The former Herald site in downtown Miami is attracting significant interest from developers, according to Bloomberg.
Bids are coming in at prices which could set a U.S. record for a development site, listing broker Michael Fay told the news service.
The highest bid came in at just under $1.5 billion.
A total of five of the bids exceeded $1 billion, Fay said.
Based on those bids, the property could become the most expensive development site in the country, Fay added.
Bids are coming from both international and domestic developers.
Bidders are contemplating a number of different development possibilities. They include an entertainment complex, office space for financial companies, or luxury residential condos.
Genting plans to select the top three proposals, and then make a decision on the top bidder within weeks.
The Miami Herald’s parent company sold the property to Resorts World Miami LLC in 2011 for $211,812,040. The company is a subsidiary of Malaysia’s Genting. The current offer to developers also includes air rights to build on county property above a Metromover and bus station, which wasn’t part of the 2011 sale (those rights were won by Genting in a later proposal to the county).
The former Miami Herald building was demolished in 2014, and the land has been mostly vacant since then.
After the sale, Genting will maintain ownership of around 10-acres across the street, including the former Omni complex. The company said recently that it will focus on and accelerate development of that site now that it was selling the Herald land.
Resorts World Miami was once planned on the site, but Genting has been unable to get approval for a casino:
