MIAMI—A bit of Asia is coming to Miami – at least in terms of retail real estate development trends.
The announcement by Miami-based Swire Properties Inc. and Whitman Family Development that Saks Fifth Avenue will be the sole retail anchor at their $1 billion Brickell City Centre, certainly is a testament to the growing need for luxury retail in this gateway city.
“In keeping with our strategy to take Saks Fifth Avenue to the single most fashionable and global shopping destination, we want to cater directly to our international clientele from this location. Brickell City Centre will provide access to the North and South American sophisticated and selective consumer in the internationally flavored Brickell neighborhood,” said Marigay McKee, president of Saks Fifth Avenue in the announcement. The store will open in fall 2016.
But Saks already has locations in the market, including one at Whitman's Bal Harbour Shops, and high-end retail is in increasing demand throughout the city. What's really interesting about this development is its urban nature, which is much more typical of projects in Asia than the United States. That shouldn't be surprising given that Swire is a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Swire Properties Limited.
Brickell City Centre will include 5.4 million square feet of office, residential, hotel and retail space on nine acres in the heart of the city's financial district. Swire also will redesign and incorporate an existing light rail station, as do many of its parent's projects, such as Indigo in Beijing.
With urbanization now more than just a trend in the United States and globally, incorporating true mixed-use and public transit will be the key to ongoing development. It will be interesting to see how many more projects around the country adopt this model – and how it's accepted here.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.
Once you are an ALM Digital Member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking commercial real estate news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
*May exclude premium content© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
