Waldorf Astoria Supertall Lands Florida's Largest Construction Loan Ever
Construction on the tallest residential building south of New York City is expected to go vertical this weekend, after its developers locked in a $668M construction loan.
Property Markets Group and its partners secured financing from Bank OZK and Related Fund Management to build the Waldorf Astoria Hotel & Residences Miami. The debt for the 1,049-foot-tall property breaks a record set in February for the largest single-tower construction loan in Florida history.
PMG, which has offices in New York and Miami, is partnering on the supertall with Canadian private equity firm Greybrook, global investment company Mohari Hospitality, Aventura-based S2 Development and Hilton Hotels.
“This project’s success cannot be credited to one person or firm, as it was nothing short of a herculean effort by a collective of so many individuals to bring Waldorf Astoria Hotel & Residences Miami to fruition,” PMG Managing Partner Ryan Shear said in a statement.
The Waldorf Astoria Hotel & Residences Miami, located on the northern edge of Bayfront Park at 300 Biscayne Blvd., is scheduled for delivery in the second quarter of 2028. More than 90% of its 387 condos are sold more than three years after sales first launched, according to a release. Its units are listed for as much as $90M.
The tower appears to be broken into offset cubes, a design born of a collaboration between Sieger Suarez Architects and renowned architect Carlos Ott. It will also include a 205-key luxury hotel.
Vertical construction is set to kick off this weekend with a 36-hour continuous pour of 1,400 cubic yards of concrete by general contractor John Moriarty & Associates and concrete firm Capform, according to the release.
PMG paid $80M for the 2-acre site in November 2014, property records show. The seller was a father-son partnership between Mauricio Cohen Assor and Leon Cohen-Levy, who had planned two supertall towers at the site before heading to jail for tax evasion.
PMG is one of the most active developers in Miami, with luxury condo and apartment projects like the E11even Hotel & Residences in Downtown Miami and Society-branded buildings in Wynwood and Fort Lauderdale. Its next Fort Lauderdale project with Greybrook also landed financing from Related Fund Management last year.
The construction debt was brokered by a JLL team of Christopher Peck, Chris Drew, Brian Baswirth, Jimmy Calvo and Mateo Bolivar. PMG and Greybrook were also represented by the New York-based law firm Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel and Saul Ewing.
Bank OZK is by far the most active construction lender in the U.S., and its CEO, George Gleason, told Bisnow in May that it plans to grow “as big as it can be while maintaining discipline.”
Its concentration in commercial real estate loans drew scrutiny from a Citigroup analyst last month, which downgraded the bank's stock from a “buy” to a “sell.” Its share price has fallen by more than 20% over the past month.
“We are delighted to finance another project for a quality sponsor like PMG,” Bank OZK President Brannon Hamblen said in a statement. “The premier nature of this mixed-use development, strong unit pre-sales, substantial equity investment, low leverage and sole senior secured position are all consistent with our lending strategy.”
Miami is now the biggest market on Little Rock, Arkansas-based Bank OZK's loan book, surpassing New York City.
CORRECTION, JUNE 14, 1:20 P.M. ET: An earlier version of this article misidentified the property site. The story has been updated.
