Get Ready For The River District
NYC developer Shahab Karmely is a colorful and determined developer, and if he gets his way, the epicenter of mainland Miami life will soon be along the banks of the Miami River.
We snapped “SK” this week in the sales gallery he’s about to open at 24 SW 4th St for his Rafael Vinoly-designed 60-story twin condo tower, One River Point. Backed by resources of what he will only describe as a high-profile American family, he says his KAR Properties is fully prepared to break ground on the 360 units in Q1 ’17.
The site is nestled on the north side of the river adjacent to the Mint, Ivy, and Wind condominiums built in the last cycle. Shahab assembled 6 acres for $60M, and says this will be Miami’s only gated private park (with the latest biometric security). He also notes there is space to build two additional starchitect-designed buildings in later phases.
Across the way you’ll have dramatic views of Brickell and easy access by boat, foot, or the condo’s luxury auto fleet to massive retail and amenities at Brickell City Center. (Without having to navigate the congestion of its surrounding streets.) “I love what [Swire’s] Steve Owens is doing—you can do all your shopping there,” he says. Meanwhile, Shahab will be putting up an 18 foot high David Harber sculpture called “the Taurus” (a polished mirror and stone disc) to give folks on the other side a good view, too.
His family fled Iran in 1978, and because his father was a prominent Jewish businessman who had his passport revoked, they moved among multiple locations until finally getting to the US. He says time in London, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Bangkok and Singapore taught him the energy and magic of life around a river. Already today, he notes, you can walk to SeaSpice, Van Dutch, Villa Azure, and Garcia’s; and in coming years he believes you’ll see numerous new restaurants and other attractions popping up. Downriver will be a new luxury tower from Argentine developer Alfredo Coto, and upriver a group of towers is planned by NY developer Joe Chetrit.
Shahab's units will be priced around $800 to $900 a foot, but he says finishes will be suited to much higher price levels, like these slab travertine floors set in two inches of cement mortar that's four inches thick and for which he’s paying $55 installed. Condos will range from 900 SF to 7k SF, but all will have 12 foot deep terraces—“outdoor living rooms," he says, with room for a full set of furniture.
Onyx walls in the shower will be “bookmatched” (so that adjoining patterns mirror each other—a fancy way of doing things); and all glass bathroom partitions will be half an inch thick with low iron to eliminate the green tint you sometimes see in less expensive product. He says they will proudly tell customers what specific brands and finishes they’ll be using, not just generalize as builders often do.
Hospitality legend Adrian Zecha (founder of the ultra-luxury Regent and Aman hotel groups) is official lifestyle curator of the complex, designing and managing the private membership skyclub that bridges the two buildings 800 feet above the ground. Here is Zecha paying a visit to the sales gallery this week.
At age 54, Shahab (with wife Libby) also keeps busy raising two young boys—as well as surfing, which he took up just four years ago. He also loves cooking (here’s his grapefruit, corn, and garlic concoction). Other factoids you might not know about him:
Where he lives most of the time: NYC’s Upper East Side, and the prominent Gardiner Home on Main Street in East Hampton he bought 10 years ago.
Favorite vacay: skiing with family
Other cities he likes: Paris for architecture, NY and Tokyo for energy
Languages: Persian, English, decent Italian, some Thai
TV: Game of Thrones, Vikings
Favorite restaurants: Cipriani, Zuma, Garcia's, Nobu
Weakness for: grilled meats of any kind, “I could eat steak and burgers three times a day”
Music: classical like Beethoven, Chopin, and Sibellius; classic rock like Eric Clapton unplugged
Startling fact: amateur horticulturalist who grows a huge variety of flowers, some of which he shows us on his phone. (Editor’s note: We know a building going up near the river that might be perfect for beautiful gardens.)
