Moderno Lands $102M for Fort Lauderdale High-Rise

Rendering of RIVR Lofts. Image courtesy of Aztec Group and Moderno Development Group.

Moderno Development Group has secured a $102 million construction loan from Square Mile Capital to build RIVR Lofts, a 352-unit, mixed-use luxury rental apartment community in Fort Lauderdale’s Central Business District.

Details about the loan, arranged by Peter Mekras of Miami-based Aztec Group, were not disclosed.

Mekras said in a prepared statement that closing a loan of this magnitude in the current market environment is a testament to the merit of RIVR Lofts and the sponsorship, lender and investment banking process.

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The RIVR Lofts development team is led by Doron Broman of Fort Lauderdale-based Moderno. Broman assembled the 1-acre site in 2018 and secured entitlements for the 29-story property in 2021. Moderno tapped Aztec Group on to structure a venture and source construction financing for the project. Moderno has assembled and repositioned several development properties in the area and controls several acres of land there for future vertical development.

Aztec and Moderno have worked together in the past. In early 2018, Aztec Group arranged a $2.7 million sale of 27,000 square feet of land in Flagler Village, Fla., to build a 12-story apartment building with up to 97 units on North East 1^st Ave. Moderno tapped Aztec to sell the site, which went to a private Miami-based developer building its first project in Broward County.

Community details

RIVR Lofts is located at 307 W. 5^th St. at the corner of SW 5^th Street and SW 3^rd Street in the emerging Tarpon River Entertainment & Design District. The community will offer a mix of studios, one- and two-bedroom units. Rents are expected to range from approximately $1,800 to $2,500, according to the project’s website. Amenities will include a rooftop pool, gym, party room, yoga studio, game room, barbecue grills and garden-like greenspace. The property will also have 2,700 square feet of ground-floor retail, a resident lounge and bar on the ground floor and on-site parking.

The project team includes Moss Construction of Fort Lauderdale and Robert Mathias of NCC Development of Boca Raton, Fla.

Broman said in prepared remarks RIVR Lofts will “serve as the residential heartbeat of TREDD.” He said the funding from Aztec continues the firm’s efforts to being vertical development to the area. Broman said Moderno, which started developing in the area by converting industrial properties to retail, is at the center of the Tarpon River area revitalization.