Cora Merrick Park Coral Gables: Pre-Construction Buyer's Guide (2026)

Cora Merrick Park is the 74-residence pre-construction condominium at 4241 Aurora Street in Coral Gables' Merrick Park neighborhood, developed by Constellation Group and The Boschetti Group with architecture by Arquitectonica and interiors by Urban Robot Associates. The project broke ground in April 2026 and is targeted for delivery in 2028.

Cora's position in the Coral Gables market is a specific one. It is the neighborhood's first purpose-built wellness-focused residential development and is targeted to be among the first WELL-certified residential buildings in Coral Gables through the International WELL Building Institute's WELL for residential program. The amenity stack is anchored by Coral Gables' first rooftop padel court, a full spa and recovery floor (infrared sauna, steam, contrast hydrotherapy pools, red-light therapy), and a 5,000-square-foot public park with a permanent sculpture by internationally acclaimed Spanish artist Jaume Plensa at the property's edge.

Pricing runs from the $900,000s at the low end into the $4M-plus range for penthouse product. Three-bedroom residences start from around $2.55M. The sales gallery opened in October 2025; the developers secured a $67.5 million construction loan from BHI in mid-2026.

View the Cora Merrick Park building page for floor plans, current pricing, and available units.

The Quick Take

Where is Cora Merrick Park?

The site is at 4241 Aurora Street, in Coral Gables' Merrick Park district -- the area the City has been re-casting as the Design & Innovation District, six miles southwest of Downtown Miami.

The location is walk-everywhere by Coral Gables standards:

• Village of Merrick Park -- one block from the site; the 800,000-square-foot open-air luxury retail center anchored by Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom (the first Nordstrom in Florida), plus Equinox Fitness and roughly 115 additional stores
• Ponce de Leon Boulevard -- the Mediterranean commercial spine running through downtown Coral Gables nearby
• Salzedo Street -- steps from the property
• Miracle Mile -- roughly a mile north; four blocks of Coral Way with restaurants, boutiques, and the Actors' Playhouse at the Miracle Theatre
• Threefold Cafe, Pasta + Pizza by Caja Caliente, and the neighborhood Sunday farmers market -- walking distance from the site
• Biltmore Hotel (1926) -- a short drive; the National Historic Landmark on Anastasia Avenue
• Venetian Pool (1924) -- a short drive; the coral-rock quarry-turned-swimming pool
• University of Miami -- six minutes south
• Coconut Grove -- ten minutes east, including CocoWalk and Vizcaya Museum
• Downtown Miami / Brickell -- 15-20 minutes east
• Miami International Airport -- about 15 minutes north

The immediate blocks around Cora are one of the highest-density retail corners in Coral Gables, with 4225 Ponce de Leon Boulevard -- Constellation and Boschetti's separate boutique Class A office building -- also nearby.

Who's Behind Cora Merrick Park?

Two developers -- both actively building in Coral Gables -- are running the project.

Constellation Group is a Miami-based real estate development firm that has been assembling a Coral Gables portfolio over the past several years. Constellation acquired multiple Coral Gables office parcels for $10M in 2022 for redevelopment and has been active on the retail and mixed-use side of the Gables market.

The Boschetti Group is Constellation's joint-venture partner on the Coral Gables platform. Together, the two firms have delivered:

• 4225 Ponce -- a boutique Class A office and retail building at 4225 Ponce de Leon Boulevard, unveiled in February 2026. UBS Group signed a long-term lease for 33,180 square feet across two floors; luxury furniture brand Enne is opening its Miami flagship in the ground-floor retail
• Cora Merrick Park -- this project, the developers' first ground-up residential condominium

The joint venture secured a $67.5 million construction loan from BHI to fund Cora's construction. Sales opened at a public sales gallery in Coral Gables in October 2025.

Architecture and Design

The architect is Arquitectonica, one of Miami's most recognizable design firms.

