A 12-story apartment development in Coral Gables has secured $81 million in construction financing, advancing a 160-unit residential project near Miracle Mile as the city continues to attract new investment.

Swiss-based developer Empira Group obtained the loan from Pearlmark for The Aurelian, a rental apartment building under construction at 114 Calabria Ave., as Florida YIMBY reported.

The loan closed Friday, Oct. 16, according to the South Florida Business Journal. Construction is underway, with completion expected in 2028.

The Aurelian to include 160 apartments

Designed by Behar Font and being built by Ortega Construction, The Aurelian will feature one- and two-bedroom apartments less than a mile from Miracle Mile.

The development will include a 248-space parking garage with electric vehicle charging stations, a swimming pool, fitness center, yoga studio, coworking space and pet grooming area.

A 6,000-square-foot public park with a children's play area is planned along the property's western side. The park will be open to the surrounding neighborhood.

CBRE arranged the construction financing through Charles Crapse and Denny St. Germain. Steve Gordon represented Pearlmark in the transaction.

Empira Group's development team includes Branko Kuzmanovic, managing director of acquisitions; Michael Marrero, managing director of development; and Maximilian Haecker, head of U.S. investments.

Kuzmanovic said the project is intended to address limited apartment supply and strong demand for housing in Coral Gables.

The Aurelian marks Empira Group's first development in the city.

BMI opens first Miami-area office

In a separate development, music-rights organization BMI opened an office on Miracle Mile on Thursday, Oct. 15, establishing its first physical location in the Miami area.

Coral Gables Mayor Vince Lago and the Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce participated in a ribbon-cutting ceremony, according to a BMI announcement.

BMI CEO Mike O'Neill, Chief Revenue and Creative Officer Mike Steinberg and Vice President of Creative, Latin, Jesús González spoke at the event.

"Latin music is having a moment unlike anything we've seen. It's not crossing over anymore, it's leading," Steinberg said, according to Billboard.

"Miami is a creative epicenter, and we're going to keep building on the musical foundation that is Miami," he added.

BMI represents public performance rights for more than 25 million musical works by more than 1.5 million songwriters, composers and music publishers.

The New York-based organization also maintains offices in Los Angeles, Nashville, Atlanta, Austin, Washington, D.C., and London.

The Coral Gables opening drew songwriters and producers including Mario Quintero Lara and Kike Santander. Play-N-Skillz and SUNTEA performed DJ sets, while Latin pop singer-songwriter Zulia closed the evening with a live performance introduced by Billboard's Leila Cobo.

BMI said the new office will support songwriters, composers and music publishers across South Florida, Puerto Rico and Latin America.