The owner of a recently completed but financially troubled mixed-use medical development in Aventura is now facing foreclosure after allegedly defaulting on a $49.6 million mortgage loan.

Last week, an affiliate of Las Vegas-based Dornin Investment Group filed a lawsuit in Miami-Dade Circuit Court against Medical District Developments, the entity that owns 1212 Aventura at 21290 Biscayne Boulevard. Managed by Felix Martinez Jansen, the company is also being sued alongside 13 contractors who claim they are owed nearly $950,000 for unpaid work.

Among the contractors are Coconut Grove-based Arquitectonica, the project’s designer, and Aventura-based Rieber Developments, which oversaw construction.

Medical District Developments purchased the 1.8-acre site in 2019 for $2.9 million and soon after enlisted Rieber Developments to manage construction.

The completed project includes 163 assisted living apartments, 39 medical offices spanning 25,796 square feet, and 29,684 square feet of retail space.

In 2021, the company expanded an existing $15 million loan from Coconut Grove-based BridgeInvest to $63.5 million. However, by the following year, it had allegedly defaulted by failing to contribute its own capital to complete the project. BridgeInvest warned that the development had a $3.7 million shortfall in equity capital needed to cover cost overruns, according to the lawsuit.

BridgeInvest granted Medical District Developments two forbearance agreements in 2022 and 2023. The second agreement required the company to deposit $15 million into an account for construction costs, a sum provided by an investor who later sued Medical District Developments, Rieber Developments, and BridgeInvest in December.

The lawsuit further claims that Medical District Developments defaulted on the second forbearance agreement by failing to pay the loan’s principal and interest by its December 31, 2023, maturity date. Last month, Dornin’s affiliate acquired the mortgage from BridgeInvest, setting the stage for the foreclosure proceedings.

Source: The Real Deal