South Florida Office Brokers Association

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  • Related Ross Eyes Boca Raton Innovation Campus As Next Palm Beach County Growth Play

    Related Ross Eyes Boca Raton Innovation Campus As Next Palm Beach County Growth Play

    Related Ross is looking beyond West Palm Beach as it weighs a major move into Boca Raton.

    The West Palm Beach-based development firm, led by billionaire Stephen M. Ross, is in active discussions to acquire Boca Raton Innovation Campus, commonly known as BRIC. The 123-acre office campus is located at 5000 T-Rex Avenue, though no purchase agreement has been finalized.

    The potential deal would give Related Ross control of one of Palm Beach County’s largest office properties and a site already positioned for a broader mixed-use future. BRIC, once home to IBM operations and known as the birthplace of the personal computer, has long been one of Boca Raton’s most recognizable business campuses.

    Jordan Bargas, executive vice president at Related Ross, confirmed the firm’s interest in the property, calling BRIC a significant asset with a strong history. He said the company sees an opportunity to create a mixed-use destination that supports innovation, employment and long-term economic growth in Boca Raton and Palm Beach County.

    The interest follows several years of major investment by Related Ross in West Palm Beach, where the company has delivered new office towers, luxury residential projects and retail improvements at CityPlace. Ross has repeatedly identified Palm Beach County as one of the strongest growth opportunities in South Florida, and Boca Raton appears to be an increasingly important part of that strategy.

    Related Ross previously pursued Boca Raton’s government center redevelopment, proposing a plan that included office space. Although another developer was selected and the broader proposal was later rejected by voters, the process underscored the firm’s interest in the city’s office market.

    BRIC has also been gaining traction with tenants. D-Wave Quantum, a Palo Alto, California-based quantum computing company, announced in January that it would relocate its headquarters to the campus. All Star Healthcare Solutions followed in February, moving its headquarters from Deerfield Beach to BRIC.

    The property is currently owned by CP Group, Rialto, DRA Advisors and Las Olas Capital Advisors. Since acquiring the campus, ownership has invested in upgrades intended to modernize the property and improve tenant appeal, including new amenity areas, a food market, conference facilities and a fitness center. Those improvements have helped raise occupancy and rental rates.

    The city has already approved a broader redevelopment vision for BRIC. The plan would preserve most of the existing office space while adding new uses on the campus’ large parking areas. Proposed additions include 1,243 residential units, 125,000 square feet of retail, a 55,000-square-foot entertainment component, 85,000 square feet of medical office space and a 140-room hotel.

    Terra, based in Miami, has been brought in as the residential development partner. The project has not yet broken ground, as final site plan approvals are still moving through the city process.

    If Related Ross completes the acquisition, BRIC could become the firm’s most significant platform yet for expanding its Palm Beach County development strategy outside of downtown West Palm Beach.

     

    Source:  SFBJ

  • 266,000 SF In New Leases, Renewals Reported At Boca Raton Innovation Campus

    266,000 SF In New Leases, Renewals Reported At Boca Raton Innovation Campus

    CP Group and DRA Advisors announced more than 266,000 square feet of leasing activity at the 1.7-million-square-foot Boca Raton Innovation Campus (BRiC).

    The activity includes three new leases and two renewals from tenants spanning healthcare, tech, and education sectors.

    New leases include:

    • Allstar Recruiting Locums LLC leased 42,697 square feet, doubling its space as it relocates from Deerfield Beach.
    • Cinch Home Services signed for 32,888 square feet.
    • EchoTwin AI leased 2,704 square feet for its first office, with the founder relocating from San Francisco.

    Renewals include:

    • Modernizing Medicine renewed 127,821 square feet.
    • Everglades University renewed 52,582 square feet.
    • Newtek renewed 7,810 square feet.

    Jeff Kelly of CBRE represented CP Group in all transactions.

    CP Group is finalizing a $100 million renovation of the former IBM R&D campus, adding amenities such as a wellness center operated by Boca Raton Regional Hospital, dining options, event spaces, fitness studios, and a 1,100-space parking garage.

