Miami Free Zone Acquired With Plans For Industrial Expansion - Miami Airport Warehouses

Foundry Commercial and American Realty Advisors have acquired the Miami Free Zone business park and plans to expand it.

The Orlando-based commercial real estate firm said it acquired the 823,000-square-foot industrial complex at 2305 Northwest 107th Avenue in Doral. The seller was CV Miami LLC, an affiliate of Seattle-based Expeditors International of Washington. The seller was represented by Transwestern Managing Director John Bell.

Foundry Commercial didn’t comment on the price. The transaction has yet to be recorded in county records. However, a source familiar with the deal said the price was $85.5 million.

Built in 1979 in three buildings, the Miami Free Zone last traded for $76.2 million in 2006. Being in a free trade zone allows tenants to sell goods while avoiding duties. That is a valuable designation for manufacturers.

The deal includes about 18 acres of developable land, where Foundry Commercial and American Realty Advisors plan to build another 300,000 square feet of industrial.

“Industrial demand in Miami-Dade is at an all-time high; particularly in the Airport West submarket,” said Ford Gibson, managing director at Foundry Commercial. “Properties like Miami Free Zone are crucial to maintaining the flow of imported/exported items entering the United States from Latin America, and vice-versa, that are transported through the MIA Port and sent on to other locations via the airport. We are excited for the opportunity to leverage this asset to better serve this crucial need in Miami.”

American Realty Advisors Senior Director David Willett said the local industrial market has strong positive net absorption, low vacancy and continued rent growth, making it a good investment for his firm. Los Angeles-based American Realty Advisors has more than $8 billion in assets under management.

Foundry Commercial is also building the Carrie Meek International Business Park in Opa-Locka, which will have the county’s largest Amazon.com warehouse. it has more than 50 million square feet of real estate under management.

Source: SFBJ