By Christine Davis
The Soloviev Group, led by Chairman Stefan Soloviev, purchased properties in downtown Delray Beach for $32 million in February. They were located at 11 S. Swinton Ave., 2 E. Atlantic Ave., 203-209 E. Atlantic Ave., 9 NE Second Ave. and 5 SE Second Ave.
The Soloviev Group, based in New York City, “is a multisector company that’s been around since the 1970s,” said CEO Michael Hershman. “It has real estate holdings in New York, Colorado and California and we own agriculture. It’s one of the 26 largest landowners in the United States.”
Hershman moved to Delray Beach five years ago. Soloviev moved to Delray four years ago. Both are now full-time residents. They opened an office on Atlantic Avenue a year ago.
“I never thought about living in Florida,” Hershman said. “My wife and I have friends here and we visited and fell in love with Delray. Stefan came down to visit me and fell in love with the place; it’s hard not to. Delray is walkable, friendly and vibrant and it felt like a perfect place to live.
“We are excited to be part of the community and to be investing in it.”
The Soloviev Group does not plan on making changes or redeveloping these properties, Hershman said. “We have great tenants and we love the way the properties are operated. We look at Delray as a high-growth market, and since we are residents of Delray, we want to keep it as it is: a charming village by the sea.”
Tenants include Atlantic Avenue Yacht Club, Bull Bar, Tin Roof, Coco & Co., and Rack’s Fish House & Oyster Bar.
Representing Soloviev in these deals were Jeff Kelly and John Jaspert of CBRE. Dominic Montazemi and Mike Ciadella of Cushman & Wakefield represented the sellers, which were entities managed by Delray Beach resident Steven Cohen.
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Pebb Capital, a real estate and private equity investment firm, broke ground in February on Sundy Village, a mixed-use development at 22 W. Atlantic Ave., Delray Beach.
Located on about 7 acres, with architecture by Gensler and RLC Architects, Sundy Village will include 99,000 square feet of Class A offices, more than 28,000 square feet of retail and dining space, and multiple structures listed on the local and national registers of historic places that will be preserved. These include the Sundy House, The Rectory and the Cathcart House.
Bluewater Builders will be the general contractor, with delivery expected summer 2024. CBRE oversees Sundy Village’s office leasing, while Vertical Real Estate handles retail leasing.
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Changes are happening at Mizner Park in Boca Raton, with the opening of new eateries: Penelope, American Social, Shaker & Pie, and Eddie V’s Prime Seafood. Penelope, with a New Orleans-inspired menu, will occupy the 1,500-square-foot space that was Kapow! American Social will take the space formerly occupied by Truluck’s Seafood, Steak and Crab House. Shaker & Pie will open this summer where the Dubliner was once located. Eddie V’s Prime Seafood, planning a May opening, will take over the space occupied by Ouzo Bay.
Also, The Shade Store is now open, Spirits and Spice plans to open in April and Visual Eyes will double its existing store, taking over the space that was previously occupied by Le Macaron.
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A trust in the name of Michigan-based developer Frances Moceri paid $28 million in February for a six-bedroom, 10,661-square-foot estate on a .56-acre lot at 372 E. Alexander Palm Road, Boca Raton. Moceri is a founding partner of a family real estate company that has built communities throughout Michigan.
The seller was 372 Alexander Palm Trust, with local attorney Jeffrey A. Baskies as trustee. The home was built in 2022 by Boca Raton-based SRD Building Corp. David W. Roberts of Royal Palm Properties represented both sides of the deal.
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Daniel E. Edwards bought adjacent properties at 553 Harbor Court and 526 N. Ocean Blvd., Delray Beach, from Michelle Broda for $22 million, according to public records.
The 12,000-square-foot, five-bedroom main house and 8,000-square-foot, two-bedroom guest house border the ocean and cover almost an acre.
Broda is the widow of Randall Broda, who died in March 2022. He was president of Jay-Bee Oil & Gas in Cairo, West Virginia. Edwards is a real estate investor. Compass agent Warren Heeg and Thomas Reutter of Reutter Investments represented the seller. Diana Varhley, an agent with Beachfront Properties Real Estate, represented the buyer.
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TRX, a fitness company that specializes in strength-training systems, will open a facility at 1110 S. Federal Highway, Delray Beach, where it will have offices, workout facilities and two film studios.
