Miami developer Bekir Okan is betting that unrest in Turkey will catalyze the construction of his Okan Tower in Miami. According to the Wall Street Journal, Okan hopes that wealthy Turkish investors will be extra eager to move capital out of the country in the wake of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s reelection.
“The Turks love Miami, the weather and the stability in politics,” Okan told the Wall Street Journal.
Okan hopes to break ground on the $300 million tower in November and finish it in 2022. So far, Okan has been able to sell 45 of the project’s 389 units. Once it is done, the tower is supposed to be one of the tallest in Florida, a mixed-use titan towering over Miami.
He is hoping to finance the whole project, which includes a Hilton-branded hotel, with equity. He has put in $25 million, and unlike many other Florida developers does not plan to use any of the deposits on presales to finance construction of the tower.
In addition to the attention from Turks dodging political unrest in Turkey, Okan Tower, is slated to receive even more Turkish attention for its design.
Miami architect Robert Behar designed the building in the shape of a tulip, the national flower of Turkey and a symbol of wealth in its culture. Additionally, the property will feature a hammam, or Turkish bath.
“Tulips are both the national flower of Turkey and symbolic of wealth,” Behar told WSJ.
“When first looking for inspiration, I wanted to create something that would leave a lasting impression in Miami that also had a symbolic reference to Turkey,” he added.
Each of the condo-hotel units start at $318,500, and the duplex penthouses will go for $1.9 million each.
