Cofe Properties Buys Doral Office Buildings for $63M

A joint venture led by Ascentris has sold off two buildings within the Westside Plaza office campus in Doral, Fla., nearly two months after launching the multifamily conversion of a third building.

The partnership, which also includes Highline Real Estate Capital and Square2 Capital, sold Westside Plaza I and III to Cofe Properties for about $63 million, a source familiar with the transaction told Commercial Observer. 

The two four-story Westside Plaza buildings together total 276,637 square feet and are located at 8200 and 8400 Northwest 33rd Street, west of Miami International Airport and just south of the mixed-use CityPlace Doral complex. The properties were built in 1996 and 2001.

In February, the joint venture recapitalized the third office building, Westside Plaza II, bringing in multifamily developer Zom Living as a partner to convert the property into a 380-unit rental asset. The deal valued the 6.5-acre parcel at 8300 Northwest 33rd Street at $26 million. 

PNC, in tandem, provided a $92 million construction loan. The multifamily project will utilize the Live Local Act, a Florida law first passed in 2023 that grants density boosts and tax breaks for multifamily developers but requires that at least 40 percent of units be priced within 120 percent of the area’s median income.

The owners relocated some office tenants from the building to Westside Plaza I and III, boosting occupancy from 63 percent to 98 percent since acquiring the properties for a combined $53 million in 2021.

“By concentrating tenancy, investing in the office assets and advancing a residential component, we were able to unlock value across the site and execute on both sides at the right time,” Jay Caplin, principal at Square2 Capital, said in a statement. 

Highline Real Estate Capital and Square2 Capital have continued to invest heavily in South Florida offices. Alongside Lone Star Funds, the joint venture bought discounted office buildings — one in Fort Lauderdale, the other in Coral Gables — from Deutsche Bank over the past year.

A representative for Cofe Properties did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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