Ballpark Area Development

[Party]

BOOZE BOOST: Miami is hoping a relaxation of rules regulating the distance between alcohol-related establishments will help spur economic development near the future Marlins stadium in Little Havana. City commissioners are to vote today (7/28) on establishing an "Orange Bowl District" bounded by Northwest Sixth Street to the north, Northwest 16th Avenue to the west, Northwest Fourth Street to the south and Northwest 14th Avenue to the east. In the special district, businesses serving alcohol such as nightclubs, bars and restaurants wouldn't face regulations on proximity to other alcohol-serving establishments, churches and residential areas imposed in the rest of the city.

By Jacquelyn Weiner
Miami is trading players in the game of leasing retail space at its Marlins stadium garages.

Following an eight-day competitive bid, Miami commissioners are to vote today (7/28) on awarding Terranova Corp. a contract to handle retail leasing and management of the six slots totaling 53,281 square feet available in three of the four stadium garages. The contract would be a one year, with four one-year renewal options.

Compensation would include $5,000 monthly for the first six months of leasing, a $10,000 initial marketing budget and 6% commission on leases on up to ten years of the rental term.

Before this, real estate firm NAI Miami had been promoting the sites for months for the Miami Parking Authority.

Jeremy Larkin, NAI Miami president, said in an interview Monday that the firm had letters of interest for "almost 60%" of available space, and that there was "substantial interest from a core group of retailers and restaurants."

However, NAI never had the power to sign deals.

Miami committed to building parking under a stadium-construction agreement with the Marlins and Miami-Dade County. The quasi-independent Miami Parking Authority must run it, but either can oversee the garage retail.

Thus an agreement is needed outlining retail-space responsibilities. It was continuously delayed but is to be voted on today.

Meanwhile, concerned with the shrinking timeline, the parking authority had given NAI the go-ahead to peddle the space. Yet after seeing NAI's prospects, Miami opted to consider other firms and handle leasing itself.

"My goal is to maximize our revenues and to have quality retail in there," Commissioner Frank Carollo said at the most recent commission meeting.

Asked if Terranova plans to utilize NAI's work to date, spokeswoman Kelliann McDonald said the firm wouldn't comment until commissioners approve the leasing contract.

Only Terranova and NAI responded to the city's request for letters of interest to lease retail at the garages.

Mr. Carollo said in an interview that other firms were interested but couldn't pull together a proposal within the allowed time.

Respondents had eight days to submit an up-to-20-page proposal with 14 requirements, according to the request for letters of interest, including references, a "complete list of clients" for which the company performed similar services, a description of "overall approach and methodology" and current or pending litigation.

Other open solicitations on the city's website allow a month or more to respond.

Mr. Carollo said the process was expedited to ensure commission approval now, as the commission won't meet again until September.

In addition, negotiating retail leases can take well over a year, and opening day for 2012 Marlins baseball is less than nine months away.

Both bids were ranked by a selection committee of Alice Bravo, Miami's chief of infrastructure; Madeline Valdes, city director of public facilities; Miami-Dade County Commissioner Bruno Barreiro; Adrian Songer with the Miami-Dade County Aviation Department, and Tony Fraga, principal at Fraga Capital Partners.

http://www.miamitodaynews.com/news/110728/story3.shtml

[Party]

Looking at the proposed boundaries, the garages are outside the special district. Does this mean alcohol sales will be allowed in the ballpark?

[Party]

Florida Marlins garage retail, dining sites meet resistance

By Jacquelyn Weiner

Real estate firm NAI Miami may have lost out on the Marlins garage retail-leasing gig, but its months of work on the project reveal the direction retail could take.

NAI's response to a City of Miami request for letters of interest seeking a leasing agent for 53,281 square feet of retail in three of its stadium garages details several proposed restaurants, retailers that have said no and challenges ahead.

One major issue NAI confronted: "The immediate neighborhood [around the stadium] is a densely populated, heavily Hispanic, middle to lower income neighborhood," NAI wrote in its submission. "The new profile of the Florida Marlins season ticket holder, to date, is a Miami-Dade County resident in middle to upper income levels and not as heavily Hispanic."

Because of this, NAI initially targeted "higher-end entertainment, restaurant and retail uses" and conducted a national search "for ballpark related concepts."

This failed, according to NAI, citing Sluggers as an example.

Open since 1985, the sports bar and restaurant next to Wrigley Field in Chicago "initially expressed a high level of interest," in a Marlins-stadium location but rejected the site after visiting and "researching the immediate market," concerned that business wouldn't remain profitable in the offseason.

"Multiple other higher-end entertainment, restaurant and retail uses were contacted and rejected the site because of the immediate demographics," according to NAI, "indicating they needed to be profitable 365 days per year and not just the 81 days when baseball is played."

NAI Miami was asked to begin stirring interest in the Marlins garage retail sites in early 2011 by the Miami Parking Authority, which recognized that the window of opportunity to seek tenants was shrinking.

The Marlins ballpark is to open in April 2012.

While the garages are being built and will be owned by the City of Miami, the quasi-independent parking authority is charged with managing city parking facilities.

