Terra, Grass River Secure $245 Million Permanent Loan For Grove Central Mixed-Use Development

Miami-based developers Terra and Grass River have secured $245 million in permanent financing for Grove Central, a newly completed mixed use development in Miami’s Coconut Grove neighborhood.

The loan, issued by JP Morgan Chase & Co., will be used to pay off the development’s existing construction loan, which was provided in 2021 by Apollo Global Management, and fund remaining public infrastructure improvements along with upgrades being made to the adjacent Metrorail station.

Grove Central, located at the intersection of US-1 and SW 27th Avenue, includes a 23-story residential tower with 402 multifamily apartments, including workforce and market-rate units, a new 1,250-space public parking garage, and approximately 170,000 square feet of neighborhood retail. The transit-oriented development connects to the Coconut Grove Metrorail Station and integrates directly with The Underline linear park, Miami-Dade’s bus system, and the City of Miami’s popular trolley network.

Real estate finance and advisory services firm Walker & Dunlop represented Terra and Grass River in arranging the financing, with Keith Kurland as the mortgage broker.

More than 30% of Grove Central’s residential apartments have already been leased since opening its doors earlier this year, with units ranging from 400-square-foot studios to expansive five-bedroom apartments measuring up to 2,170 square feet in size.

Over 95% of the development’s retail space has been leased to tenants including anchors Target, Sprouts Farmers Market, Club Studio, Total Wine & More, and Five Below. Additional retailers expected to open this year include Black Sheep Coffee, Mattress Firm, Chipotle, T-Mobile, Woof Gang Bakery and Pacific Dental, among others.

“Our ability to secure favorable long-term financing and pay off our construction loan shortly after the delivery of Grove Central is a testament to the growing demand we are seeing in South Florida for transit-oriented developments that promote urban living,” said developer David Martin, CEO of Terra. “The development’s premier location at the entrance to Coconut Grove has lured in residents and retailers that see value in having convenient access to multiple alternative modes of transportation and being surrounded by some of Miami’s most popular neighborhoods.”

 

“Closing this loan with our nation’s largest and most well capitalized financial institution speaks volumes for the institutional nature of our project and the confidence we and JP Morgan have in our asset and its position in the fabulous Coconut Grove Market”, added Justin Kennedy, Co-CEO at Grass River.

Grove Central has been designed to create a transit-oriented hub offering a seamless pedestrian experience that encourages Metrorail ridership and urban living. The project was developed as part of a Miami-Dade County initiative aimed at improving connectivity between residential living, commercial development, and mass transit through private development on County-owned land.

The development, which marks the second successful public-private partnership project to deliver under Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava’s tenure, represents a significant economic impact for the community generating more than 1,600 construction jobs, nearly 500 permanent full-time and part-time positions, tens of millions of dollars in lease revenue to the County, and the collection of property tax revenues for the first time in the site’s history.

Grove Central was designed by Touzet Studio, a Miami-based design firm led by Carlos and Jackie Touzet, in collaboration with architecture firm RSP Architects and Walter Meyer of New York’s Local Office Landscape Architecture (LOLA). The focal point of the development is a tree-lined public plaza connecting the project and improving pedestrian flow to and from the revamped Metrorail station and the adjacent Underline, a 13-mile linear park running from South Miami-Dade to Downtown Miami. Water resilient plantings designed as rain gardens are used to absorb storm water, and a large cistern captures roof runoff for reuse.

Additionally, Grove Central embraces and exceeds the City of Miami’s sustainability, efficiency, and green building requirements as the first transit-oriented development in South Florida to have met the stringent requirements for ICC 700-2020 National Green Building Standard (NGBS) Emerald certification.