1663-44 Art Deco/Preservation ... .. . . _ REAL ESTATE BM MONDAY, MAY 2, 1994;,'THE-HERALD 7
• S ' . PACIFIC'S PROJECTS
Low
Projects undertaken in South
profile high ....
rises
Florida by Pacific International:
■Plaza of the Americas—
Four buildings,831 units,on
North Bay Road at 170th
Miami Beach developer a quiet success storyStreet. Built in mid-1970s.
1 ■Olympus in Hallandale—
434 units in Three Islands area.
By REX SELINE hopes to build two 50 story condo tow- to buy the Oliver House,a rental build- ■Riviera— 177-unit building
Herald Business Writer ers on the site, where a boat yard used ing at 53rd and Collins. at Collins Avenue and 24th
to operate. The $100 million project Shortly after that, Bedzow acquired Street.Developed in 1980-81.
MTho's the biggest developer in would be the company's first big ven- property near Washington, D.C.That's ■Oceanfront Plaza— 193
Miami Beach, in terms of ture in the city of Miami. when he persuaded Shapiro, who had units at Collins Avenue and
new construction? For any business with that much married his daughter, Frances, to leave 26th Street. Built in 1980-81.
going on, a low profile is unusual. It's a chemical company in Montreal and ■Biscayne Cove—Two build-
The obvious answer: Thomas Kra- even more striking in the development join the family real estate business. ings,592 units,next to Williams
mer,the German currency trader who's community, whose big players, like Bedzow, now 68, is still chairman Island. Finished in 1982.
been buying lots of land, announcing Donald Trump, are not usually shy. and president of the company. But he ■La Rive Gauche—83-unit
plans and making the club scene. But flash is not Pacific's style, Sha- spends most of his time in Canada,
But think again. Think low-profile. piro said. 58th Str et the Intracoastalnlate1980s.at
In fact, in comparison with Kramer, Europe or Israel, Shapiro said. 58th Street. Built in late
think no profile. Canadian roots Base in South Florida ■Lding alence— 136 unit
Try Pacific International Equities, The company traces its roots to Can- The company's base of operations building at Collins Avenue and
under the direction of Howard Sha- ada, where it began 40 years ago. As has moved to South Florida. Shapiro,a •
57th Street. Finished in 1991.
piro. Shapiro tells it, it's the classic immi- native of Quebec qty who moved to ■The Sterling— 185 units at
The next surprise: The quiet com- grant success story. Florida in 1971, watches over the pro- Collins Avenue and 67th Street.
pany has had a presence in South for- The founder, Charles Bedzow, jects here as senior vice president. Completed in 1991.
ida since 1969. fought the Nazis in World War II as a After acquiring the Oliver House, ■Sunset Harbour—450 units
David Dabby, senior vice president Polish partisan. After the war, he the company's first development was in two high-rise towers,plus 50
at Appraisal and Real Estate Econom- ended up in Italy, then moved to Mon- Plaza of the Americas, a group of four townhomes at 1928 Purdy Ave.
ics Associates, says no other condomin- treat. condo towers on the Intracoastal Pilings now poured. Marina
I ium developer has been active here There he opened a small store that Waterway at 170th Street. opened in 1990.
continuously since then. sold jewelry and furniture, and was After the company began the pro- ■La Gorce Palace—208 units
joined by his family. He made a little ject, the bigdeveloperat Collins Avenue and 63rd
Projects under way l Canadian Cadil-
money, then bought some land. Soon, lac Fairview asked to get in on the deal. Street.Under construction.
And with the Beach in the middle of he created a subdivision. Pacific,operating then under the name
a development boom, Pacific is From there, the company steadily of Southeast Florida Properties, sold a ■Courts at South Beach— •
unusual in another respect. Far more expanded, building homes, developing half interest in the development, and 245 townhomes and condos at
projects have been announced than a high-rise in Ottawa,then moving into formed a partnership for further deals. 101 Alton Rd. In partnership
actually begun, but construction work commercial and office projects in Through the '70s, the partners built with Cobb Partners,negotia-
actually
under way on Pacific's latest devel- Montreal. a handful of projects, typicallytions under way on financing. •
opments.Ground has been broken and on the SOURCE:Pacific International Equities.
footings have been Vacation connections led to Florida. water, and acquired several sites.
g poured for these Bedzow and his family visited often, In the early '80s, however, said
projects: and made friends here. In 1969, Sha-
II Sunset Harbour, which sits on an piro said, Bedzow was offered a chance PLEASESEE PACIFIC, 8
L-shaped piece of land fronting Bis-
cayne Bay at Purdy Avenue and 20th • . 3r
Street(which have been co-named Sun- „�Y
set Harbour Drive). The project even- 4
tually will include two condominium 0-"
towers with 450 units and 50 town- fat '
homes. Prices range from $155,000 for .s `
one-bedroom units, to $600,000 for ,
townhomes,and up to$800,000 for the ,,1 ,N I .
