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SOUTH PADRE ISLAND — A developer based in Monterrey, Mexico, is planning to build a 39-story condominium tower on the Island, which would be the tallest building in the Rio Grande Valley.
A city official confirmed Sunday that the city has already issued a building permit for Kirana Luxury Condominiums.
“They’re ready to go,” said Rick Vasquez, transit and development director for the city of South Padre Island.
The project is being developed by Kirana Management LLC, a group of investors based in Monterrey, said Sam A. Listi, coordinating architect for the project. Listi is also a South Padre Island city councilman.
“I don’t want to give you all their names yet,” Listi said of the investors.
He said groundbreaking could be as soon as sometime in September. Construction would take somewhere from 24 to 30 months, he said.
The tower and parking garage are planned for the site that used to be the Miramar Resort Hotel, which was torn down in April 2009. News reports at the time said the property, on the Gulf side of the Island, was sold to “a group of developers in Monterrey” that planned to build “a 28-story high-rise.”
The tallest building on the Island is now The Sapphire South Padre at 31 stories.
The last high-rise project on the Island, the 31-story leaning Ocean Tower, was imploded and reduced to rubble by a demolition crew last December.
Construction on that luxury condominium building ceased in the summer of 2008 after owners determined that it had a 4-inch tilt, according to earlier reports. The tower had a distinct list toward the Gulf of Mexico. That project, according to recent news reports, is in litigation.
Listi said the Kirana group is well aware of the problems with Ocean Tower.
“Everybody is aware of that. It doesn’t scare us,” Listi said. “We’re comfortable that what we’re doing is correct.”
Vasquez said the city submitted the Kirana building plans for review to the International Code Council district office in Birmingham, Ala. According to its Web site, the ICC “is a membership association dedicated to building safety and fire prevention. ICC develops the codes and standards used to construct residential and commercial buildings.”
Vasquez said the review is standard procedure for multi-level buildings and takes into account such factors as soil, or sand, conditions.
Ocean Tower was outside city limits, so did not require a building permit from the city, he said.
“We recommended to them (Ocean Tower) that they send their plans to Birmingham (ICC) for review and the developer elected not to do that,” Vasquez said.
Kirana’s building permit, dated July 6, lists the value of the project at more than $51.8 million. Listi said construction costs will be about $50 million, but the value of the property would likely be higher. Vasquez described it as a $100 million project.
Condo units will start at $735,000, Listi said. Vasquez said his understanding is that the average selling price for a unit is about $1.5 million.
Plans call for a tower with 91 units with a two-story lobby, four high-speed elevators, state-of-the-art fire systems, video surveillance and private gated access from Padre Boulevard with assigned covered parking.
The building would include three-, four- and five-bedroom units with “smooth finished 10-foot ceilings in all condominiums,” “spacious outdoor terraces” and “ocean-front, state-of-the-art gym,” according to the Web site.
Vasquez said the construction contractor is likely to employ subcontractors from throughout the Valley.
“That’s great news in an economy like this,” he said.