Swire Properties Moves Forward with Large Brickell CitiCentre Project

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Developer Swire Properties is currently testing and preparing the site where its mega-project Brickell CitiCentre will soon begin to rise. The South Florida Business Journal reports the developer has received a $140 million credit by HSBC Bank USA to fund initial operations and development costs.

The development, which is to be located in the very center of Miami’s Brickell financial district, has been one of the most anticipated new projects in South Florida for some time. Swire Properties envisions a major 9.1-acre development with 520,000 square feet of shopping and dining, 800 condominium units, 243 hotel rooms, 93 serviced apartments, 3,100 parking spaces and two or three office towers.

The project, planned as one of the nation’s largest urban, mixed-use, LEED for Neighborhood Development-registered projects, will generate up to 1,700 construction jobs and employ 3,800 upon completion.

In keeping with Swire Properties’ established policy of focusing on key transport nodes, the site incorporates a station on the Miami Metromover light rail and offers easy access to I-95. The company acquired the four parcels of land that make up the 394,000-square-foot site in 2008 and 2011 and expects to begin construction by the second quarter of 2012.

“We are very excited about this project,” said Swire Properties’ Chief Executive Martin Cubbon. “We felt that acquiring the site at Brickell CitiCentre was a compelling investment in that it offers us a rare opportunity to develop within the heart of a thriving financial district. We’re very keen to expand our presence in Miami by doing what we do best — developing large-scale, mixed-use complexes anchored by retail.”

Initially, the plan stated that the Brickell CitiCentre will be developed in two phases, with the first one delivering all the elements save for one office tower by 2015, while a second phase—due for completion in 2018—would deliver a third office tower. Yet according to the Business Journal, the developer intends to let market conditions determine whether the 750,000-square-foot structure will ultimately be built.

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Image courtesy of Swire Properties