    The firm is also expanding its flexible “worCPlaces” spec suite program. Two completed phases totaling 30,000 square feet are fully leased, and a third phase—including six suites and seven individual offices—is under construction for delivery in January 2026.

    BRiC was rezoned in 2023 to allow future development of residential, retail, hospitality, and entertainment uses, opening the campus to the public year-round. The property also serves as a venue for corporate events, community gatherings, and private celebrations.

  • Boca Raton Office Owner Wins Multimillion-Dollar Lawsuit Against Tenant

    Boca Raton Office Owner Wins Multimillion-Dollar Lawsuit Against Tenant

    Boca Raton-based CP Group has been awarded significant financial recoveries due to unpaid rent from tenants.

    The latest case involves a default judgment of nearly $3.9 million against SuttonPark Capital LLC and Singer Asset Finance Company LLC, stemming from overdue rent, legal fees, late charges, and accelerated rent payments. It highlights a broader trend of aggressive legal action by CP Group when tenants fall behind on rent payments, as seen in the previous case with tenants at Miami Tower.

    The default judgment is based on a substantial lease agreement for office space at One Boca Place, where the tenants failed to pay rent between June and October 2024, despite receiving a formal default notice. With the default judgment, CP Group has secured payment for both the past-due amounts and the remaining lease balance. Given the large figures involved and the history of litigation for unpaid rent at CP Group’s properties, this case underscores the importance of tenants adhering to lease terms, as failing to do so can result in hefty penalties beyond just unpaid rent.

    The legal victories CP Group has experienced could further incentivize landlords in similar situations to pursue legal recourse for unpaid rents.

     

    Source:  SFBJ

  • Boca Office Building Trades At $18 Million Loss

    Boca Office Building Trades At $18 Million Loss

    Gatsby Enterprises has purchased One Town Center, located at 1 Town Center Road in Boca Raton, for $82 million.

    The asset last sold for $99.5 million.

    In July 2021, KBS acquired the property from a joint venture between prominent commercial real estate firm CP Group, formerly Crocker Partners, and Siguler Guff & Co. for $99.5 million by Prime US REIT (PRIME), which traded on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limits ticker as: OXMU. KBS served as the U.S.-based asset manager for the portfolio, which included identifying and sourcing this asset on PRIME’s behalf.

    The 1991-built 10-story building totals 191,294 square feet and features a 151,392-square-foot parking structure. The building is one of the market’s tallest office buildings and was developed before annexation into the City, thus avoiding Boca Raton’s four-story height restrictions.

    Wells Fargo provided a $51 million acquisition loan to Gatsby Enterprises.

  • New Office Building Coming To Boca Raton

    New Office Building Coming To Boca Raton

    Plans for a Class A office building close to the Town Center at Boca Raton mall have been filed by CP Group.

    The city received designs for the five-acre site on the west side of North Military Trail, directly south of the One Town Center office complex, from the local developer via affiliate CP Group via CP OTC LLC. Two Town Center is still owned by CP Group, who also constructed and sold One Town Center.

    Under the proposal, Three Town Center will feature 117,000 square feet of office space in seven stories and 557 parking spaces in six stories. It was designed by Tampa-based TVS Florida Architecture.

    Angelo Bianco, managing partner of CP Group, said Boca Raton has missed out on many of the big office tenant relocation deals that headed to West Palm Beach in recent years, but Boca Raton hasn’t had a Class A building developed in many years. He aims to change that.

    Three Town Center is slated for smaller floor plates, around 12,000 square feet each, and likely a restaurant on the ground floor.

    Mike Erickson and Laurel Oswald with TCRE have been tapped to lease the new office building, according to a marketing brochure.

     

    Source:  SFBJ

     

  • Boca Attracting Some Of The Highest Office Leasing Activity

    Boca Attracting Some Of The Highest Office Leasing Activity

    Boca Raton’s office leasing activity led the way in South Florida in 2022 and 2023, surpassing some more populous cities in the tricounty area, according to a recent analysis. It’s yet another indicator of the city’s growth — as well as the demand for office space across the region in a remote-working era.