Ingrid Kennemer, a broker with Coastal Commercial Group, represented TRX with its multiyear lease in the 12,000-square-foot building, previously occupied by Office Depot. Drew Schaul, Paul Grossman and Alex Cesar of CBRE, Inc. represented the landlord.
Moving its headquarters from San Francisco, TRX aims for a “revitalized” new start after being reacquired by its founder, retired Navy SEAL Randy Hetrick, who started the company in 2004. He sold his controlling interest in 2019, but in 2022, he bought it out of bankruptcy for $8.4 million with Jack Daly, a Delray Beach resident and former partner at Goldman Sachs who will serve as CEO of the company.
“Delray is a vibrant fitness and technology business environment and we think it’s a perfect place to have the business here,” Daly said.
He also noted that Delray Beach resident Mark Fields, former CEO of Ford Motor Company, is on TRX’s board, as is retired astronaut Susan Kilrain.
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Florida Atlantic University and Florida Power & Light Co., through its charitable arm the NextEra Energy Foundation, have agreed to a four-year collaboration to establish the FPL Center for Intelligent Energy Technologies. The center will be housed in the university’s College of Engineering and Computer Science.
The $1 million gift was approved by the university’s board of trustees. The new center will focus on research relating to the energy sector’s smart technologies and products, along with workforce development.
Yufei Tang, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, will serve as the director of the center. James VanZwieten Jr., Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Ocean and Mechanical Engineering, will serve as associate director. The gift also allows for the creation of the FPL InETech Center scholarship for undergraduate and graduate students.
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The Boca Raton Airport Authority received the Corporate Community Service Award from the George Snow Scholarship Fund. In addition to its contributions to the Snow fund, the authority established a scholarship in 2017 that offers financial aid to Palm Beach County students pursuing careers in aviation and aerospace. The award was presented in February at the Rhinestone Cowboy Ball, held at Boca West Country Club.
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The Delray Beach Housing Authority was recognized by Eat Better Live Better, which provides healthy food to residents living in the authority’s properties.
“When Eat Better Live Better needed help securing toys for our families, the Delray Beach Housing Authority stepped up and helped us to secure over 100 toys for our families. In addition, they have helped identify other avenues of support for our programs,” said Debra Tendrich, founder and president of Eat Better Live Better.
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The top producing Diamond Star Award was presented to Tripta Chawla as Lang Realty recognized its 2022 top agents and teams at a breakfast at Hunters Run Country Club in Boynton Beach.
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Boynton Beach resident Clovis Moodie was elected to Palm Health Foundation’s board of trustees. Moodie has worked as an education consultant, a leadership development consultant, a classroom teacher, a workshop developer/facilitator and coordinator of several programs and systems. She retired in 2016 after 40 years of service.
Currently, she is vice chair of the Art Advisory Board for the city of Boynton Beach and the Adopt a School coordinator for the Florida State Leadership Conference. As a member of Chapter EX of the Philanthropic Educational Organization, she serves on several committees, and previously she served as the secretary of KOP Mentoring Network.
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Katherine Alano was appointed financial controller of Boca Helping Hands in February. Some of the executive roles she held were with the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Straz Center, Veredus Corp. and Bugatchi Uomo.
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The U.S. Association of Blind Athletes has named 16 individuals who will serve as the organization’s sport ambassadors for 2023.
Among them is sighted guide Je’Von Hutchison of Boynton Beach, a track and field athlete. He won a bronze medal in the 600 meters at the 2015 USA Track & Field Indoor Championships. Hutchison holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in business administration from Hampton University.
“As a pro track athlete and U.S. Paralympic guide, I have witnessed the tremendous impact that sports for the blind can have on people’s lives,” he said. “Being a USABA sport ambassador, my goal is to raise awareness about the significance of sports for people with visual impairments and encourage more people to take part in these activities.”
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Feeding South Florida’s fourth annual “Feed Your Creativity” art competition is underway and students are invited to participate. Winners will have their artwork displayed on one of Feeding South Florida’s semi-trailer truck outer wraps, serving as a 36-foot moving billboard. This competition is part of Feeding South Florida’s “Summer Hunger Ends Here” initiative, which aims to raise awareness and funds to end hunger for children during non-school months.
All participants’ artwork will be displayed during gallery night, May 17, at the school of the first-place winner. Online submissions start April 15 and must be submitted by May 5. Visit https://feedingsouthflorida.org/events/ for more information, the competition toolkit, key dates, additional awards, and how to submit final artwork.
Send business news to Christine Davis, cdavis9797@gmail.com.
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