JLL's Dekker & Steinfeld Broker 54,000 SF Office Lease

In one of the largest office market transactions to be completed in Miami during the past year, Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) finalized a long-term lease that will see global information technology and marketing firm Sapient consolidate two offices into the Mayfair in the Grove office and retail complex in Coconut Grove.
The 54,000 square foot lease includes street-level retail space that is being repurposed as state of the art offices fronting Grand Avenue, as well as additional space on the second floor of the west building complex. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
JLL Senior Vice President Noël Steinfeld and Vice President Chris Dekker represented Mayfair in the Grove owner Whalou Properties in the transaction. Jon Bourbeau, Vice Chairman of Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, represented Sapient.
Mayfair in the Grove is a mixed-use project comprising 260,000 square feet of office and retail space as well as an adjacent 179 room luxury condo hotel. The complex is now more than 90 percent leased, with a tenant roster including Sony Music, Open English, Regus Business Centers, Marca Hispanic, Villa Mayfair, the Miami Conservatory of Music, Hult International Business School, the Coconut Grove Arts Festival, Ygrene Energy and the Coconut Grove Business Improvement District.
“Sapient’s lease is the latest in a series of transactions that have seen Mayfair in the Grove meet rising market demand for office space by transitioning from a retail anchor into a hub for office users, with an emphasis on creative businesses,” said Dekker. “We have effectively reshaped Mayfair’s brand identity in the marketplace as a premier address for office space, adding value to the asset and bringing together tenants that can operate in and appreciate a truly unique mixed-use environment.”
Sapient’s move to Coconut Grove, which is expected in January 2014, marks a consolidation of its present day offices in Miami Beach and Palmetto Bay. Sapient will operate three divisions from its new home: SapientNitro, Sapient Global Markets and Sapient Government Services.
“Before Coconut Grove became a major shopping destination in the late eighties to mid-nineties, Coconut Grove was home to one of Miami’s most hip, artistic and creative populations. As time moved on, the Grove went through a number of cycles but has once again proved the charming atmosphere of Miami’s oldest district can reinvent itself by attracting cutting edge creative companies such as Sapient,” said Timo Kipp of Whalou Properties. “As the neighborhood has transitioned, so too has the asset – from a shopping destination into a mixed-use development with retail and office users thriving side by side.
In addition to improving building occupancy, Sapient’s lease will have a positive impact on the neighborhood’s economic base increasing the critical mass of employees in the Grove on a regular basis who will shop in area stores, eat in its restaurants, and perhaps even take up residence nearby. We’re very excited to welcome Sapient to Mayfair in the Grove.”