    Boca Raton’s total significant leasing activity last year was higher than any other city in Palm Beach County, according to recent data compiled by the city’s Office of Economic Development and originating from Colliers 2023 Quarterly Office Reports.

    “We have led the county in 2022 and 2023 for significant leasing activity,” said Jessica Del Vecchio, Boca Raton’s economic development manager. “What that means is we’ve leased more square footage from the commercial office side of the business than any other city in Palm Beach County.”

    Del Vecchio believes the surge of leasing activity began as the world began to emerge out of COVID-19 constraints. The pandemic triggered heightened interest in South Florida in general, she said, which has especially flourished in Boca Raton.

    Boca Raton has a “built-in workforce,” Del Vecchio said, a product of the universities dotting the area, namely Florida Atlantic University, Lynn University and Palm Beach State College.

    “We have a lot of smart, well-educated, talented people here, and I think that’s what the draw is that sets us a part in South Florida as a whole,” she said. “It’s so important to be by where the workforce is when you’re bringing a company into an area.”

    The COVID-19 pandemic also proved the feasibility and success of a hybrid working model, making opportunities like physically working in Florida for a New York-based company possible.

    “We don’t have to work on Wall Street,” she said. “We can keep a presence on Wall Street, but we can relocate to an area that we want to be in, that’s low taxes.”

    The leasing activity momentum continues into 2024 with the announcement of six lease agreements at the Boca Raton Innovation Campus, or BRiC.

    On Jan. 18, the CP Group, the developers behind the revitalization efforts to BRiC, announced in a statement four new tenants and two lease renewals with one expansion.

    Those six tenants are: Engineering Express, a structural engineering firm; Hollywood.com, an entertainment company; LandAirSea (LAS), a GPS tracking system manufacturer; MODE Architects, a full-service architecture and design firm; EdgeMed, a revenue cycle management platform for medical organizations, and Orchid Bay Financial Holdings, an investment firm, which is also renewing its lease.

    This is one part of a $100 million project to transform the former IBM facility into an illustrious campus full of contemporary amenities along with residential units, a hotel, restaurants, retail and more.

    “We are continuing to see an influx of cutting-edge companies flocking to South Florida in search of flexible, yet turnkey, workspaces to meet the needs of their employees,” said Michael Perrette, general manager for BRiC, in the statement.

    BRiC is yet another component of Boca Raton’s growth, which is only projected to progress as other projects such as the Center for Arts and Innovation continue to advance, and people keep taking advantage of recent additions to the city, such as the Brightline service.

    “We are poised on making ourselves attractive to new investment and we engage our community stakeholders in conversations,” Mayor Singer said. “I think employers want to see a city like ours poised on what’s ahead for the next century.”

     

     

    Source:  SunSentinel

  • City Approves Huge Mixed-Use Project Surrounding Boca Raton Office Campus

    City Approves Huge Mixed-Use Project Surrounding Boca Raton Office Campus

    After receiving preliminary clearance from city authorities, a sizable mixed-use project may be built around the Boca Raton Innovation Campus.

    Situated on 123 acres at 5000 T-Rex Ave, BRIC is the largest office campus owned by a single owner in South Florida, spanning 1.7 million square feet. Large parking lots at the facility, which is well-known for being the location where IBM engineers invented the personal computer, might be developed.

    After more than five years of work by CP Group, which co-owns the site alongside Rialto, DRA Advisors, and Las Olas Capital Advisors, the City Council approved the new zoning for BRIC on October 11.

    According to Angelo Bianco, managing partner of CG Group, the permission permits 1,243 residential units, 125,000 square feet of retail space, a 140-room hotel, a 55,000-square-foot entertainment arena with seating for 5,000 people, and 85,000 square feet of medical offices. A grocery shop spanning 40,000 square feet would be part of the retail area.

