merin said. “It’s seen as a cool coastal downtown area with activities on the water.”
Greene, who owns a Ramada Inn in the city, is concerned hotels are overbuilt there so new hotels will take business from older hotels. However, Greene’s confident the hotel he’s building at One West Palm will do well as the only Five Star hotel in the city, he said.
Business at the Related Cos.-owned Hilton Hotel connected to the Palm Beach County Convention Center has exceeded expectations, Rajegowda said. With demand for conventions exceeding capacity for rooms, they are considering a 250-room addition to the hotel, he said.
“When the Brightline [Virgin Trains] connects to Orlando, we will tap into a significant tourist base,” Rajegowda said. “The tourist who goes to Disney will have an easy way to stop in West Palm Beach for a few days.”
Hats off to Neil E. Merin, SIOR, CCIM and Jason L. Sundook, SIOR who represented the buyer in the $8.5 million sale of Commerce Pointe Gold, a 99% occupied, 43,433 SF office building at 1800 S Australian Avenue in West Palm Beach. The property previously sold for $4.3 million in 2011.
Commerce Pointe Gold is adjacent to I-95 and minutes from everything that downtown West Palm Beach has to offer including Brightline, Rosemary Square and the Flagler Financial District, offering an ideal location for Palm Beach County professionals.
More details, courtesy of Commercial Property Executive: View Link | View PDF
Mystic Cruises, a recently acquired brand of Portuguese travel and tourism company Mystic Invest, has chosen 1 E Broward for their American headquarters. The new cruise line focuses on offering Polar expeditions with destinations including Iceland, Greenland, Antarctica, and Europe.
Mystic Cruises inaugurated their first ship in April 2019, the newly built World Explorer, and have two more ice-class ships in the works: World Voyager and World Navigator.
Maxwell Pawk, Commercial Associate for NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, arranged the 7,000 SF lease at 1 E Broward in downtown Fort Lauderdale along with Chairman, Neil E. Merin, SIOR, CCIM. South Florida was an ideal location for the company’s headquarters and the building offers unbeatable amenities for work-life balance including an on-site fitness center, restaurants, shuttle service and more. 1 E Broward’s premier location in Fort Lauderdale’s Central Business District is close to everything the area has to offer.
We’re happy to welcome Mystic Cruises to the 1 E Broward roster and look forward to seeing their continued expansion!
Are you in need of office space? NAI/Merin Hunter Codman is one of South Florida’s leading commercial real estate firms and the largest in Palm Beach County. We have over three decades of experience advising clients on strategic acquisitions and dispositions and providing landlord representation, tenant representation, property management, and construction management services. The firm has expertise in all commercial property sectors including office, retail, industrial, multifamily, hotels, and land. To learn more about our services click here.
Vinceremos Therapeutic Riding Center is nestled on 15 acres in Loxahatchee and uses the healing power of horses to help disabled clients conquer challenges, gain independence and achieve a higher quality of life.
Vinceremos itself means “to overcome” or “to conquer” in Latin and it sure has come a long way since its founder, Ruth Menor, started the idea in the backyard of a friend’s home with one client and one horse. Today the non-profit has over a dozen horses, a 24-stall “Da Amici” barn, and a 45,000 SF covered arena. The facility was made possible largely through the generosity of donors.
Volunteers are also an essential part of the organization and help in a variety of areas including horse care and barn chores, supporting lessons, assisting with office work and more. Our REAL Leaders were lucky enough to have volunteered here a few years ago and a new group was so happy to be able to assist again. On Friday, May 17th our volunteers assisted with barn chores and facility maintenance. They left with full hearts and the satisfaction of a morning well-spent.
Click here for more information about programs, eligibility and how you can help.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (May 10, 2019) – A collection of
some of Florida’s leading commercial and residential real estate developers,
architects, and urban planning experts gathered today to speak to a crowd of
almost 300 about real estate trends, opportunities and related issues at the
Urban Land Institute (ULI) West Palm Beach Development and Investment Forum at
the Hilton West Palm Beach.
Chairman Neil Merin, of NAI/Merin Hunter Codman,
kicked off the three-hour program by itemizing the highlights of more than $3
billion worth of new investment in West Palm Beach either underway or planned.
This includes 2,336 hotel rooms, 3,520 residential units, 1,310,000 sq.
ft. of new Class A office space and Hospital for Special Surgery’s first
expansion outside its home base in New York. These investments are
“game-changers for the city,” according to Raphael Clemente, executive director
of the West Palm Beach Downtown Development Authority, a co-sponsor of the
event with ULI. “The entire city is flourishing, and downtown development is
the most intense it’s been since the days of Henry Flagler. The big difference
is that today, our planners are steering the kind of growth that advances the
quality of life for all.”
“All of the new Class A office space will help stabilize rates and allow us to fulfill the demand from out-of-market companies looking to locate here,” Merin said. The new residential units and major commercial projects have contributed to a recent increase in the city’s tax base of 13.5 percent, he added, a number that is expected to keep rising. He also cited the extensive recent upgrades to some of the city’s cultural institutions bringing them to world-class levels, especially the Norton Museum of Art and the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts. “Investment in arts and culture adds real value to the continued viability of the real estate market. There is a direct correlation.” (Click here to view a slideshow of his presentation.)
NAI/Merin Hunter Codman’s bi-monthly Property Management Team Meeting for April was held at the UTC Center for Intelligent Buildings, a first-of-its-kind technology, innovation and collaboration center showcasing cutting edge products and integrated systems, located in Palm Beach Gardens.
A personalized one-hour tour through the building provided an interactive experience revealing the unseen – taking critical building technologies that are typically hidden and making them visible and interactive. They were able to interact with displays that highlighted United Technologies brands from tech, HVAC, elevators, fire and security systems, and building automation. The team also learned about all the various sustainability efforts adopted at the building from solar to reclaimed water, to seeking LEED Platinum certification by the U.S. Green Council.
The UTC Center for Intelligent Buildings is more than a high-tech, modern work-space. It’s a living showcase of what’s possible when technology is implemented intelligently and integrated to increase efficiency, protect people and property, and enhance the occupant experience.
NAI/Merin Hunter Codman prides itself on our reputation for well marketed, maintained and managed properties. Tours like this enable our Property Management Team to understand new, efficient ways to improve our services to landlords and tenants alike. We offer comprehensive property management services for office, industrial, retail and corporate facilities, ensuring that day-to-day operations are smooth and seamless. Click here to learn more about our Property Management services.
