Michelin-Starred Chef Partners With Terra On First Branded Condo Tower
Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten has launched more than 60 restaurants worldwide. Now, he’s planning to add a condo tower to the list.
The chef, whose eponymous restaurant in Manhattan has two Michelin stars, is partnering with Coconut Grove-based Terra Group and Lion Development Group, led by E11even Partners owner Michael Simkins, to build the Jean-Georges Miami Tropic Residences just south of the Miami Design District, according to a release.
The 329-unit, 48-story condo building at 3501 NE First Ave. is slated to break ground next year and be completed in 2027. The tower will include 28K SF of ground-floor commercial space, including a restaurant for Vongerichten’s ABC Kitchens brand.
“Miami Tropic represents a longtime dream of mine to open residences that blend my culinary passions with my interest in creating lifestyle spaces,” Vongerichten said in a statement.
David Martin’s Terra and Lion Development Group brought in local architecture firm Arquitectonica and Yabu Pushelberg, an interior design studio based in New York and Toronto, to design the tower.
Condos will run from one to four bedrooms, in addition to penthouses, and start at $1.6M, a spokesperson for the developers said. Douglas Elliman is handling the tower’s sales.
The Jean-Georges Miami Tropic Residences is planned for a 1.6-acre parcel in Midtown Miami, just on the other side of Highway 195 from the Miami Design District. Terra and Lion paid $40.6M for the site last June.
The building is slated to have more than 41K SF of indoor and outdoor amenities with a focus on wellness and entertainment. Amenities include a resort-style pool deck, podcast studio, indoor-outdoor dining room, outdoor theater and kitchen, juice bar, and wellness spa with cold plunges.
“We’re thrilled to be partnering with Jean-Georges and look forward to introducing a first-of-its-kind lifestyle offering,” Martin said in a statement. “Miami Tropic residents will enjoy exceptional amenities, design and culinary experiences at their fingertips.”
Residences will have floor-to-ceiling windows and a kitchen, designed with input from Vongerichten, that features an island designed to be “a culinary stage as the room’s focal point,” according to the release. Buyers can choose between a dawn and dusk color palette for their condo's interior.
Branded condos have become popular proposals in the last two years as developers work to differentiate their projects and leverage a brand’s image for their marketing. Mercedes-Benz, Elle, Diesel, Dolce & Gabbana and a host of other luxury brands have been tapped to lend their names to towers.
The developers are chasing discerning buyers willing to spend top dollar, frequently in cash, for luxury space in Miami.
In Miami Beach, the average condo and single-family home sale price in the third quarter was $1.9M, according to Douglas Elliman, up 20% year to date even after a wave of pandemic-era migration pushed prices up. The median luxury condo sold for $6.2M, up 23.4% year-over-year.
Despite the rising prices, overall listing inventory was down 8.5% year-over-year, the second consecutive decline.
