CocoWalk, the crown jewel of downtown Coconut Grove, has been hit with a $98 million foreclosure lawsuit filed by Bank of America, putting the future of the shopping, dining, and entertainment center into question.
CocoWalk was bought by PMAT Real Estate Investments, a New Orleans-based firm, in 2006. But according to the South Florida Business Journal, the aggressive mortgage PMAT secured has caused the firm to charge high rent for tenants. While many of the stores on the main floor, including Gap, a surf shop, and a wine shop do decent business, tenants on the second and third floors come and go, with many struggling to attract customers.
Adding to the problems was the closure of the AMC movie theater in
September. Though there are plans to reopen it as a high-end
Muvico theater in April, the vacancy has hurt.
A hard-to-find location, expensive parking, a 3 a.m. bar closing time, and
competition from nearby centers such as Sunset Place and the Village at
Merrick Park might also be keeping people away from the Grove and its
CocoWalk crown jewel.
With many storefronts in the nearby Mayfair shops already sitting vacant, CocoWalk's foreclosure suit underscores serious problems in the Grove.
