MMG Equity Partners scored approval for a complex with 38 townhomes and retail in West Kendall, marking a change from its previous plan for apartments.
The project, called Coral Nest, will consist of two-story townhomes and 24,500 square feet of retail on a 6.5-acre site on the northwest corner of Southwest 144th Avenue and Coral Way, according to an MMG news release. The vacant property is in unincorporated Miami-Dade County.
Coral Nest will offer three-bedroom and four-bedroom townhouses, ranging from 1,885 square feet to 2,039 square feet. Asking prices will start in the $650,000 range, the release says. Miami-Dade-based C4 Legacy Builders Group, led by Pedro Hernandez, is partnering on the residential portion.
The retail space, which will consist of a supermarket and restaurant, will front Coral Way. The townhouses will be built on the rear 3 acres of the site.
Construction is expected to start in the third quarter, with pre-sales launching about that time, according to the release.
Miami-Dade commissioners approved the zoning and land use changes for Coral Nest at their meeting last Thursday.
Pinecrest-based MMG Equity originally proposed in 2023 a 247-unit apartment complex on the site with some units at workforce rents, and nearly 44,000 square feet of retail.
“After the first of four public hearings, we developed a revised plan that resonated positively with both the city and the community, ensuring their support,” Marcos Puente of MMG said in a statement.
South Florida’s multifamily market has softened since then, after developers completed a record 18,600 units last year, with net leasing lagging. The hefty supply has tempered demand, leading rents to flatline or even drop in some submarkets, while construction costs remain elevated.
MMG was started by the Navarro family. Patriarch Jose Navarro is known for opening the Navarro Discount Pharmacy chain, bringing the brand from his native Cuba. In 2014, the Navarro family sold the drugstore chain to CVS Caremark, which still runs the outposts under the original Navarro name.
MMG is now led by managing partners Gabriel and Marcel Navarro and Martin Pico.
Elsewhere in South Florida, Ignazio and Gaetano Caltagirone’s Calta Group scored a $30 million construction loan last month to develop the 10-unit Via Veneto townhouse complex at 915 and 920 Palermo Avenue in Coral Gables.