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Attorneys Help in $17.37 Million Purchase of 2-Acre Brickell Site
By Paola Iuspa-Abbott
May 30, 2012
Daily Business Review
Dealmakers: Attorneys Lida Rodriguez-Taseff and Barry Lapides.
The Deal: Rodriguez-Taseff and Lapides represented the buyer, Madrid-based MDR Inversiones, in the acquisition of a nearly 2-acre development site at 1080 Brickell Ave. The $17.37 million cash deal closed on May 22. A company led by Miami developer Alan Ojeda was the seller.
Details: The challenging aspect of the transaction was getting the deal done in less than a month. Negotiations started in late April, the contract was signed in early May, and the closing was supposed to happen in early June, following a 30-day due diligence period.
But then the deal changed when the principals decided to close early," Lapides said, referring to the seller and buyer. "So we had to close in 20 days. We had to complete due diligence and get ready for closing over a weekend."
Lapides said since the seller had a loan pay-off coming due in June, Ojeda's company wanted to close early enough so that if the deal didn't go through, it would have enough time to prepare for a loan modification. The seller owed $5 million to MUNB Loan Holdings, which had already modified the 2006 loan twice between November 2008 and January 2010, according to Miami-Dade County property records.
"Within the short timeframe, we were negotiating a contract, reviewing title, conducting due diligence and meeting with the city to ensure that all the entitlements were in place and were vested," he said.
Lapides said Ojeda's company, 1080 Brickell LLC, got site plan approval from the city in 2006. The approval, known as a Major Use Special Permit, would allow MDR to build a 41-story high-rise with up to 315 residential units, 1,250 square feet of retail space, and a parking garage for 637 cars to serve residents and office workers from 1110 Brickell Ave., according to Miami public records. The approval is valid until 2014.
Now the site is home to a parking garage that serves the 1110 Brickell Ave office workers.
Another challenge Rodriguez-Taseff and Lapides helped their client overcome was the limited space around the property to stage a construction site.
"The property has zero space, so from a construction standpoint it is going to be like building in Manhattan, with all the buildings adjacent to each other," Lapides said. "We had to come up with a plan."
Part of that plan was to find alternative parking for the construction and office workers during the construction period.
"We had to give our client comfort knowing that these problems can and will be solved," he said. "We had to work with the mayor's office and the Miami Parking Authority on what we can do to alleviate all those construction issues."
Rodriguez-Taseff and Lapides worked closely with the surveyors, engineers and contractors conducting the due diligence to make sure the purchase contract had all the necessary warranties in place.
Rodriguez-Taseff said Lapides had experience litigating real estate deals that went sour and know what issues can turn into a legal nightmare if they're not clearly clarified early on.
"I know where to spend the resources and where not to get bogged down," Lapides said. "Because of my litigating experience, I was able to review the title in an efficient manner and able to review the survey and work with the surveyor."
MDR is led by Manuel Moratiel Llarena and Maria Del Pilar Entrena Moratiel, according to the Florida Division of Corporations. Earlier this year the couple paid $17 million for the 63-unit Brickell Station Lofts at 100 SW 10th St. in Miami. The fully leased apartment building fetched $270,000 per unit. Back then the price was considered as aggressive compared with what the couple paid for Ojeda's former site.
Quote: "European money in our economy is very important," Lapides said. "And it is not only about educating the client on our culture, but also about doing businesses in the United States, especially when it comes to construction in Miami. It is going to get more complicated the denser the city gets."
Background: Rodriguez-Taseff is a partner and Lapides an associate with the Duane Morris law firm in Miami.
This article is reprinted with permission from the Daily Business Review.
