A blockbuster $1.2 billion deal is shaping up for a prime downtown Miami waterfront property once planned for a massive casino.

Terra has a contract on a 15.5-acre site on Biscayne Bay owned by Malaysian casino owner and developer Genting Group, the parties involved said in a statement. The deal is expected to close later this year.

Genting bought the site from local newspaper Miami Herald in 2011 with a plan to build Resorts World Miami, a project that would have included a casino and condominiums. Genting couldn’t secure a gambling permit and eventually put the property up for sale last December, pitched as the most valuable acreage on the market in any major U.S. city.

Michael Fay, managing director of Avison Young’s Miami office that represents Genting, said in a statement that the property drew nine offers, five above $1 billion. That price could make it one of the priciest deals of its kind in the United States, signaling investor demand for the location.

“Ultimately, our client chose the developer with the right experience and motivation to bring an iconic, transformational project to the area,” Fay said.

Miami's apartment market has boomed with construction as companies major financial firms such as hedge fund Citadel have set up shop in the city, notably in the downtown Brickell neighborhood. Construction is as a record level of 31,285 units in the Miami area, 16,877 of those are in downtown Miami, which will expand the current apartment supply by nearly 60%, according to CoStar data.

While there's no guarantee any deal can be completed as the U.S. economy shows signs it could hit a recession, the developers said the level of interest indicates some deal will be done.

A mixed-used development is the likely plan. The property is next to the Metromover, an automated mass transit system, and Miami changed zoning laws in 2021 to allow more destiny next to transit lines to encourage development.

“This is a prized piece of real estate in the heart of one of the world’s most dynamic and fastest-growing cities,’ David Martin, Terra’s CEO, said in a statement.

Terra’s affiliate by the property is named SmartCity. The firm has built a reputation for condos, mixed-use and commercial development in the Miami area.

One of its current projects is CentroCity in Miami’s West Little Havana neighborhood. The firm started construction last year on the mixed-use development that is slated to have nearly 1,200 apartment units, 350,000 square feet of retail space and a charter school.

Terra was among those sued following the 2021 collapse of Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Florida, that killed 98 people.

The 66-unit Eighty Seven Park opened next door in 2019. A lawsuit from survivors and the families of the deceased claimed the developer and its construction contractor damaged Champlain Towers South while building the condo tower. Terra’s lawyers argued that the Champlain Towers South was underfunded, poorly designed when built in 1981 and inadequately maintained over the years.

Last year, a $1 billion settlement was reached with all defendants in the various lawsuits. Of the total, $400 million was with the insurers for the Eight Seven Park development team.

A year ago, Dubai developer Damac Properties bought the now vacant Champlain Towers South property for $120 million and plans to build a luxury condo tower.

Avison Young brokers John K. Crotty, David Duckworth, and Brian de la Fé also were part of the team representing Genting.