Taurus Investment Sells Miami Dev Site to Congress Group

Congress Group wants to build a 27-story apartment tower next to the Shops at Civica in the Miami Health District, marking a switch from a previous plan for medical offices on the site. 

The Boston-based firm wants to build a 380-unit project on 0.85 acres at 1050 Northwest 14th Street, the triangular-shaped parking lot immediately south of Shops at Civica, according to Congress CEO Dean Stratouly and property records. 

“The office market, not just here but across the country, is anemic,” Stratouly said, explaining the decision to build apartments instead of offices. 

Congress, in partnership with Peakhill Equity TS, paid $16 million for the development site and scored an $8.3 million loan from Miami-based LV Lending, according to an LV news release. The seller is Boston-based Taurus Investment Holdings.  

The project is the second and final phase of a plan Congress and Boston-based Taurus embarked on two years ago. 

In 2020, the firms partnered on the $30.5 million purchase of the entire 1.8-acre site, including Shops at Civica and the adjacent parking lot development site. For the project’s first phase, the pair gut-renovated the former two-story retail center into a three-story building with 20,000 square feet of retail on the first story and 40,000 square feet of medical offices on the upper two floors, according to Stratouly. The project was completed late last year. 

The retail portion is fully leased and two tenants are negotiating for the medical offices, he said. Retail tenants include Smoothie King, Salsa Fiesta and Dunkin’. 

For the second phase, Congress and Taurus planned a 460,000-square-foot medical office tower on the parking lot. Instead, Congress partnered with Peakhill to buy out Taurus’ ownership stake in the lot and switched plans to multifamily. 

Construction is slated to start in the first quarter, and completion is expected in 2027, Stratouly said. 

Over the past 35 years, Congress has purchased, developed, repositioned, managed and entitled more than 7 million square feet valued at over $1.5 billion, according to the firm’s website. 

Led by Peter Merrigan, Taurus has a portfolio spanning more than 70 million square feet of purchased and developed real estate, as well as over 200 projects, valued at over $10.4 billion, its website shows. 

Peakhill Equity is a Toronto-based private investment firm that focuses on value-add and development projects in the U.S. and Canada, according to its website. It’s led by Jonah Belkin and Harley Gold. 

The Health District — named for its proximity to Jackson Memorial Hospital and other medical facilities — as well as nearby areas have caught developers’ eyes. 

Last summer, The Estate Companies completed the 240-unit Soleste Spring Gardens apartment building at 1033 Spring Garden Road near the Health District. 

In Allapattah, Lissette Calderon completed the 13-story, 192-unit No. 17 Residences at 1569 Northwest 17th Avenue in 2021. She is expected to complete the 14-story, 323-unit The Julia at 1625 Northwest 20th Street, and the 14-story, 237-unit Fourteen Allapattah Residences at 1470 Northwest 36th Street early next year.