Commercial real estate brokers Lyle Stern and Kerry Newman have proposed a 400-unit Live Local Act project in Miami’s Allapattah neighborhood.
Stern and Newman, of Miami Beach-based Vertical Real Estate, envision a 24-story building on a 1.2-acre site located at 2186 Northwest 13th Avenue and 1330-1342 Northwest 22nd Street in Miami.
Their filing is included in the agenda for an upcoming city board meeting, where the Miami Urban Development Review Board will vote on the project this Wednesday.
The design of the project is handled by Built Form Architecture and includes 160 units designated for households earning no more than 120 percent of the area median income.
This arrangement aligns with the Live Local Act’s requirement that at least 40 percent of the units are available at below market-rate rents.
Additionally, the developers are seeking approval for a warrant to incorporate approximately 40 micro-units into the building, with sizes ranging from 275 square feet to 399 square feet, according to their application.
City code permits micro-units in areas near mass transit hubs, and the development site is conveniently located close to the Santa Clara Metrorail station.
Lyle Stern, who has been a prominent figure in South Florida’s commercial brokerage industry, founded Vertical Real Estate in 2023 after parting ways with his longtime business partner, Bruce Koniver.
The duo had established and operated brokerage Koniver Stern for over 30 years before Koniver transitioned to Odyssey Retail Advisors following their split.
Stern and Newman have experience in developing retail and warehouse projects separately, and they previously collaborated on a retail building in Miami Beach.
If the Live Local project receives approval, it would mark their first joint residential development initiative.
Although they have not formally committed to developing the project, Newman stated that they decided to entitle the site due to the promising prospects of the Live Local Act.
“We are just increasing our options,” Newman noted.
“Down the road, either we will develop it or sell the land to another developer.”
The developers purchased the site for $5.3 million in two separate deals in 2016, as per property records.
Currently, the site houses warehouses with industrial tenants.
According to Newman, Stern and he may also choose to retain the site and continue its operation in its current capacity.
The Live Local Act enables the construction of much larger projects than what the zoning permits, provided that developers include affordable and workforce housing units.
Additionally, the legislation provides property tax exemptions for qualifying developments.
Since the law’s enactment in 2023 and subsequent refinements over the past year, numerous landowners across South Florida have submitted Live Local applications.
While many developers intend to build the proposed projects, experts suggest that simply entitling properties may increase their value, enabling landlords to sell them profitably.
Other Live Local projects currently under consideration include former Major League Baseball player Alex Guerrero’s 41-story, 234-unit tower located between Northwest Third and Fifth avenues, south of Northwest 37th Street in Miami’s Wynwood Norte neighborhood.
Moreover, Russell Galbut’s GFO Investments plans to launch a 410-unit Live Local development comprising a 19-story building alongside a 16-story building at 7350 Coral Way in unincorporated Miami-Dade County.
This project will also feature a seven-story medical office building that will be leased to development partner Dr. Jorge Perez, a specialist in neonatology and neonatal medicine, along with his team.
The Pérez family’s Related Group has also filed several Live Local proposals, with a notable project in Fort Lauderdale in partnership with the Toledano family’s BH Group and Pebb Enterprises, planned for a towering 33-story The Quay with 521 apartments at 1515 Southeast 17th Street.
image source from：https://therealdeal.com/miami/2025/04/17/broker-lyle-stern-partner-plan-miami-live-local-act-tower/