     

    Source:  SFBJ

     

  • TCRE And Alliance HP Complete 17 Office Leases At Fort Lauderdale’s One Financial Plaza

    TCRE And Alliance HP Complete 17 Office Leases At Fort Lauderdale’s One Financial Plaza

    TCRE, a full-service commercial real estate brokerage in South Florida, announced 17 lease transactions in 2022 totaling approximately 52,000 square feet at One Financial Plaza, a 283,000-square-foot, 28-story Class A office tower located at 100 SE 3rd Ave. in the Central Business District of Downtown Fort Lauderdale.

    The leases, which include six new-to-market tenants, two market relocations and numerous lease renewals and expansions, bring the building to over 92 percent occupancy. Laurel Oswald, Jon Blunk and Cristina Glaria of TCRE exclusively represent the landlord, Alliance HP. The building is professionally managed by CP Group.

    “The market is changing; With numerous new residential towers on the north side of downtown, the brokers in the market and their tenants are recognizing the convenience of our location, and the building’s top-notch amenities including the Tower Club continue to make One Financial Plaza the destination of choice,” stated Ira Bergstein, Director of Leasing, Alliance HP.

     

    “Leasing activity was largely driven by the building’s extensive amenity offerings as well as the Landlord’s hands-on approach and focus on delivering the best possible tenant experience at the building,” added Laurel Oswald, executive director, TCRE.

    The new-to-market leases include the following:

    • STEMCOR, a British steel trading and distribution company, has leased 3,465 RSF; Represented by Adam Talbot, CRESA.
    • AGI Capital has leased 2,091 RSF; Represented by AJ Belt and Jeff Holding, Cushman Wakefield.
    • RVM Enterprises has leased 3,465 RSF; Represented by Steve Hyatt, Berger Commercial.
    • Rockwave Capital, a New York-based investment firm, has leased 1,262 RSF.
    • Xplore Group, relocating from Miami, has leased 1,065 RSF; Represented by Walter Robinson, Robinson Commercial.
    • Meirowitz & Wasserberg, LLP, a New-York-based personal injury law firm, has leased 1,694 RSF.

     

    Two notable in-market relocations include:

    • Oppenheimer, a global full-service brokerage and investment bank, has leased the full 21st floor totaling 11,213 RSF (in-market relocation); Represented by Adam Bernstein and Barbara Black, JLL.
    • Silverman Schermer law firm has moved its office at 401 E. Las Olas Blvd. to occupy 3,400 RSF; Represented by Kim Barbar, Stiles.

     

    TCRE has also secured 22,452 RSF of renewals and expansions for existing tenants. These include:

    • Cohen Blostein & Ayala PA has expanded and renewed 5,414 RSF; Represented by Mark Goldstein, Jasper Realty.
    • Advanced Recovery Systems (ARS) has renewed 7,800 RSF; Represented by Thomas Capocefalo, Savills.
    • Insperity HR Solutions has renewed 4,725 RSF; Represented by Zach Wendelin, CBRE.

     

    One Financial Plaza is a landmark building in the heart of downtown Fort Lauderdale. Originally constructed in 1972, the building has completed a multi-million-dollar renovation program. The ground floor lobby and retail spaces have been modernized, and the east building entrance was completely redesigned. A high-end fitness center and conferencing facilities add to the daily comforts and conveniences, and the exclusive Tower Club located on the top floor boasts sweeping views of downtown and the Atlantic Ocean, a fine dining restaurant, bar and lounge, meeting rooms and event space.

    The office tower is conveniently located two blocks from Las Olas Boulevard, a shopping, dining and cultural destination with a plethora of restaurants within walking distance from the property. The building offers easy access to US-1, I-95 and I-595 and is minutes from the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport and Fort Lauderdale’s Brightline train station.

     

  • Office Complex On Las Olas Boulevard Sells For $144.5M

    Office Complex On Las Olas Boulevard Sells For $144.5M

    CBRE has facilitated the sale of Las Olas Square on behalf of a joint venture between funds managed by Apollo Global Management, SQUARE2 Capital, and Steelbridge Capital.

