October 16th, 2014
Panorama Tower: Miami’s first EB-5 designated development
By Angel Langston
Pictured (l-r) are City of Miami deputy city manager Alice Bravo, managing director of the City of Miami’s Office of international Business Development Mikki Canton, Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado, Florida East Coast Realty chair Tibor Hollo, Miami Commissioner Keon Hardemon, and Miami city manager Danny Alfonso.
Panorama Tower already is destined to be an iconic, global landmark. Rising 83 stories, making it the tallest residential building on the Eastern Seaboard south of New York City, the development now is making headlines for officially being announced as the City of Miami’s first EB-5 designated development.
Located at 1101 Brickell Ave. on the largest parcel of property in the heart of Brickell, Panorama Tower currently is under construction and, when complete, will rise 830 feet over Miami.
To mark the important announcement, City of Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado and other city officials joined Florida East Coast Realty (FECR) chair and president Tibor Hollo for a signing ceremony on Monday, Oct. 6, to announce Panorama Tower formally as the first development to be part of the City of Miami’s recently adopted EB-5 program.
“I am truly pleased and honored that Panorama Tower has been approved as the first development to take part in this exciting program with the City of Miami,” Hollo said. “We look forward to creating a landmark project of which the City of Miami and its citizens will be very proud.”
The City of Miami recently received approval for designation as an EB-5 Regional Center for Foreign Investment under the U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services immigrant investment visa program. The City of Miami EB-5 Regional Center includes the three main South Florida counties of Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach and is the only fully city owned, managed and operated regional center in the United States. It is not affiliated with any other regional centers in Florida. The mission of the City of Miami EB-5 Regional Center is to create thousands of jobs for local residents and strengthen economic growth in South Florida.
In order to fulfill its mission, the City of Miami will provide top quality foreign investment opportunities by carefully selecting only premiere projects to participate in the EB-5 Regional Center program. The city’s goal is to provide public/private partnership opportunities which directly benefit the community-at-large.
“First and foremost, the City of Miami is staying true to the intent and mission of the United States Citizen Immigration Services (USCIS) by offering top-tier EB-5 Regional Center projects to foreign investors which in turn will provide for the creation of thousands of jobs for our local residents. We are only as good as the quality of the projects we select to participate in our City of Miami EB- 5 Regional Center and are mindful of the confidence we must inspire through transparency, accountability and legal compliance,” said Mikki Canton, managing director of the City of Miami’s Office of International Business Development.
“We will live up to the trust bestowed upon our city by the United States Citizen Immigration Services (USCIS),” Miami Mayor Tomás P. Regalado said. “As the stewards of our USCIS’ designated City of Miami EB-5 Regional Center and on behalf of our city and the South Florida community, I welcome you to the City of Miami EB- 5 Regional Center. We are honored to be a part of a vision made reality and a legacy for generations to come.”
Panorama Tower is expected to cost over $800 million and bring a significant number of jobs to the area, including approximately 1,300 construction jobs necessary to build the new tower. The entire complex will have approximately 192 permanent management employees, 800 tenant employees, and 220 visiting students, making it the perfect development for the EB-5 program. The construction schedule calls for approximately three and a half years for ground-up completion of the new tower, which is planned for the beginning of 2018.
Developed by industry veteran Florida East Coast Realty, Panorama Tower’s 19- story pedestal will include over 100,000 square feet of medically oriented office space with a teaching facility. Underneath the medical facility will be a 2,000-car parking garage. Lining the garage to the east on Brickell Bay Drive will be a 208-room hotel. Further, both the ground floor and second level of the pedestal will include over 50,000 square feet of high-end retail outlets and restaurant space.
Directly on top of the pedestal will be the recreation deck, which will contain two social rooms; cardio room with over 100 exercise machines; weight room and fitness area; spa and steam room; spinning/training studio; serenity pool, recreational pool, and lap pool; interactive water features; large pool and sundeck areas; and pool deck restaurant. Under the recreation deck, the pedestal also will include a children’s playroom; home theater with seating for 80 people; two interactive cyber rooms; music room; billiard room; wine cellar; and kennel featuring both day-care services and overnight boarding for pets.
Above the pedestal will be the residential tower, consisting of 64 stories and 821 luxury rental apartments. Further, the 48th level of the tower will serve as an intermediate mechanical level in the center portion, while the ends of this floor will be home to one of the most well-known Latin American restaurants/clubs.
Being sensitive to the traffic patterns of Brickell Bay Drive, a private drive will be constructed off the public right-of-way to service the retail and hotel components. Also, recognizing the fact that no public access currently exists between 8th Street and 12th Street, a landscaped promenade on the north end of the property, featuring additional retail space, will connect Brickell Avenue and Brickell Bay Drive.
Lastly, in order to avoid any unnecessary exposure to the streets or the neighborhood, a service court will be created below the building for the various waste management and delivery trucks that periodically will need to access the property.
For more information on Florida East Coast Realty, visit www.fecr.com.