Overview
Francisco "Frank" J. Menendez is a Shareholder in the Real Estate Department. Frank has a national and Florida real estate transactional practice, focusing primarily on the purchase, sale & financing of commercial properties (including hotel properties), IRS Section 1031 like-kind exchanges, real estate secured & mezzanine lending, including construction, term, low-income housing, conduit, and securitized loans. Frank also deals with commercial leasing, including airspace and synthetic leases and the development, construction, financing and direct and indirect disposition of real and personal property.
Representative Experience
- Represented the owners of 89 hotel properties located in 16 states and in Canada in connection with a $265,000,000 loan to refinance the properties and provide working capital therefor.
- Local counsel to the lender making a $150,000,000 permanent loan to refinance the Wachovia Financial Center in downtown Miami.
- Represented lenders in a $103,000,000 syndicated acquisition, development and construction loan to construct a mixed use (retail, office and residential) project in Miami-Dade County.
- Represented the lender in acquisition, development and construction loans, in the aggregate amount of $168,000,000, to 13 separate entities to acquire and develop a 415 acre planned unit development of regional impact near Orlando, Florida.
- Represented the lender in a $67,000,000 syndicated construction loan, which included $20,000,000 of mezzanine financing, for a dual branded hotel in downtown Miami.
- Represented the lender in a $100,000,000 loan for the construction of a 379 unit multi-family residential building and retail complex in Broward County, Florida.
- Represented the lender in a $76,000,000 syndicated loan for the construction of a mixed-use residential condominium and retail complex in Sarasota County, Florida.
- Represented the lender in a $66,000,000 loan segregated into three separate facilities, secured by 12 properties consisting of office parks and shopping centers, located in three counties.
- Represented the lender in a $45,000,000 builder line of credit for the acquisition and development of raw land and the construction thereon of single-family homes in multiple phases.
- Represented the lender in multiple loans (syndicated and portfolio) for the construction and permanent financing of charter schools throughout Florida, including a $13,000,000 tax-exempt bond funded transaction.
- Represented the buyer of property in Miami-Dade County, and the subsequent $36,500,000 construction loan for a medical office building thereon.
- Represented the purchaser of a resort in the Florida Keys containing a full service marina, restaurant, and hotel.
- Represented a party in connection with its acquisition of a 57-story office tower in a Northeast U.S. metropolitan area, and the party’s closing on a subsequent $124,000,000 loan in connection with the conversion of a portion thereof to residential condominiums.
- Negotiation and preparation of joint venture and partnership documents relating to real estate developments.
Professional & Community Involvement
- Latin Builders Association
- The Florida Bar Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section (RPPTL)
- Super Bowl XXXII Tribute Committee, Former Member
- Historical Museum of South Florida’s Tropees, Former Member of the Board of Directors
Recognition
- The Best Lawyers in America®, 2007-Present
- Recipient of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society’s Leadership Award as a member of its “Class of 1998.”
- AV Rated by Martindale-Hubbell
Newsroom
Firm Announcements:
Sixteen Stearns Weaver Miller Shareholders recognized by South Florida's Best Lawyers 2012
November 2011
Firm Announcements:
Twenty-Three Attorneys from Nine Practice Groups Selected for Inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America
June 2009