(Bloomberg) -- JPMorgan Chase & Co. and BDT & MSD Partners provided a $273 million construction loan for an upcoming luxury residential project north of Miami centered around a private golf club.
Witkoff Group and PPG Development also received a $5 million loan from ConnectOne Bank, which provided an initial $55 million in financing for the project in 2021, according to a statement Wednesday.
The project, dubbed Shell Bay, will feature an Auberge hotel and branded residences as well as an 18-hole private golf course that was designed by Greg Norman. The golf club — which has a $1.5 million membership fee — is already open, alongside tennis and pickleball courts.
“There’s very little land in South Florida, so to have this near the ocean is a generational opportunity,” Alex Witkoff, co-chief executive officer at Witkoff Group, said in an interview. “We’ve achieved significant sales, and that’s why JPMorgan and MSD backed it with a big loan. They’re incredibly selective and they only want to back the best of the best.”
Other luxury developments in South Florida have also received construction financing in recent months, as demand for high-end residences remains high. At Shell Bay, roughly 50% of the condos have already sold at an average price of more than $2,000 a square foot.
In August, JPMorgan and Tyko Capital, which is backed by Elliott Investment Management, provided nearly $1.2 billion in financing for Manhattan luxury towers owned by Witkoff Group and partners.
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