Arquitectonica was founded in 1977 in Coconut Grove by Bernardo Fort-Brescia (Peruvian-born, Princeton and Harvard-trained) and Laurinda Hope Spear, along with three founding partners (Andres Duany, Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, and Hervin Romney later left to focus on Duany Plater-Zyberk's separate practice). The firm's Miami footprint runs to more than 300 buildings and includes:

• Atlantis Condominium -- the Brickell building that opens the Miami Vice title sequence
• Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse -- downtown Miami
• Kaseya Center -- the arena on Biscayne Boulevard, home of the Miami Heat
• Brickell City Centre -- the 500,000-plus-square-foot mixed-use development
• PortMiami cruise terminals -- including the MSC and Virgin Voyages terminals
• 57 Ocean -- the Mid-Beach oceanfront residence
• Five Park -- the 98-residence South Beach tower at 500 Alton Road
• Onda Residences -- the Bay Harbor Islands boutique
• Lakeside Village -- 12-acre student housing complex at the University of Miami Coral Gables campus, an International Architecture Award winner
• University of Miami School of Architecture Thomas P. Murphy Design Studio Building -- 2018 World-Architects Building of the Year on the Coral Gables campus

Fort-Brescia is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and won the AIA Silver Medal. The firm has more than 1,200 built projects on five continents.

Urban Robot Associates designed interiors. Urban Robot is a Miami Beach-based design collective covering architecture, interior design, landscape architecture, and urban design. The Cora interior program leans into a design-forward reinterpretation of Spanish Mediterranean aesthetics through a modern, wellness-focused lens: coralina stone, marble, and dark-stained oak (a nod to Coral Gables' oak canopy) paired with minimalist forms and natural light.

Lamarca Well and Arquitectonica together oversee Cora's enrollment in the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) WELL for residential program.

Residences at Cora

The 74-residence count is small; the plan mix is unusually diverse for a boutique building.

• 74 total residences across 12 stories
• 12 unique floor plans -- 1-bedroom, 1-bedroom-plus-den, 2-bedroom, 2-bedroom-plus-den, 3-bedroom, and penthouses
• Approximately 678 to 2,651 square feet for standard residences
• Select layouts include lanais stretching well past 1,000 additional square feet
• 10-foot ceilings throughout
• Floor-to-ceiling impact glass
• Italkraft kitchens with Sub-Zero and Wolf appliances
• Designer stone countertops and large kitchen islands
• Designer closets
• Circadian lighting systems
• Advanced air and water purification integrated into each home
• Red-light therapy components in select layouts
• Smart home integration
• Non-toxic building materials and low-VOC paints
• Acoustic design to reduce noise
• Biophilic design integrating natural materials

Three-bedroom residences start from approximately $2.55M at around 1,944 square feet. Pricing overall runs from the $900,000s at the low end into $4M-plus for penthouse product.

Architect Heritage -- Arquitectonica in the Gables

Arquitectonica has been part of Coral Gables' modern architectural identity for four decades, and Cora is not the firm's first Gables commission.

The firm's built work on the University of Miami Coral Gables campus includes the Shalala Student Center, the Fate Bridge across Lake Osceola, the Thomas P. Murphy Design Studio Building at the School of Architecture (winner of the 2018 World-Architects Building of the Year), and Lakeside Village, the 12-acre student housing complex opened on the Coral Gables campus and recognized with the International Architecture Award.

For Cora, the firm's brief is a specific one: work within the Coral Gables Mediterranean design context, deliver a modern condominium with a wellness program, and stay within the 12-story height envelope that the City's zoning permits at this specific site.

The Wellness Program -- What WELL Means Here

Cora's positioning as Coral Gables' first wellness-focused condominium is not a marketing headline; the developers are pursuing formal certification through the International WELL Building Institute.

The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) administers the WELL Building Standard -- an evidence-based, third-party certification framework for indoor environmental quality across air, water, nourishment, light, movement, thermal comfort, sound, materials, mind, and community. WELL for residential is IWBI's residential-specific program.

