Chilean Self-Storage Operator Converts Florida Complex into Massive Mixed-Use Space

Red Megacentro, a Chile-based real estate developer and self-storage operator, is converting a 185,000-square-foot industrial complex in a Miami, Fla., suburb into a mixed-used facility featuring self-storage, full-service executive offices, a kitchen-fixture showroom and even a K1 Speed indoor go-kart track. Called Megacenter Palmetto, the collection of warehouse/flex space is the company’s first redevelopment project in the United States.

The developer, which operates several self-storage locations in Chile under the Mi Bodega brand, decided to venture into the U.S. market because of its “geographic diversification and opportunities for value creation,” according to Pablo Wichmann, CEO of Megacenter Business Parks, Red Megacentro’s U.S. subsidiary responsible for redeveloping the property formerly occupied by Regal Kitchens.

The center at 8600 N.W. South River Drive in Medley, Fla., is near the Miami International Airport, Dolphin Expressway and Florida Turnpike.

Red Megacentro purchased the property in January 2013 for $7 million. The center is more than 70 percent leased and will feature 30,000 square feet of self-storage and 80 executive office suites, according to the source. For the remaining space, the developer is targeting “small bay users and startup companies,” Wichmann said.

“We can accommodate any small to medium-size [business] with a mix of office, self-storage units and out small bay warehouse [space],” he said.

The developer originally intended to designate half of the building’s space for self-storage but changed its plans when K1 Speed wanted to lease 82,200 square feet for its go-kart track, according to Mort Fetterolf, director of industrial services at commercial real estate firm Colliers International of South Florida. Colliers has been hired by Megacenter Business Parks to identify additional U.S. acquisition possibilities, including existing self-storage properties, Fetterolf said.

Including the MegaCenter Palmetto project, Red Megacentro has more than 7.5 million square feet of real estate currently in operation in Chile, Peru and the United States. The company focuses on redevelopment projects rather than new construction, Wichmann said.