UPDATED July 13 11:12 a.m.: Robert Finvarb and Michael Simkins have teamed up to propose a new mixed-use project on city-owned lots in Miami Beach.
The parcels in question are at 900 Washington Avenue on the same block as the historic Hotel Astor. Together they measure 14,484 square feet and are currently used as surface parking.
The joint-venture responded this week to a request for proposal from the city, which opened the property to development as part of its effort to revitalize Washington Avenue.
Simkins and Finvarb’s plan is to redevelop the lots into a mixed-use parking garage with hotel and retail components, according to proposal documents first reported by the Next Miami.
As part of the proposal, Simkins would combine the city-owned parcels with his 30,050-square-foot property at 930 Washington Avenue, which is mostly occupied by a five-story office building. Perkins+Will Miami is the architect on the project.
The proposed development would include 247 spots in a self-park garage, 145 of which would be owned and operated by the city for public parking. The remaining 102 spaces would service the project’s 17,354-square-feet of retail space and 145-room hotel. The hotel portion would have access to a rooftop terrace with a pool.
On Washington Avenue, a new zoning ordinance approved in October allows for a building height of up to seven stories.
Finvarb is a hotel developer whose company has recently developed Hyatt Centric South Beach and AC Hotel by Marriott – Miami Beach.
His partner on this proposal, Simkins, is an active Miami developer behind a planned 10-acre technology district in Park West, a neighborhood next to Overtown.
Washington Avenue is experiencing a new wave of redevelopment, amid the city’s approval of new measures that are designed to increase hotel space and retail and dining opportunities on the street, which lags far behind Lincoln Road and Ocean Drive in attracting first tier retail, dining and hotel venues. [The Next Miami] — Sean Stewart-Muniz