Cora's WELL-aligned features:

• Advanced air purification -- multi-stage filtration across residences and public spaces
• Water filtration -- treated potable water at every unit
• Biophilic design -- natural materials (coralina stone, marble, dark-stained oak) and natural light integrated across interiors
• Acoustic design -- noise-reducing construction assemblies
• Non-toxic materials -- low-VOC paints, non-toxic cleaning materials at building level
• Smart wellness technology -- monitoring at unit and building level
• Personalized wellness concierge -- curated wellness membership program tied to area providers
• Red-light therapy panels
• Contrast hydrotherapy cold and hot plunges
• Infrared sauna and steam room

The IWBI program is the same framework used by wellness-first commercial developments; Cora is applying it to residential product in Coral Gables ahead of the neighborhood's other new inventory.

Amenities

The amenity program is organized around wellness, recovery, and social use, with two distinctive elements: the rooftop padel court and the on-site public park.

Rooftop and outdoor

• Rooftop padel court -- the first in Coral Gables
• Resort-style pool with private cabanas
• Dedicated yoga terrace
• Outdoor kitchen and dining areas

Spa and recovery

• Infrared sauna
• Steam room
• Contrast hydrotherapy pools -- cold plunge and hot plunge
• Red-light therapy panels
• Treatment suite

Fitness

• State-of-the-art fitness center with dedicated recovery zone and recovery equipment
• Movement studio for Pilates, yoga, and TRX

Social and interior

• Grand lobby
• Club lounge with chef's catering kitchen
• Private dining room
• Coworking lounge
• Media / screening room
• Resident tea lounge
• Dog wash and grooming station

Ground-floor and public

• 8,000 sf ground-floor retail
• 13,000 sf office space across floors 2-3
• 5,000 sf public park at the property's edge, planned for donation to the City of Coral Gables
• Permanent sculpture by Jaume Plensa in the park -- the internationally acclaimed Spanish artist known for the Crown Fountain at Chicago's Millennium Park and monumental figurative works installed globally

Services

• 24-hour concierge and valet
• Curated wellness membership program tied to area wellness providers

How Cora Compares to Other Coral Gables Trophy Condos

Coral Gables' zoning caps high-rise density, so the trophy condo cohort is small. Cora slots into a specific niche within that group.

A few takeaways:

• Cora is the lowest starting price in the trophy set -- 1-bedroom entry from the $900,000s versus Villa Valencia's 3-bedroom minimum (delivered inventory) or Ponce Park's $3.1M starting point. That broadens the buyer pool.
• First WELL-track residential. Villa Valencia integrated Delos DARWIN at delivery in 2022, which is a related wellness tech platform but not the same as IWBI WELL certification for the building itself. Cora is targeting the building-level certification.
• Rooftop padel is a first. Padel is Miami's fastest-growing racket sport in the 2020s; Cora is the first Coral Gables condominium to install a court at the amenity level.
• Smaller units, more of them. 74 units at 678-2,651 sf is a different product than Villa Valencia's 39 units at 2,616-6,263 sf. Cora is a boutique building but with more turnover potential and more entry-level product.
• Public art contribution. The Jaume Plensa sculpture and public park -- planned for donation to the City -- add a civic dimension that recent Gables condominiums have not offered.

The Merrick Park Neighborhood

Cora's block is walkable to two of Coral Gables' major commercial nodes and to the historic 1920s downtown.

The Village of Merrick Park (Shops at Merrick Park) -- the 800,000-square-foot open-air mall opened in September 2002 with Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom (the first Nordstrom in Florida). Anchor stores include Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, and Equinox Fitness, plus about 115 additional retailers. The neighborhood is being re-cast by the City as the Design & Innovation District.

Miracle Mile -- roughly a mile from Cora; the four-block downtown Coral Gables retail strip on Coral Way with restaurants, bridal shops (nicknamed Bridal Row), boutiques, and the Miracle Theatre.

Ponce de Leon Boulevard -- the Mediterranean commercial spine running north-south through downtown; Constellation and Boschetti's 4225 Ponce office building sits along the same corridor.

