The million dollar condos

South Florida CEO, June, 2002 by Johanna Marmon

"We needed a major player to participate with us," says the soft-spoken Defortuna, whose company, Fortune International, is a successful brokerage house. "Swire is definitely a major player, financially as well as in their experience. It was a perfect match for us." Experience indeed: Swire has more than 20 years' under its belt developing on Brickell Key. While Defortuna is considered one of the top brokers in Miami, he had little in the way of experience as a developer (Jade is his first residential development). He shopped around for a partner with a reputation strong enough to attract proper financing for the project, insiders say.

"It was a brilliant move on Edgardo's part," says Rosalia Picot of Picot & Company, a real estate advisory company. "He may be a good broker but he's not a developer, and it was a very ambitious project for someone who's never developed. Swire brings credibility to the table and will certainly help them get construction financing." Defortuna and Owens say they have offers from several lenders, and should soon close on a loan.

That aside, Owens also saw the partnership as a way to take part in a project that may have been competition for Brickell Key down the road. "This site [on the water at 12th Street and Brickell Bay Drive] has been sitting before us for 20 years," says Owens, head of Swire in Miami. "I can see it very clearly from my office so it's always something that we have noticed. It's a strategic waterfront site and to that extent, in all our independent marketing reports this site is always, always listed as a potential competitor."

One of the things that was attractive to Swire was the fact that there was already energy behind the $255 million project, which had been selling since last July. "We rarely get the opportunity to step into a project that already has this much momentum and forward success," he says. "We basically gained a year and a half."

The two say the foundation at the site will be poured within the next month, with completion about two-and-a-half years away. The 2.5-acre project will contain 326 residences priced from the $400,000s to more than $5 million, sporting amenities such as cabanas overlooking the bay, a full-service business center and a European spa. But the site may be the best thing about Jade: It's one of the last remaining pieces of waterfront land in the Brickell area.

Young Gun

Developer Dan Kodsi is unusually young for a luxury-condo developer. But his insights into the market are ageless.

Dan Kodsi's only 33, but he knows what empty-nesters want in a luxury condo: amenities, style and service. It proves you don't have to be a seasoned developer with 20 years under your belt to know what the market demands. "I'm an old young guy," Kodsi says. "At business, that is."

It's a trait that's served him well. His Royal Palm Communities, based in Boca Raton, has seven projects underway in Palm Beach County, from luxury single-family homes to luxury rentals to luxury condos. Among them is Esplanade Grande, a 15-story condo going up in the center of downtown West Palm Beach -- the county's newest hotspot for luxury development. Located just one block south of Clematis Street, the 66-unit condo, when complete in the second half of next year, will boast views of the island of Palm Beach and the Intracoastal. Currently under construction, the development has see-through views and price tags that range from $550,000 to more than $2 million. "It's a Mediterranean-style building," Kodsi says. "[The city] doesn't want big glass buildings. We're trying to create old Palm Beach with this project."