Plans Revealed For Citadel’s Miami Supertall Headquarters Tower
Citadel CEO Ken Griffin filed plans for the hedge fund's 1,032-foot-tall Miami headquarters, revealing plans for a tapering supertall with office space topped by a hotel.
The hedge fund's leader is planning a tower at 1201 Brickell Bay Drive with 1.3M SF of office space and 212 hotel rooms across its highest 14 floors, according to records submitted to Miami-Dade County Monday.
Griffin is personally developing the tower for Citadel and Citadel Securities, which announced they were relocating to Miami in June 2022, a spokesperson for Griffin said in an email. He plans to break ground on the project in the third quarter of 2025.
“The development of this iconic, world-class tower at 1201 Brickell will redefine the Miami skyline and further solidify this dynamic and vibrant city as a global destination for talented professionals and their families, businesses, and culture,” the spokesperson said.
The planned tower, designed by London-based Foster + Partners, will have a ground-floor lobby with roughly 50 underground executive parking spaces. A separate eight-deck parking garage would be built across the street at 1221 Brickell Bay Drive, according to a letter of intent submitted to the county.
The 54-story tower would be ensconced in glass with white metal cladding. The ground-floor lobby would include a restaurant space, while the second level would be dedicated to a conference center with a ballroom, separate kitchen and outdoor terrace.
Office space would be spread from floors five through 37, topped by two levels designated for hotel operations. The hotel lobby and amenities would occupy the tower’s top three floors, with guest rooms between floors 40 and 51.
“The tower’s tapered form unifies its various functions, enhances structural efficiency, and creates an elegant marker on the Miami skyline,” Nigel Dancey, head of studio at Foster + Partners, said in a statement. “An environmentally responsive facade draws on Florida’s vernacular architecture, with a louvred shading system to create a comfortable internal environment, while maximizing views out from this amazing location.”
The project also includes a new public Baywalk along a portion of Brickell Bay’s waterfront that was previously inaccessible that is slated to include restaurants with outdoor seating, the spokesperson said. Field Operations, the designers of the High Line in New York and the Underline in Miami, is designing the project’s Baywalk, landscaping and streetscape.
Akerman attorney Neisen Kasdin filed the application with the county on behalf of Griffin. The billionaire and world's 37th wealthiest person is seeking to use rapid transit zoning rules, which are governed by the county, to increase the height and density of the proposed waterfront tower near the Financial District Metromover station.
The application offers the first glimpse at what Griffin is planning for Citadel. Last month, his representatives submitted a pre-application with the county that outlined its overall plan for the two sites, along with a third attached parcel where residences could be built, but didn’t include any renderings.
Griffin has tapped Philadelphia-based Gattuso Development Partners to consult on the project, the spokesperson confirmed. The hedge fund had initially partnered with Chicago-based Sterling Bay to develop the project before splitting with the firm last April.
Citadel spent a then-record $363M in April 2022 to acquire the 2.5-acre waterfront site for the tower’s development. It paid $287M two months later to buy the 21-story building across the street where it is now planning a parking garage.
The hedge fund rounded out its Brickell holdings in August 2022 when it paid $20M for the 12-unit apartment building at 1250 Brickell Bay Drive between the planned tower and parking garage.
Citadel and Citadel Securities will have roughly 500 employees in Miami by the end of the year, according to the spokesperson.
While building its new headquarters, Citadel will anchor the new 830 Brickell office tower, which is slated to deliver by the end of the year. The hedge fund took two additional floors at the tower in June, making it the largest tenant at the tower with 130K SF across eight floors.
UPDATE, AUG 26, 4:20 P.M. ET: This story has been updated to reflect that Ken Griffin is personally developing the planned tower.
