RPC (Royal Palm Companies), the developer of Legacy Hotel & Residences in downtown Miami, has closed on a $340 million construction loan from New York City-based Silverstein Capital Partners.
The loan is the third largest construction loan in the state of Florida, following Acqualina and Five Park, and is SCP’s first construction loan in South Florida.
Legacy broke ground in August of this year in the heart of mega-project Miami Worldcenter (MWC), the second-largest urban development in the U.S. Legacy will offer 310-residences sitting atop a 219-room hotel. Legacy completed a $160 million sellout of the residences in less than 12 months and before groundbreaking, led by Peggy Olin, founder and CEO of OneWorld Properties. The development is expected to be completed in 2024.
“Silverstein Capital Partners brings the development know-how that that no other lender could bring us because they understand both the development and lending business,” said Daniel Kodsi, CEO and Developer of RPC. “Silverstein’s projects transform neighborhoods, so to come together as they break into the South Florida market for the first time with one of the largest loans in Miami history is reflective of potential of the product, the organizations behind it and most importantly Downtown Miami, set to be the next global destination of South Florida.”
“Legacy Hotel & Residences is a large-scale, world-class, mixed-use project that we are proud to put our name behind as it redefines wellness and hospitality,” said Michael May, President of Silverstein Capital Partners. “This loan fits SCP’s strategy of writing large loans on complicated developments with creative financial structuring.”
“The $340 million construction loan secured for Legacy at Miami Worldcenter is the latest sign that Miami’s real estate market is excelling at attracting capital as domestic and international business and wealth migration fuels sales. Legacy will be a premium condo hotel tower located at the heart of the mixed-use Miami Worldcenter development, offering residents and visitors direct access to the city’s premium restaurants, shops, cultural and entertainment venues, as well as multiple transit options within walking distance. As lenders and investors look for opportunities to direct capital to Miami and South Florida, developments with strong sponsors, significant pre-sales, and desirable locations will continue to be in high demand,” said Martin Schwartz and Anthony de Yurre, partners at Bilzin Sumberg, which represented the development team in the transaction.
Designed for the international and cosmopolitan traveler seeking a home away from home, Legacy Hotel & Residences aims to disrupt the condo space by introducing microLUXE living to Miami. The concept offers homeowners luxury small space living with the flexibility to live in or rent their home without rental restrictions, fulfilling the demand of a rapidly growing and more international downtown core.
The luxury skyscraper will also host ground-floor retail, five restaurant and bar concepts, downtown’s largest hotel pool deck set on one acre and the city’s first enclosed seven-story rooftop atrium with a restaurant bar and lounge, the city’s first Singapore-inspired cantilevered pool soaring 500 feet in the sky, and a members-only international business lounge.
Legacy will be home to the world’s first 10-floor $100 million Blue Zones Medical and Wellbeing Center. Blue Zones, acquired by Adventist Health in 2020, is a worldwide leader in transforming populations by empowering people to live longer, healthier, happier lives with stronger connections with the community. The Blue Zones Center will combine modern medicine, holistic healing, and the most sophisticated artificial intelligence and medical and wellness technology to its members, guests, visitors, residents, and employees. Most impressive is the Diagnostic Room, which will offer more than 15 tests to track one’s health from every angle – all intended to put health back in the people’s hands.
The loan helps brings to life a first-of-its-kind ‘pandemic-proof’ development where all aspects of the 50-floor tower, from the hotel rooms and residences to the five restaurants, to the design and programming, will follow Blue Zones methods. The joint venture between Legacy Medical Holdings and Adventist Health called Blue Legacy will run and operate the Center. The joint venture is the first step in turning Miami into the next Blue Zone city.
Accor will manage and operate the tower as part of the Morgan Original’s portfolio which will provide homeowners an exclusive membership to Accor’s Ownership Benefits Program, providing complimentary beach access at other Accor properties, priority reservations, perks, discounts and more.
RPC’s in-house design team tapped into top architecture and design firms to collaborate and help bring the tower to life including Miami-based, Kobi Karp Architects, Design Agency, and ID & Design International. For the Blue Zone Center, Legacy is working with top healthcare architecture firm, Perkins & Will, healthcare consulting firm Coker Group and Cactus, NY-based tech-driven design firm. The Blue Zone Center’s team of experts will be working together to ensure the entire property meets medical building and design standards that are typically unheard of for a traditional hotel.