Second Live Local Act Tower Proposed in Sunset Harbour at 1771 West Avenue
Sunset Harbour is set to receive its second Live Local Act tower, just weeks after plans for its first came to light. EOS Wellness Real Estate Miami, LLC has filed plans for a 44-unit building at 1771 West Avenue, on the site of an Office Depot that sold last year for $28.5 million. At 300 feet to the roof, it would be among the tallest buildings in the neighborhood. The proposal rests on a state law designed to expand affordable housing by granting developers added density, flexible zoning and other incentives in exchange for a commitment to workforce units. That law has driven a steady flow of proposals in Miami Beach, and a number of them have run into questions about historic preservation. That is not a factor here, since the site sits outside any local historic district and is not listed on the National Register of Historic Places. What’s Planned Like many Live Local Act developments in Miami Beach, this one is trying to square workforce housing with a luxury product. The law makes every project mixed-income, requiring that at least 40 percent of units be set aside as workforce housing, and here that works out to 18 of the 44 units. Those apartments are priced for households earning up to 120 percent of area median income, which puts studios at roughly $2,800 at most. The other 26 units are market-rate condominiums. Size is what separates the two groups. The workforce units run smaller, from studios to two-bedrooms, while the condominiums stretch up to four bedrooms, so the building’s full range spans studios, two-, three- and four-bedrooms. The 44 units also fall well short of the 86 the site could accommodate. The luxury concept carries, expectedly, into the amenities, where wellness is the organizing theme. Beyond multiple pools, the plans include a longevity spa, fitness facilities, massage and recovery rooms, consultation and treatment spaces, and physical therapy and aesthetic services, among other amenities. At street level, the project adds a private driveway, a lobby and expanded pedestrian improvements; above that sit 6,391 square feet of commercial space and 117 parking spaces in a multi-level podium, with the tower rising from there. How high that tower can rise comes down to a provision in the Live Local Act. The building would reach 325 feet at its highest point, or 300 feet to the roof, because the law lets projects use the tallest height allowed within one mile of the site. This one draws on the Civic and Convention Center District, which now caps buildings at 150 feet. The city lowered that limit from 300 feet in April 2024, but state law prevents a city from setting a lower height limit for a Live Local project than the tallest allowed within one mile as of July 1, 2023. As a result, the earlier 300-foot figure still applies here. The design team includes Foster + Partners and ODP, and renderings show a palette of light gray, brown and white, paired with smooth concrete, louvered cladding, floor-to-ceiling glass and bronze mullions. The Future Whether the project reaches construction depends on a broader backdrop. Miami Beach continues to see a record-breaking number of Live Local Act projects, while the outlook for such development remains in flux, and the city recently weighed legal action against the state over the act after significant local opposition. Against that backdrop, this proposal has a few factors in its favor, including a location outside any historic district and a surrounding area that already includes high-rises.
Miami’s Northeast Corridor Rail Project Regains State Funding, but Questions Over the Brightline Deal Remain
For more than two decades, Miami has been promised commuter rail service along its northeastern corridor. The project, known as the Northeast Corridor or Coastal Link, would bring new stations to neighborhoods such as Wynwood and North Miami. Trains would run on the existing Florida East Coast Railway corridor, which Brightline already uses and shares with a freight railroad. Years of delays and disputes have delayed the project, however, and its latest setback fits the pattern: in 2025, $200 million in state money was stripped from the budget. That loss was a serious blow to the project’s progress because of how its financing is structured. The extension carries a price tag of $927.3 million. Federal dollars would cover roughly $389 million, a little over 40 percent of the total, while Miami-Dade County would contribute $337.9 million. The state was expected to supply the remainder, which is almost exactly the sum that was cut. The state has since put that money back, according to Transit Alliance Miami, which says the reinstatement happened with little public notice. The timing is notable. Carnegie Mellon University recently announced a new campus in Wynwood, backed by billions from hedge fund founder and philanthropist Ken Griffin, and the scale of that investment, combined with sustained lobbying from Miami politicians and business owners, may have helped revive the rail funding. The restored money has not settled the larger question of whether the deal itself is sound, though. Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava has been a persistent skeptic, describing the risks of partnering with Brightline as ‘risky’ and pressing for changes to the terms. Those concerns have gained substance from a September analysis commissioned by her administration, according to recent reporting by the Miami Herald. Under Deputy Mayor Roy Coley, the county hired Newmark, a real estate and advisory firm, to review the most recent draft agreement. The firm’s findings raised several concerns. Most prominent among them was the instability surrounding Brightline itself. The company is working through a bankruptcy and restructuring, a process that could slow the project and has already required short-term extensions on debt payments. Newmark also pointed to an ongoing feud between Brightline and a freight operator that shares the same tracks, a conflict it said would have to be resolved before Coastal Link could move forward. Beyond those external hazards, the firm faulted the draft’s structure, arguing that it leaves the county exposed to cost overruns and other burdens that a private partner would ordinarily absorb on a project of this kind. Brightline has not welcomed the detour. With its own finances under pressure, the company is eager to lock in an agreement, and it has framed the county’s hesitation as the last obstacle. In a statement, Brightline called the project “at the finish line” and argued that it offers more value per county dollar than anything else in the SMART Plan, adding that it needs county leadership to close the deal. If these final hurdles are cleared, the Northeast Corridor would be one of the few transit proposals in Miami-Dade to move from planning into reality. Over the years, the county has floated numerous improvements, including multiple Metrorail extensions, but few have ever broken ground. Coastal Link would not be a Metrorail extension, since it would share existing tracks rather than run on its own dedicated line. Even so, it would offer the northeast neighborhoods of the county a rail connection it has never had, and for commuters in that corridor the practical benefits would be substantial.