Santander Bank is moving forward with plans to build a 41-story office tower in Miami’s Brickell financial district by demolishing the 1970s-era office it owns in the neighborhood.
Santander Bank plans to demolish in the next few weeks 1401 Brickell, a 50-year-old office building in the heart of the Brickell financial district to make way for Santander Tower, a planned 41-story office building. The plans, originally announced in February, include 1.6 million square feet. Half of the space will be offices, with the remaining half comprising retail, 1,496 parking spots and other common areas.
The planned tower, designed by Handel Architects and Bernardi + Peschard Arquitectura, will reach 765 feet high, and include multiple terraces with integrated gardens as well as a potential daycare or club. Longtime Miami developer Rilea Group has been tapped to coordinate the project’s development.
Santander employees in Miami will occupy a portion of the space with the bank planning to lease out the rest of the space to future tenants.
Rilea Group declined to comment to CoStar News about the project. Santander Bank could not immediately be reached for comment.
In the statement, the bank said that Miami “remains a key connection point between North America, Latin America and Europe” and that it remained “committed to having a presence in this international technology and financial hub.”
Demolition of the older building will begin over the next few weeks. The project is expected to be completed over the "next several years," according to the release.
Santander Bank purchased the about 188,000-square-foot property it is demolishing at 1401 Brickell in 2008.
Employees currently working at the tower will move to temporary offices in Brickell or work out of the bank’s Coconut Grove office just under 4 miles south at 3036 Grand Ave.
Santander Tower joins a growing list of office buildings in various stages of development across the city’s financial center. 830 Brickell, developed by OKO Group and Cain International, is scheduled to open later this year after multiple delays and is set to be the first office tower to open in Miami’s core in a decade.
Three other towers are also planned, including One Brickell City Center — a collaboration between Swire Properties and Related Cos.; 848 Brickell from Miami-based Key International and Chicago-based Sterling Bay; and a proposed project that is expected to be the future headquarters of Ken Griffin's Citadel.