Joseph Kavana scores $65M construction loan for Metropica’s first tower

Developer Joseph Kavana closed on a $64.5 million construction loan for Metropica One, the first of eight residential towers in the master-planned community in west Broward, property records show.  

Romspen, a Canadian non-bank lender, provided the financing for the 263-unit, 28-story tower at 1800 Northwest 136th Avenue in Sunrise. It’s the first part of the $1.5 billion, 4 million-square-foot development, which will have more than 1,400 residential units, retail, dining and entertainment space, a wellness and fitness facility, a Central Park, public spaces, and recreational amenities.

Metropica One, previously called Yoo at Metropica, will have units ranging from 740 square feet to 1,369 square feet with prices ranging from $380,000 to $1.25 million. It received conditional Fannie Mae approval early last year. One Sotheby’s International Realty is handling sales for the condo tower, which announced last month that it registered for presales in New York. It’s about 60 percent sold to local buyers and buyers from Latin America, according to a spokesperson.

The building broke ground in October with an estimated completion date of the third quarter of 2018. The foundation is currently being completed.

The lender, Romspen, has invested more than $4 billion in more than 750 mortgages since it launched in 2006, according to its website.

Metropica secured approval for the first phase of the mixed-use development in the fall. The Sunrise City Commission approved 370,000 square feet of retail space, a 345-unit apartment building, and the rights to a 240-room hotel and 140,000 square feet of Class A office space.

Before this loan, Kavana closed on $38 million in infrastructure financing for Metropica in November 2015 and $22 million for the retail portion last year. The shopping component will include tenants like iPic Theaters, Kings Bowl, Anthropologie, Shake Shack and Pisco y Nazca. Construction on the retail is slated to start before the end of this year, the spokesperson said.

The developer plans to launch the second residential tower this year, and will launch a new tower each year, the spokesperson said. Developers expect to complete the entire project within five to seven years.