Contractors file $16M of liens on Royal Caribbean’s Miami headquarters project

Dive Brief:

• Contractors have filed $fifteen.eight million value of mechanics liens on the stalled $three hundred million Royal Caribbean Cruises headquarters enlargement in Miami, in accordance to Miami-Dade County public data. Of these corporations that have filed liens, two contractors have been paid out a complete of $230,493, leaving an unpaid harmony of nearly $fifteen.6 million as of Aug. 24.
• Baker Concrete Construction has the greatest energetic lien against the Royal Caribbean challenge, positioned at the Port of Miami, in the volume of nearly $eleven.7 million, adopted by Kenneth Brest, a sub-subcontractor hired by Baker. Brest has filed liens totaling nearly $2.7 million. Other energetic lienholders are Gancedo Lumber, which statements it is owed $eighty four,434, and Keller North The us, which states it is owed more than $one.one million. 
• Job developer CBRE and basic contractor Plaza Construction introduced the begin of construction on what Royal Caribbean characterized as Miami’s “first legitimate company campus” final summertime. In March, nonetheless, Royal Caribbean introduced it had halted construction because of to the coronavirus pandemic.

Dive Insight:

Construction Dive arrived at out to Royal Caribbean about the liens but had not been given a response by press time. 

For the duration of the company’s second-quarter 2020 earnings call earlier this month, Richard Fain, Royal Caribbean CEO and president, said all funds tasks had been postponed or canceled as the cruise industry waits to “get over and above this epidemic.”

The company not too long ago introduced that it secured a $seven hundred million mortgage facility from Morgan Stanley but mentioned the proceeds, if drawn, would be employed for basic company purposes. There was no specific mention of paying previous because of charges on the headquarters challenge in Miami.

Royal Caribbean documented a $one.three billion adjusted net decline after owning to cancel all its cruises in the second quarter. 

When questioned about the mechanics liens filed against the assets, Plaza representative Jorge Moros did not verify the lien quantities but verified to Construction Dive that Royal Caribbean had questioned them to end get the job done. 

“The get-togethers are performing alongside one another to amicably resolve all matters arising from the stoppage of the get the job done,” he mentioned.

If the HQ challenge moves ahead after the pandemic has run its class, the 350,000-sq. foot, 10-tale place of work developing will let Royal Caribbean to double its workforce in Miami. Features at the new elaborate will include a fitness centre, various sport courts, a soccer area, a parking garage and electrical car chargers. 

In May, notice and lien services provider Levelset documented that mechanics lien filings in the U.S. had increased by forty% from January by means of March 2020. At the time, company CEO Scott Wolfe mentioned contractors had been probably protecting on their own offered the uncertain mother nature of the coronavirus spread and its outcome on their tasks and client payments.

In accordance to Justin Gitelman, written content partnerships coordinator at, the company’s most latest lien details reveals that the variety of mechanics liens that U.S. contractors filed in May and June fell a bit — 5,810 to five,525 respectively — but the complete benefit of liens increased from $469 million to $472 million. Preliminary July details signifies that the variety of liens filed has also diminished, he mentioned, as very well as the complete volume.