27 Sep 22 | Commercial Property Executive

Miami’s 830 Brickell Tops Out

By Gail Kalinoski

OKO Group and Cain International are developing the first Class A office tower in the city’s urban core in more than a decade.

Civic Construction has topped off 830 Brickell, Miami’s first Class A office tower to be built in the urban core in more than a decade, at 55 stories and 724 feet as it nears completion later this year. Developed by OKO Group and Cain International, 830 Brickell is also the only Class A office tower being built in the city’s Financial District at a time when domestic and international companies are relocating and expanding to Miami.

The 640,000-square-foot office tower is already more than 60 percent leased and has attracted top-tier tenants including Microsoft, Blackstone, Thoma Bravo, A-CAP, CI Financial Corp., Marsh Insurance, AerCap and WeWork. AerCap, one of the world’s largest aircraft leasing companies, signed a 20,000-square-foot lease in February, taking the entire 50th floor for its new headquarters. A month earlier, CI Financial, a Canadian investment firm, announced it would double its lease at 830 Brickell, going from an earlier lease for 20,000 square feet to nearly 40,000 square feet for its U.S. headquarters.

Microsoft signed for 50,000 square feet of space in September to house its Latin America regional team and private equity firm Thoma Bravo agreed to lease 36,500 square feet in the spring of 2021.

Cushman & Wakefield is handling leasing at the skyscraper for the remaining space.

830 Brickell is currently the largest office building under construction in Miami, where the city’s business-friendly environment, rapid population growth and attractive climate are boosting office investment and development. According to CommercialEdge data, the active pipeline included about 2.4 million square feet of office space across 18 properties as of June, with the Brickell submarket and central business district seeing much of the construction.

Vlad Doronin, chairman & CEO of OKO Group, said in a prepared statement 830 Brickell is fulfilling the wish list of top-tier users from around the world who are attracted to the tower’s new standard of construction, technology and design-led amenities.

Designed by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, the project was financed with a $300 million construction loan from MSD Capital obtained in 2019. Construction began that year and the building plans were adapted once the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020 to include the latest health requirements for heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems as well as contactless entry and exit technology. Located at the corner of Brickell Plaza and SE 9th Street, the property will have expansive views of the city and Biscayne Bay. The tower’s interiors are being designed by Italian architecture and design company Iosa Ghini Associati.

Amenities will include a rooftop bar/lounge and fine dining restaurant, health and wellness center, conferencing facilities, outdoor terrace, cafes and street-level retail. Multiple transit options are nearby, including Metrorail and Metromover, the Brightline, walking paths, cycling lanes and bay access points. Some of Miami’s top residential and lifestyle-driven neighborhoods are minutes away including Design District, Wynwood, Edgewater and Miami Beach.