Revamped CocoWalk in Coconut Grove is on the Horizon

CocoWalk, the 4-story, 198,000-square foot outdoor shopping mall nestled into the center of Coconut Grove, was just sold for $87.5 Million to nationally-known REIT Federal Realty Investment Trust and two Miami-Dade-based partners, Grass River Property and Comras Co.

The new majority owner of CocoWalk realizes the importance of CocoWalk in Coconut Grove and that’s a great sign for locals. “CocoWalk is the focal point of Coconut Grove’s historic village center, a short walk from Biscayne Bay and some of Miami’s most prominent residential neighborhoods,” Jim Taylor, executive VP and CFO of Federal Realty said in a news release.  Taylor recognizes that CocoWalk’s tenants serve more than 150,000 Coconut Grove residents and millions of visitors each year, which is important because he understands how important the future success of CocoWalk is to the community. He understands the importance of adding retail and dining that actually fit into the Grove vibe instead of just providing space for big chains that do not actually match what the Grove represents.

What does this mean for the Grove?

I think this is a huge deal!  The past few years, CocoWalk has been kind of a ghost town with all of the businesses leaving the space only leaving behind some staples like the Cheesecake Factory, Gap and Victoria’s Secret and other revolving-door stores. But, Coconut Grove is such a historical, unique village and should represent that in all of its business establishments, especially CocoWalk which has been known as a staple of Coconut Grove.  I mean in the past few years, Duffy’s Sports Bar and Cinépolis Movie Theater have been great for CocoWalk because they fit into what Groveites like, but CocoWalk definitely needs more of a total revamp, in my opinion, and I think that this new ownership group is going to do just that!

As a proud Coconut Grove resident, I am very excited for the revamp of CocoWalk and the overall resurgence of Coconut Grove as a whole.  My wife and I walk to CocoWalk 2 or 3 times per week and we can’t wait to see what the new owners have in store for its revitalization!