However, either can manage retail within a city garage, so an agreement between the authority and the city outlining responsibilities for the garage retail is needed.

Miami commissioners voted last week to have City Manager Johnny Martinez move forward with that contract. The authority's board was also to discuss the agreement at its meeting Wednesday.

However, retailers are expected to be open for business in less than a year, while the city has known its responsibilities in building the garages since signing the March 2009 stadium agreement with the Marlins and Miami-Dade County.

With no written contract stating who is to handle leasing and manage the garage retail, the Parking Authority asked NAI — which handles leasing at other authority properties — to initiate a "low key marketing plan" in early 2011 "with the full knowledge there was no formal commitment or obligation to engage NAI Miami as their leasing agent," according to NAI.

NAI said it had "just over 58% of the retail space" committed to under letters of intent from retailers/restaurants with submitted offers to lease the space.

Then at a June city commission meeting, stadium-area Commissioner Frank Carollo said he wanted to see what other real-estate firms could offer.

"Let's welcome other leasing agents that have a strong, solid history of leasing," Mr. Carollo said at the meeting.

Two firms responded to the request: Terranova Corp. and NAI Miami.

A selection committee named Terranova No. 1. Commissioners approved Terranova unanimously last week.

While Terranova is new to the project, much of the initial legwork has already been done.

Terranova has not answered multiple inquiries as to whether it plans to utilize existing retailer agreements.

Spokeswoman Kelliann McDonald wrote in an e-mail that Terranova could not comment before commission approval. When asked the following week, she wrote that Chairman Stephen Bittel was unavailable for comment by press time.

NAI Miami President Jeremy Larkin referred specific questions on prospects to the company's submission to the City of Miami.

According to the submission, uses proposed by interested retailers for space at the Marlins stadium garages include:

nPresidente Market & Café, a "neighborhood market and Latin café" taking up 8,438 square feet. The eatery would have a flexible layout, allowing a smaller market and larger eating space during baseball season and vice versa in the offseason.

"An "elevated' Pollo Tropical." Orders would be taken at a counter, with the rest of service — drinks, desserts and final payment — handled at tables by waiters.

Menchie's Frozen Yogurt, featuring a variety of serve-it-yourself mixable flavors and more than 40 toppings.

Teriyaki Experience: a full-service, seated restaurant featuring Asian-style dishes and full liquor offerings.

Sonic Beach: a 5,500-square-foot Sonic restaurant open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, including waiter service and wine, beer and liquor.

Navarro Discount Pharmacy has also done a site visit, NAI wrote in its submission.

Retailers listed under "Meeting and Phone Conversations with Interested Parties" include Perdomo Cigars, Guayaberas Etc., Gilbert's Bakery and Houlihan's American restaurant and bar.

"Interested Parties Per Broker Contact" include Muscle Maker Grill, Quiznos, Brooklyn Bagels, Fuddruckers and GNC.

Among retailers that have said no, according to NAI's submission: T.G.I. Friday's, Dave & Buster's, Shorty's Bar-B-Q, Havana Harry's, Chuck E. Cheese's, CVS, Hurricane Grill & Wings, Lime Fresh Mexican Grill, Los Ranchos Steakhouse, Edible Arrangements, and Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza.

The Marlins have yet to name in-stadium retailers or its "lead restaurant," but NAI mentions in its documents to the city that the team has had to change its expectations.

"Based on recent meetings with the Florida Marlins, their initial concept for their lead restaurant was a high-end dining experience," according to NAI's submission to the city. "However, after multiple unsuccessful attempts to secure this, they have adjusted their targets downward to a more moderately priced restaurant/sports bar which they believe they have secured and should announce soon."

Also detailed in NAI's submission to the city are obstacles and "Areas of Difficulty" in leasing out the garage retail space.

Issues include:

Signing leases can much longer at public properties, given government requirements.

This includes "review by the [parking authority] board of each milestone," since the board meets only meets once a month; "city's timetables;" "attorney review," and "tenant improvement budgets and cost."

"The timing for completion of a lease transaction will be longer than a typical market transaction, and, in some instances, may be twice as long," NAI wrote.

The company suggested that the city offer lease incentives, including expedited permitting and flexible pricing.

A shrinking window of time before the ballpark opens.

AI wrote that the timeframe from signing a letter of interest with a retailer to a soft opening can take 154 to 409 days, with restaurants on the longer end.

"As of today, unless everything goes as quickly as possible, there is minimal to no time tolerance for delays and we are probably already past that timeframe based on a realistic standard," NAI wrote.

Requiring a request for proposals process and city commission approval for each lease could further extend the timeline by 60 to 120 days, NAI wrote.

Retailers typically expect a "vanilla shell" build out when renting a new space, yet the city hasn't budgeted for that.

"When retailers and restaurants are leasing in newly built properties, they have an expectation of how the space will be delivered to them to finish it for their specific need," NAI wrote. "The most common standard of expectation is referred to in the industry as a "Vanilla Shell.'"

A typical "vanilla shell," according to NAI's submission, includes smooth drywall walls ready to be painted, concrete floor slabs with a "smooth troweled finish" and broom cleaned, a washroom with a toilet and sink installed, water service to the point of meter connection and a hollow metal exit door.

