Russell Galbut Nabs $54M Construction Loan for Miami Beach’s Second Whole Foods

Miami Beach is getting a second Whole Foods. 

Russell Galbut’s family office, GFO Investments, obtained a $54 million construction loan from Ocean Bank to build the grocery store after buying the 1.3-acre property in the city’s Sunset Harbour neighborhood for $15 million, property records show. 

The four-story development at 1901 Alton Road in the heart of Miami Beach will include a 40,883-square-foot Whole Foods and 271 parking spots. 

While Wells Fargo sold the property — which houses one of its retail branches in a single-story, 6,654-square-foot building — the bank will retain a presence in the new development, occupying about 4,000 square feet. 

The Miami Beach project is the second team effort between Galbut and Whole Foods. This week, in Miami’s Edgewater neighborhood, the Amazon-owned grocery chain opened a 53,400-square-foot store on the ground floor of Forma, a rental tower that Galbut’s Crescent Heights developed and still owns.  

Whole Foods operates a store in Miami Beach at 1020 Alton Road, 1.2 miles south from the upcoming Sunset Harbour location. The grocery chain also operates a 41,000-square-foot store in Downtown Miami, which it bought for $21 million in 2021.

Julia Echikson can be reached at jechikson@commercialobserver.com.