New York City’s sixth borough is earning its nickname.
New Yorkers have spent at least $586.5 million in property concentrated in one square mile of downtown Miami, commercial broker Mika Mattingly told The Real Deal. Mattingly’s team looked at property sales between the Miami River to Northeast Sixth Street and east of I-95 to Biscayne Bay from the past two years.
In total, New York buyers acquired at least 1.28 million square feet of buildings and at least 1.1 million square feet of land. In dollar amounts, they represent about 56 percent of investment in that area.
The area is in the beginning stages of a renaissance. A $13 million improvement plan for Flagler Street is underway, which will include expanded sidewalks, more trees, new benches and bicycle racks. The beautification project broke ground earlier this year and has installed drainage structures and pedestrian signage, according to a weekly update released on Monday.
Moishe Mana represented roughly 30 percent, or about $170 million, of the New York investment, according to a list of sales Mattingly provided, which was then verified by TRD. Mana, of New York and New Jersey, has been in Miami since 2010 assembling property in Wynwood and in downtown Miami. He has spent at least $200 million on properties in downtown Miami as a whole with plans for retail and residential redevelopments, according to county records and a recent TRD profile.
The map also includes properties purchased by New York-based Edens Investment Trust, Ashkenazy Acquisition, Brickman and KAR Properties. Last week, Brickman closed on the Courthouse Tower at 44 West Flagler Street for $27.5 million.