THE WELL Coconut Grove, a luxury residential tower, can exceed by three stories the zoning code’s five-story limit because of new rules allowing higher building densities where building occupants are more likely to favor public transportation.
A high-end real estate project planned for Center Grove will exceed by three stories its allowable height under Miami’s zoning code due to its proximity to the Metrorail station on U.S. 1, city officials say.
THE WELL Coconut Grove will add 194 luxury residential units, 53,000 square feet of “wellness space” and 22,000 square feet of retail, city records show. It replaces the Marriott Residence Inn, now under demolition.
Construction is expected to begin in late 2025 with completion in early 2028.
The project, at the intersection of Tigertail Avenue and Mary Street, falls within a zoning district that limits new construction to five stories.

But a city spokesperson says the developers are taking advantage of a provision added to the zoning code in 2023 that, under certain conditions, allows for higher housing densities near transit hubs as a way of encouraging building occupants to prioritize public transportation options over automobiles.
The property address is one mile from the Coconut Grove Metrorail Station.
Whether the project has received city approval for the three-story “density bonus” – or simply intends to apply for it – is unclear.
City of Miami Zoning Director Tamara Frost has not responded to multiple requests for comment from the Spotlight. A city spokesperson, Kenia Fallat, has not responded to a detailed list of questions submitted in writing.
City records show the project was approved as a five-story structure in late 2022.
That approval included an increase – unrelated to its transit proximity – of 43 allowable housing units due to a zoning provision that permits developers to purchase density allowances from properties elsewhere in the city and use them to increase their own height and density maximums.
City records do not indicate the source – known as the “sending site” – from which THE WELL Coconut Grove’s Transfer of Development Density, or TDD, density bonus was purchased, or at what cost.
The project’s lead development partner – Coconut Grove-based Terra Group – has not responded to the Spotlight’s repeated requests for details. The firm is a leading player in the Grove’s recent upscale renaissance, with luxury projects such as Park Grove, Grove at Grand Bay and Mr. C Residences.
An attorney listed in city records as representing Terra Group in its permitting applications, Iris Escarra, referred a Spotlight reporter to her spokesperson, who in turn emailed the following: “The Code allows by right buildings that qualify to bonus from 5 Stories up to 8 Stories.” Neither Escarra nor the spokesperson responded to follow up questions.

After receiving approval from the city’s Urban Development Review Board in 2022, Terra Group, along with development partner Miami Beach-based AB Asset Management, announced plans for a $40 million, five-story, 174-unit apartment building with 344 parking spaces it was calling “Residences in the Grove.”
But in December 2023, city records show, Terra Group submitted project details showing a nine-story, 129-foot, 194-unit multi-use complex. Estimated construction cost: around $63 million.
Last month, after a Spotlight report initially noted the height increase, Terra officials released revised project plans, including its affiliation with THE WELL, a New York-based health and fitness branding company.
How the project will satisfy the requirements of the city’s so-called Transit Oriented Development (TOD) provisions to qualify for its planned three-story density bonus is unclear. To receive the added height allowance, applicants typically must revise their plans to include affordable housing or other “public benefits” not otherwise mandated under city zoning laws.
There is no indication from plans filed with the city that THE WELL Coconut Grove – where prices will range from $1.5 million to $6.3 million – will include affordable or below-market-rate housing. According to a Terra spokesperson, 20 percent of the 194 units sold within 48 hours of its December marketing launch.
In some instances, developers may bypass affordable housing or other requirements to tap into transit-related density bonuses by simply paying into a city fund, the Public Benefits Trust Fund. City officials did not respond to the Spotlight’s questions about the fund.
City officials also did not respond to questions about how a property’s zoning entitlements under the Transit Oriented Development provisions are determined. A heavily gerrymandered city map of the Grove-area TOD zone shows only a portion of THE WELL Coconut Grove falling within its boundaries.
Typically, a transit-related density bonus requires administrative approval from the city’s planning department in the form of a warrant, which in turns requires public notification to abutting property owners, homeowner associations and civic groups.
THE WELL Coconut Grove is not the only new construction project hoping to take advantage of the city’s new TOD density bonus provisions. In December plans were announced for Lincoln Coconut Grove, an eight-story, 48-condo tower just a block north on SW 27th Avenue. Prices start at $1.5 million.
Early marketing information for the project touts its rooftop pool, private cabanas, golf simulator, valet parking, and electric vehicle charging stations among its 88 onsite parking spaces. There’s no mention of its proximity to the nearest Metrorail station – a 19-minute walk to the other side of U.S. 1 – as a selling point.
This is the end of Coconut Grove’s unique identity. Everything is as close to Metrorail as Tigertail and Mary.
ZONING for livability is dead.
As a civic activist since 1980 I can assure everyone that this is a classic example of how Miami has government of developers, for developers, by developers.
Are we really supposed to believe that the residents of this luxury building are going to walk from there to the Metrorail station and back in Miami’s heat and rain instead of using a car? That they can afford to buy or rent in a luxury building but they can’t afford a car?
The City of Miami is a whore for developers.
Elvis Cruz, Morningside
As evidenced by the last 3 luxury buildings in Center Grove, as far as I can see, they will not be walking and riding the train. There will be a garage full of cars and a gridlocked Tigertail Ave. It’s only a matter of time before this can no longer be considered a “walkable” neighborhood.
It seems to me that there is something questionable going on here.
The amendment to Miami 21 zoning that appears relevant is City Ordinance # 14211, allegedly adopted on September 28, 2023 when Sabina Covo was our D2 Commissioner. The relevant section of that Ordinance allows up-zoning to 8 stories for sites within the T5 Transact Zone (which I believe this site is) if the site is “within a TOD [Transit Oriented Development Area] not abutting a T3 Transect Zone.” Only a small part, the extreme southeast corner, of this site is within the TOD. See the relevant map here: https://datahub-miamigis.opendata.arcgis.com/datasets/0d25c6650abb48b49665492b2717577f_0/explore?location=25.732015%2C-80.237657%2C17.00
So, how did the City Zoning Department approve an 8 story height for this entire site as legal, if it did? The failure of relevant City officials to respond to the Spotlight’s questions here is quite telling — and shocking.
For some idea of the amount of money involved, this site was acquired in March of 2021 for $21.7 million, and IIRC construction costs have been estimated at an additional $63 million+-, for a total of $84.7 million or so. But this has been reported to be a $650 million project (presumably based on expected sales), which if correct would yield an eye-watering profit.
If these numbers are even close to being correct, I fully comprehend why Terra and its allies are pushing this. But why is the City just rolling over?
There is a meeting today at City Hall! Jan. 14. At noon!
Looking at the Transit Oriented Development (TOD) overlay map, Terra’s Tigertail project does not fall within the TOD boundaries.
https://datahub-miamigis.opendata.arcgis.com/datasets/0d25c6650abb48b49665492b2717577f_0/explore?location=25.732015%2C-80.237657%2C17.00