Myles Chefetz, the celebrity restaurateur behind such South-of-Fifth hotspots as Prime 112 and Prime Italian, has purchased a condo at the Continuum in Miami Beach for $7.9 million.
The move comes one month after Chefetz signed a contract for a $3 million townhouse at the yet-to-be-built Three Hundred Collins, as he boosts his investments in the hot South-of-Fifth neighborhood.
Chefetz bought unit 3502 with three bedrooms, three baths and one-half-bath in the Continuum’s north tower on Wednesday, according to the deed. The price equates to $2,721 per square foot.
He calls the condo, which is one floor below the duplex penthouse, one of the best units in the building. “It has no roof over the terrace so you get a tremendous amount of sunlight. It’s wide open, and has an eastern exposure with Fisher Island and the [Government] Cut, so its beautiful,” he told The Real Deal.
Chefetz said he has been renting a unit in the Continuum’s south tower for the past two years, since he sold his penthouse at Ocean House to leveraged buyout king Marc Leder for $15 million. He said he didn’t think it was wise financially to keep renting.
“I’ve always believed in the Continuum property,” Chefetz told TRD. “It’s arguably the best property in the country. The values here have always held and gone up, skyrocketed … it’s on the ocean and its at the end at the Cut.”
Karen H. Bechtel was the seller of the 2,903-square-foot unit, according to property records. Bechtel, the managing director and former head of the global heath care team of the New York-based Carlyle Group, had paid $6.3 million for the unit in November 2013, according to records.
Zuzia Borucka of Florida Realty of Miami brokered the deal and told TRD it was the highest price per square foot in the north tower. The unit had been listed for $10.5 million in February. Chefetz said he did not have a broker and negotiated with Borucka and directly with the seller, who he has known for some time.
The Continuum‘s 37-story north tower is located at 50 South Pointe Drive in the South-of-Fifth neighborhood of South Beach. The two-tower complex was developed by Ian Bruce Eichner’s Continuum Company in 2008. The project was designed by Sieger Suarez Architects. The development sits on a 12-acre property and features two lagoon pools, a spa and gym, and 1,000 feet of beach frontage.
Earlier this week Eichner’s brother Stuart Eichner listed unit 3501, with 3,030 square feet, for $12.9 million, or $4,257 per square foot.
Chefetz said he doesn’t yet know if he will end up living in the Continuum unit or in the Three Hundred Collins townhome, which will not be built for another two years.
“I really just sleep in these places,” he said. “I work all the time.”
At the 19-unit boutique project being developed by Jason Halpern’s JMH Development, Chefetz will have a three-bedroom, three-and-a-half bath townhome. The unit will have 2,397 square feet of indoor space and 2,932 square feet of outdoor space. Its features include nearly 19-foot ceilings, a great room, a den, and wrap-around rear yard, Halpern said.
Chefetz told TRD in December that he wasn’t looking to buy at the project, but when he went into the sales office, he was “overwhelmed by the design.” The five-story building is a block away from his corporate office, and he can see the site from his window.
“It’s a real interesting, hip project,” Chefetz told TRD. “I love the finishes. I love the design and I love the townhome living, indoor/outdoor. It’s like owning a home within a condominium.”
Chefetz has lived in the South-of-Fifth neighborhood since 1994, first buying at South Pointe Towers.
The restaurateur has launched a slew of restaurants in South-of-Fifth, including Nemo, Big Pink, Shoji, Prime 112, Prime Italian and Prime Fish. He also owns the Prime Hotel.
“I always loved this area to live and to work,” Chevetz told TRD. “It was quieter.”