Joe Sitt’s Thor Equities scored a bargain for a pair of Wynwood development sites, paying nearly $32 million below previous sale prices two years ago.
New York-based Thor paid a combined $30.2 million for the Miami properties that the seller acquired for a combined $62 million in 2023.
A Thor affiliate paid $20.2 million for a retail building at 187 Northwest 28th Street and five vacant lots at 166, 172, and 179 Northwest 29th Street; 2825 Northwest Second Avenue; and 169 Northwest 28th Street, records and real estate database Vizzda show. The assemblage totals 1.1 acres.
The seller, a Delaware entity whose registered agent is Los Angeles-based attorney Brian Aronson, paid $34 million for the six parcels in 2023, records show. The entity had purchased the site from Gamma Real Estate, which acquired the assemblage via a UCC foreclosure. The assemblage was previously approved for a 12-story mixed-use project with 180 co-living apartments.
A separate Thor affiliate paid $10 million for five vacant lots at 2724 Northwest Second Avenue; 208 Northwest 28th Street; and 229, 235, and 245 Northwest 27th Terrace, records and Vizzda show. The seller is another Delaware entity tracing to Aronson.
In 2023, Thor sold the 0.7-acre assemblage to the Delaware entity for $28 million. The site has city of Miami approval for an eight-story hotel with 211 rooms, 19,705 square feet of retail and a 12,106-square-foot rooftop terrace.
“Our longstanding relationships, and ability to move quickly on acquisition opportunities gave us a unique advantage in this case,” Sitt said in an emailed statement. “Wynwood’s flexible zoning makes it a key part of Thor’s Florida strategy.”
The discounted prices likely represent the seller shifting strategies and cutting its losses, said Tony Arellano with Dwntwn Realty Advisors, which was not involved in the deals. The Delaware entities had not filed new plans with the city of Miami, records show.
“This may be one the best deals in this cycle,” Arellano said. “Those are two incredible pieces of real estate at incredible prices. Joe is one of those guys who is a striker and can make a quick decision.”
