Major Office Project Planned Near Fort Lauderdale Airport
Cohen Brothers Realty Corporation of Florida is moving ahead with Office Center of the Americas (OCOTA), a planned 400,000-square-foot office development at 1805 and 1815 Griffin Road in Dania Beach. The two-building project, located along Interstate 95 just south of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, is expected to cost approximately $350 million. Plans call for two 10-story office buildings developed in phases, with each building accompanied by a four-story parking garage.
Two-Phase Development Planned Along I-95
The project was designed by Nichols Brosch Wurst Wolfe & Associates and is being planned as speculative office space, meaning construction is being pursued without announced tenant commitments.
Cooper Horowitz is handling construction financing for the development. A construction timetable has not yet been disclosed.
OCOTA would rise next to the Design Center of the Americas (DCOTA), the approximately 780,000-square-foot office and design showroom complex that was previously controlled by Cohen Brothers Realty. Fortress Investment Group took ownership of DCOTA through foreclosure approximately two years ago and recently secured $45 million in refinancing for the property.
Speculative Office Development Continues in South Florida
The decision to pursue 400,000 square feet of office space without preleased tenants stands out in a market where developers have generally become more cautious about launching large office projects.
Still, South Florida has seen other developers move forward with speculative office construction. In Palm Beach Gardens, Gatsby Florida recently secured a $119 million construction loan for an eight-story office project being developed without signed tenants.
For the Broward County office market, OCOTA would represent a sizable addition along a highly visible transportation corridor near Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. Its scale also makes the project notable at a time when new office development is increasingly concentrated in select South Florida locations where developers believe newer, higher-quality space can compete for tenants.
Key Facts
Property: Office Center of the Americas (OCOTA)
Location: 1805 and 1815 Griffin Road, Dania Beach, Florida
Asset Type: Office
Transaction Type: New speculative development
Developer: Cohen Brothers Realty Corporation of Florida
Size: 400,000 square feet
Estimated Development Cost: Approximately $350 million
Buildings: Two 10-story office buildings
Parking: Four-story parking garage attached to each building
Architect: Nichols Brosch Wurst Wolfe & Associates
Financing: Cooper Horowitz is handling construction financing
Other Notable Details: Development is planned in two phases near I-95 and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.
Source: Commercial Observer