New SLS-branded hotel and condos coming to Miami

After making a splash on South Beach, the haute SLS hotel brand is heading downtown — and expanding to include residences.

The SLS Brickell, a condominium and 133-room hotel at 1300 S. Miami Ave., has set a 2015 opening date. News about the $300 million project, a joint venture between Miami-based developer The Related Group and hospitality company sbe, was confirmed late Tuesday after rumors circulated for several weeks.

Related founder and chairman Jorge Perez said in an interview Wednesday that he has long wanted to team up with his friend Sam Nazarian, the founder, chairman and CEO of sbe. He said he believes the SLS Brickell is the right project because it will fill a gap in the area, populated with upscale brands such as JW Marriott, Conrad, Four Seasons and Mandarin Oriental, Miami.

“While they have gotten some very good hotels, good brands in hotels, they don’t have what I would call a real hip hotel,” Perez said. He expects the property to appeal to young professionals who are in Miami for business but also want to have fun, eat good food and enjoy nightlife. He predicted the complex would become “the coolest place in Brickell.”

Chef José Andrés, whose restaurant The Bazaar is a hit at SLS Hotel South Beach, will be in charge of food and beverage venues, which will include a restaurant with local favorite Michael Schwartz. Philippe Starck, who designed the South Beach SLS, will do the same for the hotel and residences. Though he wouldn’t give names, Perez said major artists are close to being on board to provide works for garages and entrances to the building.

“It will be a hotel that will be just flushed with great art,” said Perez, an art collector whose name will grace the new Perez Art Museum Miami opening this December on Miami’s downtown bayfront.

Development costs for the hotel are being split equally by the companies, Perez said. The condominium portion, which includes 450 units, will be financed by Related. Units are expected to sell for about $500 per square foot, he said, and will include all the amenities and services of the hotel.

Perez, who was Miami-Dade’s top condo developer during the real estate boom, said he expects the condos to draw strong interest from Latin American buyers.

The property also will include 15,000 square feet of meeting space, a spa, separate pools for hotel guests and residents, and more than 10,000 square feet of restaurants, lounges and bars.

The condos will be the first residences carrying the SLS brand, while the hotel will be the second in Miami-Dade. In addition to a Beverly Hills location, other SLS hotels are being developed in Las Vegas, New York and Seattle. Los Angeles-based sbe also bought the iconic Raleigh hotel on South Beach with Tristar Capital’s David Edelstein last year.

The Brickell project is expected to break ground this summer. The Related Group, which bought the site for $18.5 million last year, plans to open a sales center within about 60 days.

Suzanne Amaducci-Adams, partner at Bilzin Sumberg and head of the law firm’s hospitality group, said the SLS is a good fit for the neighborhood, which is a few blocks away from the Mary Brickell Village restaurant, retail and nightlife area.

“It’s a very hip, very up-and-coming area,” she said.

She said the proximity to the SLS Hotel South Beach would likely be a positive for the Brickell site; guests on the mainland will be able to use the beach facilities.

“If I’m a business customer, I want to be very close to my meetings,” Amaducci-Adams said. “But I want to enjoy the city. So the fact that you’ll have access to the other SLS is fabulous.”