Trump Wants to Expand Doral Resort With Massive Mixed-Use Development
By Julia Echikson January 25, 2022 5:02 pm
reprints
Look who’s back.
Donald Trump has returned to the real estate game, and as usual, he has big plans. The former president wants to expand the Trump National Doral Miami golf resort by adding a massive mixed-use development called Doral International Towers.
The plans include building 2,222 new residential units, 470 hotel keys, 462,825 square feet of Class A office space as well as 81,675 square feet of retail, according to proposals filed with Doral’s municipal government.
Trump said last week that the project would offer all luxury units, but the development may be required to include workforce housing to obtain height increases for buildings above 10 stories from the city government.
A company tied to Trump purchased the luxury resort out of bankruptcy for $105 million in 2012, according to property records. Trump personally guaranteed $125 million in loans tied to the property, which are coming due in a year, according to Bloomberg.
In its current state, the 54-acre property holds a 200,000-square-foot hotel and clubhouse as well as four golf courses at 4400 NW 87th Avenue in suburban Miami.
Like countless New York-based developers, Trump is trying to take advantage of Miami’s hot real estate market. High-profile businesses like Blackstone and Apollo Global Management flocked to the city, signing office leases last year. In 2021, Miami’s residential rents and the median price of a condominium unit shot up by a little over 28 percent.
Since leaving office, the former president has taken residence at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, 75 miles north of the Doral resort.
Trump is facing legal trouble on multiple fronts, related to both his real estate and presidential careers. A congressional committee is investigating his actions during the Jan. 6 riot that breached the Capitol building. Last week, New York’s State Attorney General, Letitia James, publicly laid out a pattern of possible tax-related crimes committed by The Trump Organization. The Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg Jr., is looking at similar allegations in a criminal investigation.
Julia Echikson can be reached at Jechikson@commercialobserver.com.
