Ken Griffin Moves Forward with $1 Billion-Plus Mixed-Use Tower in Miami’s Brickell Financial District
July 26, 2024
Billionaire Ken Griffin is advancing his plans to develop a mixed-use tower exceeding $1 billion in Miami’s Brickell Financial District.
Griffin’s attorney, Neisen Kasdin, recently submitted a pre-application for the properties at 1201 Brickell Bay Drive, 1221 Brickell Avenue, and 1250-1260 Brickell Bay Drive. Griffin, the founder and CEO of hedge fund Citadel and owner of Citadel Securities, intends to relocate the headquarters of both companies to the new development.
The 1201 Brickell Bay Drive project will feature office space, a luxury hotel, retail, food and beverage outlets, and parking facilities. According to the application, the development will adhere to Miami-Dade County’s rapid transit zoning regulations. These sites fall within a Metromover subzone established in 2022 and 2023.
Preliminary plans suggest the addition of residential units to the existing office building at 1221 Brickell Bay Drive.
The design is being overseen by the architecture firm Foster + Partners, led by Norman Foster in London. Philadelphia-based Gattuso Development Partners, headed by John Gattuso, also collaborates on the project. Griffin parted ways with Chicago-based Sterling Bay as a co-developer last year.
In 2022, entities affiliated with Griffin and Citadel acquired the Brickell assemblage for nearly $670 million, encompassing approximately 4.2 acres. The most significant transaction was the $363 million purchase of the 2.5-acre bayfront lot at 1201 Brickell Bay Drive from the Hollo family’s Florida East Coast Realty, setting a record price for the site.
That same year, Griffin also acquired the 28-story office building at 1221 Brickell Avenue for $286.5 million and the now-demolished apartment building at 1250 Brickell Bay Drive, along with the adjacent vacant lot at 1260 Brickell Bay Drive, for a combined $20 million.
Federal Aviation Administration regulations will restrict the future project’s height, which caps Miami buildings at 1,049 feet.
Citadel recently expanded its space at 830 Brickell, securing approximately 130,000 square feet in the office tower by Vlad Doronin and Cain International, which is nearing completion. Citadel and Citadel Securities also occupy space at the Southeast Financial Center in downtown Miami.
Griffin has also acquired some of South Florida’s most expensive residential properties, including Miami, Miami Beach, and Palm Beach waterfront homes. The Daytona Beach native, who left Chicago to move his family and businesses to South Florida, now sells several residential properties in Chicago, where he established his business.
