9fi5th Luxury Real Estate
Spring/Summer 2014

Hotel Amenities Without the Hotel Guest

Lionheart Capital conjures up the second in a series of ultra-luxury branded residences right in the heart of Miami’s Mid-Beach area.

What’s the best part about staying in a hotel? A Ritz-Carlton hotel that is? –The service and amenities. You really can’t beat upscale attendance, since it will leave you feeling as though you didn’t truly live prior to having your concierge or personal butler arrange for your every move. But aside from the little luxuries that will come as second nature at the Ritz, it’s the impeccable training of the high-end hotel staff that makes every day just a little more blissful.

So, what better way to bring said bliss to your daily routine, than to create the concept of a Ritz-Carlton-managed condominium residence without the actual hotel attached to it? That’s exactly what happened with Lionheart Capital’s latest Ritz-Carlton Residences, Miami Beach to rise nine stories above the residential neighborhood of Mid-Beach, Miami. Having already garnered huge success with a similar development in Singer Island, Palm Beach, the folks at Lionheart knew that this one would be a winner and decided to transplant the concept to an otherwise very gated community.

“What’s unique about our project is that we are not a hotel and residences,” said Lionheart Capitals Founding Partner and CEO Ophir Sternberg. “A hotel component adds an element of transience with guests coming in and out, checking in, etc. We are providing the luxury of Ritz-Carlton services but on a purely residential scale.” A residential scale that will provide, “possibly the most amenities anywhere on Miami Beach.”

Since, the neighborhood was pretty determined about retaining a low density, luxurious feel to the environs, The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Miami Beach will offer fewer units with, you guessed it, a larger per unit foot. As such, the average square footage per residence will lie somewhere around 3,500 square feet with several of the 111 condominium residences offering spacious four and five-bedroom floor plans. Speaking of floor plans, thanks to a uniquely designed building, there will be a whopping 60 different layouts to choose from, making pretty much every unit unique in its own right. Residence sizes will vary from two-bedroom units with a footprint of just under 2,000 square feet on the smallest end to six-bedroom units and penthouses that will boast a whopping 10,000 square feet and up.

With Italian architect and designer Piero Lissoni on board, the units will come pre-floored throughout, taking the guesswork out of just what to put down on the concrete, and will feature a specially designed line of Boffi kitchens to round out the build. Residents can look forward to top-of-the-line Gaggenau appliances, which by the way will include a gas range, a small tidbit that seems to be the exception in the mostly electrically powered world of Miami ovens. It will be something that the MasterChef-watching amateur cook inside of you will most likely put to good pan-wielding use. Should you want to try said culinary exploration al fresco you will do so in your designated summer kitchen that may well grace the oversized terraces offered in most of the units. As for interior freshness, ceilings will hover pretty far above you with an average ceiling height at about 12 feet and a penthouse ceiling height of up to 20 lofty feet.

The amenities of the property will have you singing just as many odes to service as that last stay at your favorite hotel did. There will be a private screening room, the ubiquitous gym and spas with Jacuzzis and pools, and of course a dog grooming station for pooch to get that much needed up-do for a weekend about town. Residents will look forward to an in-house restaurant plating up organic and locally sourced fair to their fellow residents and guests only, while the Ritz-Carlton concierge will take care of any and all other matters to be. “We chose the Ritz-Carlton,” explained Sternberg, “because we think they did an amazing job providing service at our property in Singer Island, Palm Beach. Residents constantly rave about the level of service and training the staff receives.”

Sitting right on a lake, yes there’s a lake in the middle of Miami Beach and yes we had no idea either, the property will also offer 36 boat slips to accommodate schooners up to 40 feet in size. There will be beach access through the Ritz-Carlton, South Beach, to which residents will have their private property boat taking them through the intracoastal in luxury style and flair.

While the development offers stunning views out of its condominium units, remember, it’s surrounded by single family homes –i.e. nothing clogging those 360 degrees, it will also offer 15 single family homes dotted around the building. These will be stand alone villas that will, “have the full services of a condominium,” and they’ll boast their own private pools that will actually be built to come right into the living room. Sounds pretty…wonderful!

Residences range in price from $2 million to $20 million+, and should you be in the market to buy an extra guest suite within the building, there are 11 of those, you could go ahead and snag one of those up as well. Would certainly be a great way to put up those guests who might want to stay with you, but not actually stay with you.

This property, “will be appealing not only to international buyers looking for their second and third homes,” as Sternberg detailed, “but also to a lot of local buyers who are already living in Miami Beach and have been looking for a new and modern full-service condominium or single family home in a non-transient neighborhood.” There you have it.
Hotel living without the pitter patter of actual hotel guests. Ready to check in?