NAI wrote that City of Miami Project Manager Robert Fenton said "current plans call for the retail space to be delivered with no walls, no services."

Build out to typical "vanilla shell" standards would cost the city an estimated $3.2 million, NAI wrote.

With other issues taken into consideration, including lack of grease traps for restaurants, "the funding for tenant improvements in order to attract the desired retailers and restaurants is short by $1.4 million," NAI wrote.

This encompasses using $3 million in bond dollars toward the build out.
Details:http://egov.ci.miami.fl.us/Legistarw...ents/64135.pdf

http://www.miamitodaynews.com/news/110804/story6.shtml

[Jorge18]

"Based on recent meetings with the Florida Marlins, their initial concept for their lead restaurant was a high-end dining experience," according to NAI's submission to the city. "However, after multiple unsuccessful attempts to secure this, they have adjusted their targets downward to a more moderately priced restaurant/sports bar which they believe they have secured and should announce soon."

I prefer a "lower end" restaurant over a higher priced one. Can you imagine a high priced restaurant in the middle of Little Havana?

[Mainge]

Pollo Tropical is the worst.

[MiamiHomer]

I love Pollo Tropical.

[Fritz]

Pollo Tropical is garbage.

[Omar]

They should have Chicken Kitchen.

And Navarro? Really? Lots of people getting their prescriptions filled on the way home from a game?

[CrimsonCane]

A Sports Grill at the stadium would be perfectly fine with me.

They aren't going to be able to secure a high-end restaurant for a while there. Their best bet to appeal to season ticket holders and corporate box owners looking for more upscale food pre-game (for themselves or to wine/dine clients) is to have a shuttle run from the Brickell area over to the stadium (perhaps make it exclusive to season ticket holders). There are plenty of upscale restaurants all around that area and a lot of the hotels that business travelers stay at (when not in Miami Beach) are in that same area. It's a natural transition from the office, to a nice dinner, to the game, back to the hotel.

As of now, they've only made comments about shuttles from Culmer and Gov't Center. I think the one to Gov't Center is a big mistake. If you have never riden the metrorail from Gov't Center at night, it's quite an experience. It's fine if you're coming from the Metromover stop (if you were coming from a Heat/Panthers game back at the old Miami Arena or from the AAA) because you stay inside the station the entire time. It's quite another thing to have a shuttle drop you off somewhere near the station. At night, there is nothing in that area except for TONS of homeless people. Most fans using Metrorail are going to be coming from the South, Brickell is a much safer stop at night, it adds maybe 3-5 minutes on the shuttle at most, and it means one less stop for fans on their ride home.

One last point, If you go back to the map I posted at the beginning of the thread, I think you can do a very easy transitional development in that large undeveloped space (the big red area) by just clearing it out, maybe laying some concrete and turning it into a spot where food trucks can all park

[Jorge18]

A Sports Grill at the stadium would be perfectly fine with me.

They aren't going to be able to secure a high-end restaurant for a while there. Their best bet to appeal to season ticket holders and corporate box owners looking for more upscale food pre-game (for themselves or to wine/dine clients) is to have a shuttle run from the Brickell area over to the stadium (perhaps make it exclusive to season ticket holders). There are plenty of upscale restaurants all around that area and a lot of the hotels that business travelers stay at (when not in Miami Beach) are in that same area. It's a natural transition from the office, to a nice dinner, to the game, back to the hotel.

As of now, they've only made comments about shuttles from Culmer and Gov't Center. I think the one to Gov't Center is a big mistake. If you have never riden the metrorail from Gov't Center at night, it's quite an experience. It's fine if you're coming from the Metromover stop (if you were coming from a Heat/Panthers game back at the old Miami Arena or from the AAA) because you stay inside the station the entire time. It's quite another thing to have a shuttle drop you off somewhere near the station. At night, there is nothing in that area except for TONS of homeless people. Most fans using Metrorail are going to be coming from the South, Brickell is a much safer stop at night, it adds maybe 3-5 minutes on the shuttle at most, and it means one less stop for fans on their ride home.

One last point, If you go back to the map I posted at the beginning of the thread, I think you can do a very easy transitional development in that large undeveloped space (the big red area) by just clearing it out, maybe laying some concrete and turning it into a spot where food trucks can all park

You're right about the shuttles, I personally would not use those only for safety concerns. I hope they have some different shuttles because if not, I'm going to have a tough time parking for the games.

[MiamiHomer]

They should have Chicken Kitchen.

And Navarro? Really? Lots of people getting their prescriptions filled on the way home from a game?

Hey what about those that get their perfumes/colognes?

[Party]

They should have Chicken Kitchen.

And Navarro? Really? Lots of people getting their prescriptions filled on the way home from a game?

It makes sense for Navarro. The CVS across the street already did the market research for them.

[Bobbob1313]

Ever since Pollo Tropical stopped serving the Chicken Caesar Sandwich, they are the worst.

[MiamiHomer]

I love their wraps with the lime cilantro sauce.

[Beef]

I was in the ballpark area today. It needs to be developed.