Clad in his trademark white suit and fedora, Alan Faena joined partners Edgardo Defortuna and Shahab Karmely to announce progress on the Faena Residences Miami River project during a Saturday night event. The gathering marked the official opening of the Faena Residences Miami Cultural Pavilion and Collaboratory, which will serve as both a sales center and cultural hub at 90 Southwest Third Street.
“We are offering happiness,” said Faena during the event, emphasizing that the planned towers aim to provide more than just condominiums.
The pavilion is decorated with displays of the future residences and includes design elements inspired by the Faena District in Miami Beach. According to Defortuna, sales for the development began earlier this year following an initial marketing campaign focused on friends and family.
Faena Residences Miami River is a joint venture between Fortune International Group, led by Defortuna, KAR Properties headed by Karmely, and Alan Faena. The development will consist of two 68-story towers with a total of 440 condos. A bridge spanning about 50,000 square feet will connect the buildings and house various amenities.
Units range from one to four bedrooms, with penthouses available. Prices start at $1.4 million for standard units and reach up to $35 million for penthouses. Nearly 100 units have already been presold for approximately $300 million, with about 60 percent of buyers coming from abroad and 40 percent from within the United States.
The event took place at the riverfront site where construction will begin next year. Completion is projected for 2029.
This project marks the second Faena-branded development in Miami-Dade County after the original Faena District in Miami Beach. The brand also has properties in New York and Buenos Aires and plans to expand further internationally.
“Faena is Faena. Faena is a place like no other,” said Alan Faena in comments to The Real Deal after his speech on stage. He described it as “a place of fantasy, a place of entertainment, a place for fun.”
The towers represent phase one of a three-phase plan covering more than five acres along the Miami River District. While details about subsequent phases were not disclosed, Karmely indicated that future stages would be interconnected through landscaping and shared spaces intended for community use.
Amenities planned for the sky bridge include a movie theater under a dome structure, an event space, library, demonstration kitchen, recording studio, and additional communal features designed to foster interaction among residents.
Karmely noted that architect Rafael Viñoly designed the project before his death in 2023.
Several early buyers spoke about their decisions at Saturday’s event. Raphaella and Christian Sigel from Brazil purchased a two-bedroom unit as a vacation home after previously staying at another Faena property in Buenos Aires. Dr. Ash Beharrie from Sunrise bought a condo on the 24th floor for family use in coming years: “This is something I want to keep forever,” he said.
Sanjeev Raman cited investment potential as his reason for purchasing an 18th-floor unit: “We may end up living in Faena just because we like the brand and the lifestyle it’s offering and the Rose membership.”
Defortuna observed that while international buyers remain significant participants—especially those from Argentina (the home country of both Defortuna and Faena), Brazil, Mexico—the mix has shifted over recent years toward more domestic buyers as Miami attracts new residents from cities such as New York since the pandemic period.
Developers expect increased interest from New Yorkers due to political changes following Zohran Mamdani’s election win as mayor there—a shift that could prompt both locals seeking relocation opportunities amid policy uncertainty (including possible tax increases) as well as foreign buyers aiming to secure units before any surge in demand drives prices higher.
“I think inevitably we will get” New York buyers,” Karmely said. He added: “But I don’t want people to come here because they are escaping something. I want them to come here because this has become the city of the Western Hemisphere.”
Defortuna echoed this sense of urgency among foreign purchasers: “I think that the feeling is they [foreigners] better act now… Foreign buyers are used to buying preconstruction… But they feel if New Yorkers come, prices are going to be increasing.”
South Florida remains central in North America’s branded condominium market; according to research cited by Knight Frank and Savills, only Dubai surpasses Miami’s number of completed or planned branded condo projects—including upcoming developments such as Ritz-Carlton North Bay Village or Waldorf Astoria downtown.
Despite competition among luxury brands entering South Florida’s real estate market—Ritz-Carlton North Bay Village, Waldorf Astoria Downtown Miami under construction—Karmely expressed confidence: “Any time is the right time,” he said regarding launching sales at Faena Residences.
“There are a lot of people selling burgers: McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s… What we have here is such a completely different approach,” Karmely stated. “There is no other competition because frankly you cannot pick another project that brings [this] combination of talent, location, execution capability and design.”
