Miami Beach Backs $50M Expansion of The Rivani

• Miami Beach City Commission unanimously approved the ground lease amendment on first reading June 25; a second reading is set for July 22, after which Miami Beach voters must also sign off.
• The $50M expansion would add 36,000 SF of office space, a 6,000 SF rooftop restaurant, and three rooftop padel courts by converting the building's sixth garage level and eliminating roughly 250 parking spaces.
• In exchange for extending the ground lease from 2052 to 2132, Rivani agreed to raise the city's annual base rent to at least $500,000 beginning in 2033, increase the city's gross revenue share from 2.5% to 3%, and contribute $1.3M in public benefits.

Robert Rivani is betting another $50 million on Miami Beach's office market, and the city is moving with him.

The Miami Beach City Commission unanimously approved on first reading a ground lease amendment that would clear the way for a major rooftop expansion at The Rivani, Rivani's seven-story mixed-use building at 1691 Michigan Avenue, one block north of Lincoln Road. A second reading is scheduled for July 22. Because the building sits on city-owned land, the amendment also requires voter approval before it takes effect.

Garage Goes, Office Comes Up

The proposed expansion converts the existing garage's sixth level into approximately 36,000 square feet of new office space, a 6,000-square-foot restaurant, and three rooftop padel courts. The reconfiguration would eliminate roughly 250 parking spaces from the current 712-space structure. The 100 spaces designated for public use during business hours would be preserved.

In exchange for adding two additional 20-year renewal options to the existing lease (pushing the term from 2052 to 2132), Rivani agreed to financial upgrades that benefit the city: annual base rent rising to at least $500,000 starting in 2033, up from the current $390,000; a gross revenue share climbing from 2.5% to 3% (that percentage stake generated roughly $279,700 for Miami Beach last year); and $1.3 million in public benefits contributions, including $600,000 for Lincoln Road improvements and public art and $150,000 for Miami Beach's human trafficking tip line and sister cities initiative.

$100M In and Still Growing

Rivani, who relocated his firm from Los Angeles to Miami in 2022, acquired the building and its ground lease in April 2024 for $62.5 million. The deal was the largest office transaction on Miami Beach since 2016, when Clarion Partners paid $109.2 million for the same property. By the time Rivani closed, Clarion had absorbed a deep discount. Rivani then poured roughly $50 million into a Phase One gut renovation, rebranding the building under what he calls "Class X" office, a hospitality-forward concept designed by Rockwell Group featuring concierge services, valet, a Monarch Athletic Club, and an H.Wood Group speakeasy on the third floor. The building hit 80% leased ahead of its 2026 opening, with tenants including Playboy (which signed a 20,000 SF penthouse suite for its global headquarters relocation from Los Angeles) and "Shark Tank" investor Daymond John.

Miami Beach Class A office rents average around $75 per square foot, per Colliers, with premium product along the Lincoln Road corridor pushing past $100 per square foot for high-end inventory. The Rivani's Phase Two adds net-new office supply to a submarket with a limited pipeline. Competing high-end products include Sumaida + Khurana and Bizzi + Bilgili's The Fifth Miami Beach, which counts former Google CEO Eric Schmidt as an investor.

What's Next

If the July 22 second reading passes, the amendment heads to Miami Beach voters for final approval. Construction on the rooftop expansion, with an estimated cost of $50 million, would follow. Rivani's total investment in the site would then exceed $160 million across the acquisition and two phases of development.