Miami Beach Approves Plan to Turn Lincoln Road’s Service Alley Into Comras’ NoLi Lane

 

• Comras Company has started construction on NoLi, a 150,000 SF retail district on Lincoln Road's 700 and 800 blocks.
• Crews are partially demolishing 723 Lincoln Road to open Via NoLi, an 18-foot pedestrian passage.
• The city has approved the plan to turn North Lincoln Lane into NoLi Lane, a pedestrian retail street.
• Comras paid about $140M for the 11-storefront assemblage, roughly $933/SF, backed by a $117M ACORE Capital loan.

A Wall Comes Down on the 700 Block

Comras Company is cutting a new street into Lincoln Road. Crews are partially demolishing 723 Lincoln Road to make room for Via NoLi, an 18-foot-wide paseo that runs from the pedestrian mall north to North Lincoln Lane. It ends at NoLi Plaza, a courtyard with café seating and a central fountain.

Now the city has approved the other half of the plan. North Lincoln Lane, a service alley lined with loading docks and dumpsters, becomes NoLi Lane: a pedestrian street with new storefronts, wider sidewalks, landscaping and outdoor dining. Trash rooms and FPL transformers move inside the buildings, so the back of the block can work as a second front. Comras has also released new renderings, the first full look at the redesigned lane.

The approvals came in stages. The Historic Preservation Board voted 6-0 in June to approve the work at 719-737 Lincoln Road, a 1941 building in the Flamingo Park Historic District. Two days later, the Design Review Board approved the facade overhaul at 723 North Lincoln Lane and the plan to make the lane pedestrian-only.

The Numbers Behind NoLi

Comras Company bought the assemblage in November 2025 from affiliates of Morgan Stanley and Terranova. The portfolio covers 600-612, 719-737, 741 and 801-821 Lincoln Road, plus 723 North Lincoln Lane. The price was about $140 million, according to The Real Deal. Morgan Stanley and Terranova had acquired it in 2014 as part of a $342 million portfolio.

ACORE Capital provided a $117 million loan, arranged by Jonathan Rice of Ackerman & Co. That loan also covers a $30 million construction budget, as traded reported in July.

Touzet Studio leads design, working with historic-preservation firm Beilinson Gomez Architects. Touzet has designed five buildings on Lincoln Road, including the Apple and Nike flagships. NoLi doesn't add square footage. Comras is repurposing existing buildings into more than 40 continuous storefronts, leased in small bays of about 400 to 4,000 SF instead of big boxes. Current tenants include The Cheesecake Factory, Salt & Straw, IT'SUGAR and Lincoln Eatery.

 

Comras' Second Act on the Road

Michael Comras has bet big on Lincoln Road before. He bought 1001-1035 Lincoln Road in 1999 for $12 million and sold it in 2015 to Amancio Ortega's Pontegadea for $370 million. He also owns 701 and 734-744 Lincoln Road, where tenants include Hoka, Aldo and Swarovski. His track record includes the CocoWalk redevelopment in Coconut Grove.

The timing works in his favor. The Lincoln Road BID puts occupancy at about 80%. Asking rents range from $120 to $200/SF, down from a peak near $300 a decade ago, which opens the street to the boutique operators NoLi is targeting. Other buyers are coming back too. Torose Equities paid $11.7 million for 716-720 Lincoln Road in February, and Aaron Butler paid $8.4 million for the lot at 500 Lincoln Road in April. The city is also putting nearly $30 million into new walkways, lighting and landscaping along the mall.

What's Next

Leasing is underway. Comras is targeting completion of NoLi in late 2027, giving Lincoln Road a second shopping street behind its first.