From decrepit Miami River tract to shopping hub, River Landing caters to urban residents

Along the Miami River, River Landing Shops & Residences has become a bustling hub of activity for Little Havana and other area residents, as well as downtown Miami workers.

Bringing life to a rundown property, the complex opened in September 2020 with plenty of retail, offices plus more than 500 apartments.

Urban-X Group real estate developers Andrew Hellinger and Coralee Penabad wanted to create a destination to support the local community and connect with area residents. When they bought the 10-acre property they saw even greater potential with roughly 64,000 people working daily at nearby hospitals or coming and going at offices or public buildings.

“We felt this was the opportunity to reshape an area of Miami accessible to everyone,” Hellinger said on a recent day at the center with four floors to shop. “The Miami River is closed off to the community, as condos or high-end office buildings.”

Developing River Landing also presented an opportunity to open space for residents to enjoy the adjacent river.

“We see such a conglomeration of people across ages and different lifestyles that come here,” Penabad said. “We have a little old couple that comes on the tandem bike and has lunch ... and then young kids going to Planet Fitness to work out. It’s almost like a little vision of Miami.“

With the shopping center’s proximity to Allapattah, Little Havana and Overtown, those residents needed more places to shop without having to go far from their neighborhoods.

“This was a void of retail activity and we felt that our space near the courthouse and hospital we could have economic opportunity here,” Hellinger said.

The developers’ gambit is paying off. River Landing gets an estimated 12,000 daily visitors and 3.6 million a year. The developers attributed that to the shopping center’s unique fit with affordable staples for area residents’ everyday needs. Think of it as the opposite end of the retailing spectrum from shopping four miles away at Brickell City Centre.

Instead of stores selling luxury goods, River Landing is home to discount retailers such as Ross Dress for Less, selling its bargain clothing, shoes and home decor, and Five Below, a teen-oriented retailer of games and costume jewelry. With economists forecasting the possibility of a recession, that focus should position the shopping center to sustain itself even in volatile times as the coronavirus pandemic that began in early 2020 lingers into another year.

Demonstrating the attentiveness to community needs is Capsule, the marketplace on the second floor of River Landing. It recently opened for local entrepreneurs, who absorbed hard blows from the pandemic, to sell their goods.

Striving for more options at River Landing as life along the Miami River evolves, Hellinger and Penabad are going to finish a park and open restaurants and a pet supermarket on the property.

Baker’s persistence

Many of the merchants and center visitors have intriguing stories of their own. Baker Olivier Rizk, 30, owns Ficelle, a bakery and cafe on the center’s first floor. As he prepares for a baking competition, he wears a big smile and an apron covered in flour dust. His pleasant demeanor belies a passion for culinary arts that has captivated him for more than a decade.

As someone of Haitian descent born in Miami, Rizk grew up between Haiti and Miami. After graduating from high school, he took a gap year to consider what he wanted to do with his life and worked for his parents managing their warehouse in Haiti. He realized he always enjoyed time at his uncle Patrick Baboun’s Pinecrest bakery, Delices de France.

“I grew up in my uncle’s bakery and I used to love going to my uncle’s bakery since I was a little baby,” Rizk said. “Let me try out making a pastry to see how I like it.”

In the ensuing years, Rizk studied at Le Cordon Bleu to refine his skills and interned at Delices de France. After finishing his studies, he spent time in New York City and Washington, D.C., honing his skills at French bakery chain Maison Kayser.

When Rizk moved back to Miami in 2019, he spent a year researching and scouting locations from Wynwood to Aventura for a bakery business. When one of the retailers showed him Ficelle’s then-empty River Landing storefront, he was intrigued.

“One of my Realtors showed me this place and then I came here and was like, ‘This is the next up-and-coming spot,’ ” he recalled. “You have the first major development on the Miami River.”

Rizk took mental note that the residences at River Landing were apartments rather than condos, thinking they could fill up faster. The shopping center’s location near Miami’s Health District and downtown also meant there would be a consistent flow of foot traffic.

Rizk called Hellinger about opening a business at River Landing and the developer was initially skeptical. A bakery sounded close to the concept of a Subway sandwich shop, which was prohibited by Publix, the most prominent tenant there. At the time, Rizk also had neither experience operating a business nor savings.

Undeterred, Rizk told Hellinger he won the best baguette in New York five years in a row and arranged a meeting with him. He explained that he could start a French bakery and had the support of his family. Rizk brought fresh baguettes for the developer baked at Delices de France. Turns out Hellinger’s mother used to buy pastries years ago from the same bakery.

Impressed with the homemade baguettes and feeling a tinge of nostalgia, Hellinger worked with Rizk to open Ficelle in December 2021. Continuing the theme of family business Rizk had working previously with his uncle and his parents, his brothers Anthony, 26, and Dimitri, 25, work alongside him at Ficelle bakery.

Independent retailers nearby

A mile away from River Landing, Roselyn Bagordo’s family has operated Sugarman Candy for 10 years. The Allapattah wholesale candy outlet sells mostly in large quantities. Bagordo, 30, said River Landing lures shoppers to the area that normally wouldn’t know about her store.

“We have not been affected by the issue that they sell another type of candy; rather we have benefited since it is touristy and the center is beautiful,” she said. “We have even benefited ourselves because [before] there was no supermarket nearby and there were no department stores nearby.”

Since Sugarman offers a different type of product than what is available at River Landing, Bagordo doesn’t see any overlap there. She also remembers what it was like to not have a nearby supermarket before the Publix opened at River Landing.

Across the street from Sugarman, Bernie Mottola owns Rafaelos, a 20,000-square-foot men’s and women’s clothing, perfume and shoe store. Mottola sells brands found at department stores like Macy’s but at wholesale prices. Many of Rafaelos’ customers are Latino and Caribbean tourists and immigrants.

Mottola, 55, who has owned the store for 35 years, said it would be helpful if River Landing retailers could better connect with customers at the businesses along his street in Allapattah. “It would be great, but they don’t even know this exists,” he said.

River promenade

Meanwhile, Patrick Sullivan is one of the many that comes several times a week to the Miami River promenade bordering River Landing. Now 64 and using a walker, the Cutler Ridge native finds peace sitting near the river. From the public walkway, he sits on a bench watching the passing boats.

“I really enjoy the river,” he said. “My grandfather was a merchant seaman, so when he would come through Miami, as a family we would come down and eat on his boat. Those are very fond memories that I carry with me today, and I come down here and see this. And it’s just phenomenal.”

Sullivan is seeking a permanent home as a resident at Camillus House, a shelter for homeless men and women. On an average day, Sullivan will buy something to drink from the Publix supermarket at River Landing and reminisce about old times with family near the water.

Like many area residents, he has noticed how the prices of supermarket staples like drinks and snacks have steadily increased due to inflation. Nonetheless, River Landing and its surroundings comfort him. There in those moments, nothing else matters to him.

“Obviously, I’m in great pain, but it is being taken care of and will be taken care of,” Sullivan said. “I just want to see better for Miami.”

This story was originally published October 23, 2022 at 5:30 AM.