Tower Suites on the top floors. .. .k I I
■Courts at South Beach is intended t.i �. aa I • • �)
• •
ments in a Mediterranean-style walled
community on 7.5 acres at 101 Alton • 'Y
Rd. They are priced from $150,000 to - ;t€ * c ,>' <` �I ¢�' g ;x .+
more than $500,000. ....•��-• ,,,,j ..;._
■ La Gorce Palace at 63rd and Col- -
lins on the ocean is designed for 208. i — W'"°� t "
units in a 33-story tower. Units are .. . 't z _ „> `� T- �" `t om
priced as high as $600,000. The tower S: a "' -
.... , .. i
is going up on the site of the Lombardy • '
Hotel, which Pacific acquired in 1988 ,. �� ..._.
and tore down four years later. "' M --""'
Hopes for a hotel
•
•
Pacific and its partners are also one • y � a r > �•F ^
of six groups hoping to win the right to F N:• • • ;' y� .. : • Fr`'
build a new convention hotel in Miami ;, Y k;. )
Beach. Pacific is working with ith Ritz- aIti t y
Carlton hotels and Robinson Callen, z� s .iby !'' ,�
who operates several Holiday Inns and - y. "x .•.
�yy
other properties.They have proposed a �
T
50-story hotel in a Modern Deco style kA ,r (, ' ' � ,-.
that would include 900 rooms and cost i "' , '
$119 million. >,'' 43: A „r Z u
In addition, Shapiro said last week �_ he r v,= - ' b . , 7<
that Pacific has a contract to buyprop- :' '� � ' •'•,4A7., •
P p-
erty on the Miami River across from `� 9v �;
the Knight Center in downtown AL DiAZ/Herald Staff
Miami. If the deal goes through, he CONDOS,TOWNHOUSES AND A MARINA: Howard Shapiro and Yosi Gill at the site of Sunset Harbour in Miami Beach.
8 - THE1-1ERALD, MONDAY, MAY 2, 1994 BM •E. . REAL ESTATE
cREATIvE SHIRT COMMERCIAL CARPET, • •
m1ftI ••'•A'*''��"�Al°ll►la- •.ic CLOSEOUT! Developer quietly thrives
SRORT ... ::::::: _ • First quality • •
Sl91RT5 r` .•:f . YOUR on Miami Beach ro ects
S 90 ,,ocl DESIGN , Millmmms.Discontinuedstyles . p ,u. $ • ;CGc, Low,low prices •
Incthe said.
Ma et PACIFIC, FROM 7
IAMIAUM4002. f 5 90 Great Selection Dabby of AREAA, the company Shapiro also takes a cautious
• WE ALSO E ' • • R ! " `e ! J1� got caught in the Beach real approach. For instance, he said
EpCNPOINTE• Floors E Interiors Yost Gill, marketingdirector for
MIN{MUMi002. • . • i estate squeeze, when demand
IMMIIIMPCAPS 3700 k 29th Ave.Hogglvow FL 33020 was not keeping pace with sup- the Sunset Harbour project, is
OUR REPS WILL BRING SAMPLES TO YOU t-500.843.5757 ,L Dade 930-11x Broward 922-8500 ply pushing to begin marketing units
ti "Most luxury condo develop- in the second of two planned
• ers failed," said Dabby, whose towers. But Shapiro has insisted
company has done some work on waiting until the first one is
with Pacific. Pacific survived, nearly sold out before opening
but it put several projects on the second.
hold. And Cadillac Fairview He's also listening to prospec-
opted out,selling its interest back tive buyers in the first tower and
to Pacific in the early '80s. making adjustments in the plans
When demand picked up again for the second. For example, he
' in the late '80s, Pacific stepped expects to build more three-bed-
back into the game, launching room units in the second tower
three key Beach projects: L'Ex- because buyers want the bigger
cellence,the Sterling and La Rive homes.
Gauche. The company also doesn't typi-
"You've got to be impressed cally buy land or build solely on
with a company that can do those speculation. Shapiro said that if
thretrprojects and then get out of the company acquires land, it
them successfully," Dabby said. tries to develop it quickly.
• Shapiro said the trick was lis-
"They're as conservative as
tening to the market, and build- y
ing to appeal to potential buyers. you can be, given that the word
■
For instance, he said, develop- `developer' implies taking a
We e e menta on the ocean were particu- risk," Dabby said.
lady appealing to Latin Ameri For Shapiro. the excitement is
■
Idea ■ cans and Europeans. So sales in the land and building on it.
FIational people made trips abroad to
pitch the units. "Real estate is such a tangible
I
■ "Latin Americans and Europe- thing," he said. "It gives you a
ans look at our beaches as pris- real sense of exhilaration to see
Sihliall Btisiriess tine in comparison with theirs," something being built."
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