Week of July 2, 2009
| BankUnited headquarters could be on way out of Coral Cables By Zachary S. Fagenson and Yudislaidy Fernandez BankUnited's new owners could be seeking a new home for the thrift's Alhambra Circle headquarters. Since a consortium of investors led by New York banker John Kanas bought the bank for $900 million, rumors have been circulating that management was looking to leave the three floors regulators seized during the bank's May 22 slide into federal receivership. Mr. Kanas said in a Newsmaker interview with Miami Today that he "absolutely" intended to keep the bank's headquarters in Coral Gables. Bank officials more recently have been less emphatic. At a breakfast Friday opening the Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce's annual goals conference, Mayor Don Slesnick said he has reached out, albeit unsuccessfully, to BankUnited's new owners. BankUnited "never contacted the city," Mr. Slesnick said in an interview Tuesday. City officials "would certainly like to make a case they should look to stay in Coral Gables but have not had any success to make contact with them." After the speech he said he was told, though he forgets by whom, that the bank would be moving its operations to an existing facility in Miami Lakes and its executive team to an office on Brickell Avenue. On and near Brickell, BankUnited would have the pick of the litter, with Brickell Financial Centre, 1450 Brickell and downtown's Met 2 slated to open in the coming year. But chamber President Mark Trowbridge said Tuesday another chamber member with ties to the bank assured him it would remain based in Coral Gables. "The mayor may have said they were moving out of their current location but my understating is that they will stay in the Gables," Mr. Trowbridge said in an interview. BankUnited may "plan to move to other offices in the Gables, possibly the Regions Bank building." That move, however, seems unlikely. The Regions Bank building, 2800 Ponce de Leon Blvd., has only one floor plus an additional 6,988 square feet of non-contiguous space available, offering a total of 11,083 square feet. BankUnited's current headquarters occupies three full floors of the 220,000-square-foot building at 255 Alhambra Circle for which it is the signature tenant. Representatives of CB Richard Ellis, leasing agents for both buildings, declined to comment on the specifics of BankUnited's current office and whether it has shown interest in relocating. Meanwhile, a BankUnited spokesperson neither confirmed nor denied the talk of relocation. "We are in the process of evaluating where all ourpeople and departments will be located," marketing Senior Vice President Melissa Gracey wrote in an e-mail."We do plan to keep a presence in Coral Gables and hope to relocate one of our branches in the city to a more significant location." She did not return several calls seeking clarification of the email. While the bank's future in Coral Gables is cloudy, its disappearance would be a setback for the city. "I think one of the things we love about Coral Gables how many businesses have headquarters here," Mr. Trowbridge also said on the phone message. "Having [business] headquarters here is part of the strength of the city." |
Top