Philippe Starck's YOO Condo at Metropica Breaks Ground

Sunrise is seeing progress on their mixed-use project, because the boldly named Yoo at Metropica condo broke ground.

What is Yoo (or rather, who are yoo)? It's a partnership, begun in 1999, between property entrepreneur John Hitchcox and starchitect, Philippe Starck. Yoo at Metropica joins a global list of 50 cities with existing Yoo homes, including Montreal, Istanbul, Hong Kong, Dubai, Mumbai, Moscow, Manila, Vienna, Berlin, Panama City, Buenos Aires, Hamburg, London, New York, Boston, Tel Aviv, Singapore, Marrakech, Fhuket, and Sydney.

The 28-story tower is near four major highways: 595, I-75, the Turnpike and I-95 and two major destinations: the Sawgrass Mills mall and the BB&T Center. And while most other homes have views of downtown or the ocean, this project boasts views of the Everglades National Park because it's essentially right next to it.

Philippe Starck is the interior designer. Chad Oppenheim is exterior architect, and John Moriarty & Associates is the general contractor. Sales are being handled by ONE Sotheby's International Realty. The Real Deal reports that sales have exceeded 40% thus far.

Constructed by K Group Holdings and Trillist Cos., the 263 units start at $300,000 while penthouses start at $1,000,000. Units range in size from 740 s.f. to 1340 s.f.

Amenities are of the expected variety: a pool, fitness studio, outdoor yogi, steam room, sauna, two full-sized tennis courts, a play room, an outdoor game area, a bar and lounge, and indoor pet facilities.

All of this is part of Metropica, a $1 billion project that, all told, will cover 65 acres in Broward with eight residential towers and 1,250 residential units built around a central park, a hotel, 485,000 s.f. of retail with an open air plan and 650,000 s.f. of office space. So far, iPic has been announced as a tenant.

Yoo at Metropica should be completed in 2017, with the rest to follow at a timeline that reflects the sales and belief of new buyers in the potential that want to live here.

· Metropica breaks ground on YOO condo building [SFBJ]
· Yoo official site