Latest condo amenity: a “speakeasy” at Estates at Acqualina
ShareIn the race to offer the swankiest new condo amenities amid a slowing market, Estates at Acqualina is planning a “speakeasy” for residents’ soirees.
The two-story discotheque-like venue is on tap for the Sunny Isles Beach condo project’s amenity complex, Villa Acqualina. The 1,864-square-foot space will be outfitted with a series of tiered seating and dance platforms that lead to a main DJ booth, developer Jules Trump of the Trump Group told The Real Deal.
The discotheque will also feature a 30-foot-long onyx bar, a wine room for private dining and a cigar room, as well as video walls with light installations and purple velvet seating. The space can house up to about 150 people, Trump said.
Aimed at residents of Estates and Acqualina and their guests, Trump, who is not related to Donald Trump, said he envisions it used for kids’ birthday parties, anniversary celebrations, bar and bat mitzvahs and New Year’s Eve events. There will be no charge for residents to book the space.
“The idea is as a place that focuses very much on young families, this is the kind of thing we feel is very much needed,” Trump said.
Cool amenities have become hot tickets for South Florida developers, as they compete to sell condos in a slow market. Among the offerings at Miami projects Paramount Miami Worldcenter, GranParaiso and SLS Brickell are athletic amenities like a rock climbing wall, bowling alleys, ice skating rinks, a boxing ring and soccer field, as well as a rooftop observatory.At the future venue, each level could serve a different purpose: cocktails on one level and dinner on the other, catered from the project’s restaurant and served from an onsite kitchen, he said. “We’re trying to be as accommodating as possible so people can get tremendous benefit,” Trump said.
In addition to the speakeasy, Estates at Acqualina’s 45,000-square-foot Villa Acqualina will offer Circus Maximus – a floor of amenities including a spa and fitness center and restaurant, as well as an ice skating rink, bowling lanes and a movie theater. Outside, the project will feature a sculpture garden, infinity pools, walking trails, a FlowRider for surfers, a basketball court, bocce court and soccer field.
Last month, Trump put construction and sales for the second planned condo tower of Estates at Acqualina on hold, amid the market slowdown.
Rather than wait to reach 80 percent pre-sales of both towers — the requirement for financing — Trump is focusing on sales on the South Tower and will build the project in two phases. The amenity villa will be built on the original timeframe, at the same time as the first tower, Trump said.
Estates at Acqualina, the Trump Group’s next luxury project after Mansions at Acqualina and Acqualina, is now planned to have a South Tower of 150 units and a North Tower of 92 units, for a total of 242 condos, rather than 265, as previously conceived. The buildings will be 51 stories and 49 stories.
To date, about 85 units are firm reservations converting to contracts, Michael Goldstein, president of sales at the Trump Group recently told TRD. That represents 55 percent of the first tower’s units. Prices range from $3.8 million to $9 million and up to $36 million for penthouses.
Construction on the South Tower and the amenity villa will now begin in the third or fourth quarter of 2017, rather than the second quarter of 2017, with delivery in 2020, Trump said.