    Las Olas Square is a two-building, 267,000-square-foot mixed-use property located on a full city block at the Main & Main intersection of the Las Olas office and retail district in Downtown Fort Lauderdale.

    The joint venture purchased the property and excess development land in 2016 for $90 million and executed an extensive redevelopment and re-tenanting of this iconic Ft. Lauderdale asset whose tenants includes Truist Bank, Spaces, and Del Frisco’s Grill. It also had previously sold the excess development land to a national developer for $20 million, who is currently building a 50-story residential tower on the site.

    The sellers were exclusively represented by Christian Lee and Andrew Chilgren with CBRE Capital Markets. Amy Julian with CBRE Debt & Structured Finance arranged financing on behalf of the buyer, a joint venture between CP Group and Related Fund Management. A fund managed by Alliance Bernstein provided the floating rate loan.

    Las Olas Square includes a 17-story office tower located at 515 E. Las Olas Blvd. (515 Building), a three-story building located at 501 E. Las Olas Blvd. (501 Building), and an attached four-story parking structure. It is 88 percent leased to 17 tenants across a variety of industries, including banking, legal services, real estate, accounting, and financial services.

    “The sellers returned the property to its rightful, iconic state through a multimillion-dollar, transformative renovation that activated the entire 500 block of Las Olas Boulevard. In conjunction with interior building enhancements, the addition of an outdoor tenant plaza has drastically improved the property’s curb appeal and desirability, which has attracted a high-quality and diversified tenant roster,” said Lee, CBRE Vice Chairman.

     

  • Law Firm Doubles Palm Beach County Footprint, Leasing 12,138 Square Feet At Landmark Boca Raton Building

    Law Firm Doubles Palm Beach County Footprint, Leasing 12,138 Square Feet At Landmark Boca Raton Building

    The law firm of Weiss Serota Helfman Cole & Bierman is expanding in Boca Raton. The 30-year-old business and government law firm has signed a long-term lease for 12,138 square feet at One Boca Place, a 277,390-square-foot, Class A building on Glades Road near I-95.

    The new lease will more than double the size of the firm’s Boca Raton office, setting the foundation for continued growth of staff, attorneys, and practice lines in Palm Beach County.

    Butters Realty & Management office team of Caroline Fleischer, Darcie Lunsford and Sky Butters represented Weiss Serota in the lease transaction. Laurel Oswald of TCRE represented landlord, CP Group.

    Butters Realty & Management-Caroline Fleischer, Darcie Lunsford and Sky Butters

    “While many companies were shedding real estate and recalibrating staffing levels in the face of the pandemic, Weiss Serota seized the counter-cyclical opportunity to grow, turning uncertainty to its negotiating advantage,” said Butter’s Fleischer, who is executive vice president of occupier services. “One Boca Place, fresh off the heels of a multimillion renovation, offered the firm both the prestige and the physical infrastructure needed to meet its growth trajectory.”

    Weiss Serota originally established a Boca Raton office in January 2017, with just five Palm Beach County-based attorneys there at the time. Since then, the firm has more than tripled the size of its team and anticipates having at least 17 attorneys working out of One Boca Place when it moves into the space in spring 2022. The new office gives the firm additional space to continue its expansion in Palm Beach County.

    Notable recent additions to the firm’s Boca Raton office include The DuBosar Law Group, led by accomplished litigator Howard D. DuBosar, veteran construction attorney Ronald S. Nisonson and veteran municipal and real estate attorney David N. Tolces.

    “Our Boca Raton office has proven to be a catalyst for growth for the entire firm, particularly with our private sector practice areas,” said Brett J. Schneider, Partner and Boca Raton Office Managing Director. “There is tremendous activity and expansion occurring throughout Palm Beach County. We believe our continued growth and new space will help us better serve this growing business community while also provided our employees with a vibrant and highly desirable place to work near where many of them live.”