Michael Shvo has sold the former Epicure development site in Miami Beach to Infinity Collective, according to information obtained by The Real Deal. The site, located at 1656, 1664, 1676 and 1680 Alton Road and 1677 West Avenue, was previously home to the Epicure Gourmet Market & Café.
The sale follows Shvo’s ongoing efforts to retain control of the nearby Raleigh condo and hotel project on Collins Avenue. That project is backed by Bayerische Versorgungskammer (BVK), Germany’s largest public pension fund, but BVK was not involved with the Alton Road property.
Shvo’s company, BH The Alton LLC, marketed the properties for sale earlier this year through brokers Adam Spies and Marcella Fasulo of Newmark. Infinity Collective, a New York-based firm led by Steve Kassin and David Berg, confirmed its purchase in a statement provided to The Real Deal.
Shvo had previously secured approval from the Miami Beach Design Review board in 2023 for a six-story building called The Alton. The plan included about 17,000 square feet of office space and five apartments at the northwest corner of Alton and Lincoln roads. Foster + Partners and Kobi Karp were named as designers for the project.
In a statement provided to The Real Deal, Shvo said that office development is “no longer the highest and best use for this site.”
“Shvo’s singular focus remains super-prime real estate, and we are pleased that Infinity Collective will move forward with much-needed housing at this location,” Shvo added.
David Berg of Infinity said his firm will consider “alternative mixed-use development options” for the property.
Infinity already owns several properties in Miami Beach including the Esme hotel on Española Way, Variety Hotel at 1700 Alton Road, and other sites on Ocean Drive.
Shvo bought the Alton Road assemblage for $39.3 million in 2022 as part of an expansion into South Beach real estate. That same year he also acquired part of another planned office development site—One Soundscape Park—at 1665 and 1667 Washington Avenue for $4.5 million.
At that time, South Florida’s office market experienced strong growth due to an influx of financial firms and technology companies moving into the area; rents exceeded $100 per square foot in some cases (https://therealdeal.com/miami/2022/03/07/south-floridas-office-rents-break-100-per-foot-barrier/). City officials promoted more office construction as part of efforts to diversify South Beach beyond its reputation as a party destination (https://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article263019298.html).
More recently however, rising interest rates have slowed new business arrivals to Miami Beach; enthusiasm around new office projects has faded amid concerns about their viability (https://www.wsj.com/articles/commercial-real-estate-property-developers-loans-delinquencies-9a31b155).
In March this year Shvo told The Real Deal that both The Alton and One Soundscape Park projects were still proceeding with construction expected by early next year. He had received approval last year for One Soundscape Park—a five-story office building totaling roughly 62,500 square feet—but began quietly marketing The Alton site early this year through select developers who signed non-disclosure agreements. According to sources familiar with negotiations no official asking price was disclosed but it reportedly matched an outstanding loan balance on the property.
Records show Shvo borrowed $28.3 million from Maxim Capital Group when he purchased the assemblage; Jason Bordenick from Maxim declined comment on details related to financing arrangements.
Questions arose earlier this year regarding whether Shvo or Deutsche Finance America—his German investment partner who co-purchased The Alton property—had authority over any potential sale; Deutsche Finance did not respond when contacted by reporters.
Elsewhere in Miami Beach Shvo continues work on redeveloping historic hotels—the Raleigh, South Seas and Richmond—at Collins Avenue addresses between 1751–1775 under Rosewood Hotels branding announced last year. Plans call for restoring historic structures along with constructing a separate oceanfront condo tower designed by Peter Marino alongside Kobi Karp’s architectural firm.
That redevelopment has faced slow presales: Nahla Capital won a bid earlier this year to take over construction rights for $275 million but sources say Shvo retains first refusal rights should he match their offer.
