Miami-Dade County is raising up to $265 million to finance the purchase of an old office building about 15 miles east of Downtown Miami.
In June, the Miami-Dade County Board of Commissioners approved the $182 million purchase of Flagler Corporate Center, a 671,088-square-foot office building at 9250 West Flagler Street in the unincorporated neighborhood of Fontainebleau. About a month later, the board approved a municipal bond that will go toward covering the acquisition and the renovation of the property, which was completed in 1974.
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava argued the move would allow the municipality to consolidate its permitting departments under one roof, creating a West Dade Government Center.
Some county officials estimate that the acquisition will save the County $860 million over the next three decades, according to Bloomberg, but the deal still garnered controversy.
Mayor Cava first proposed spending $205 million to buy the Flagler Corporate Center, which was built to serve as the headquarters of Florida Power & Light, the state’s largest power utility provider.
County Commissioners pushed back, arguing that in a post-pandemic world the aging office was worth less. Last year, the property’s occupancy rate also dropped to 20 percent after a tenant moved out. The loss sent the seller’s loan, which Barry Sternlicht’s Starwood Mortgage Capital had originated, onto a watchlist.
Julia Echikson can be reached at jechikson@commercialobserver.com.