Historic landmarks and 1920s architecture

• Biltmore Hotel (1926) -- National Historic Landmark on Anastasia Avenue
• Venetian Pool (1924) -- coral-rock quarry-turned-swimming pool
• Merrick House -- George Merrick's boyhood home, preserved as a museum
• Merrick Park masterplan -- the neighborhood plan George Merrick set in the 1920s City Beautiful vision

Nearby institutions

• University of Miami -- six minutes south
• Coral Gables Museum
• Actors' Playhouse at the Miracle Theatre

Adjacent neighborhoods

• Coconut Grove -- ten minutes east; CocoWalk, Vizcaya Museum, Kennedy Park
• Brickell and Downtown Miami -- 15-20 minutes east
• South Miami and Pinecrest -- ten minutes south

Schools Coral Gables sits in a strong A-rated public school corridor and is one of the highest-rated private-school neighborhoods in Miami-Dade. Family buyer demand in the Gables leans on that schooling profile.

Buyer Fit

Cora Merrick Park is a fit for:

• Buyers who want Coral Gables -- Mediterranean architecture, tree-canopy streets, A-rated schools, walk-to-Merrick Park -- with an entry price under $1M for smaller layouts
• Wellness-first buyers looking for a WELL-track building rather than a retrofit
• Padel players who want an on-site rooftop court
• Downsizers coming out of Gables single-family who want a full amenity program with wellness density
• Long-hold owners who want to buy into the Design & Innovation District as the neighborhood's commercial repositioning matures

It's probably not the right fit for:

• Buyers who require a delivered, closed condominium -- Cora is 2028 delivery, roughly two years from ground-break
• Direct waterfront buyers -- Cora is inland Coral Gables, not bay or ocean
• Full-floor / mansion-in-the-sky buyers -- top plate is around 2,651 sf standard plus penthouses
• Short-term-rental investors -- Coral Gables' condominium and City rental restrictions are not conducive to STR

Risks and Realities for Pre-Construction Buyers

Standard pre-construction risk applies, plus a few Cora-specific items:

• Delivery timing. A 2028 target is roughly two years from the April 2026 ground-break. Miami delivery dates slip routinely on residential projects; underwrite a 6-12 month buffer.
• Deposit schedule. Miami pre-con deposit structure typically runs 20-50% spread across signing, ground-break, and milestone draws. Get the exact schedule in writing.
• WELL certification timeline. The developers are seeking WELL for residential certification through IWBI, but the certification itself is awarded after completion and verification. Buyers should confirm the specific WELL milestones the building is committing to at closing versus post-occupancy.
• Wellness carrying cost. WELL-track buildings with contrast hydrotherapy, red-light therapy, and full spa programs carry real HOA overhead. Underwrite the HOA at delivery with a margin.
• Retail and office lease-up. The 8,000 sf of retail and 13,000 sf of office at the base of the building matters to resident experience -- who signs those spaces will affect the ground-floor character. Constellation and Boschetti's track record with 4225 Ponce (UBS, Enne) suggests a strong leasing outcome, but Cora's ground floor tenants are not yet public.
• Public park handoff. The 5,000 sf public park is planned for donation to the City of Coral Gables. Confirm the handoff timing and maintenance obligations before you assume the amenity is permanent private-side.

FAQ

Where is Cora Merrick Park located?

Cora is at 4241 Aurora Street, Coral Gables, FL 33146, one block from the Village of Merrick Park mall (Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Equinox) and roughly a mile from Miracle Mile. Downtown Miami is 15-20 minutes east; the University of Miami is six minutes south.

Who is developing Cora Merrick Park?

Constellation Group and The Boschetti Group, in joint venture. The same partnership delivered the 4225 Ponce office and retail building in downtown Coral Gables in early 2026.

Who is the architect for Cora Merrick Park?

Arquitectonica, founded in 1977 by Bernardo Fort-Brescia and Laurinda Spear and headquartered in Coconut Grove. The firm's Coral Gables work includes University of Miami's Shalala Student Center, Lakeside Village, Fate Bridge, and the Thomas P. Murphy Design Studio Building. Urban Robot Associates designed the interiors.

When will Cora Merrick Park be completed?

Early 2028 is the developer's delivery target. Construction broke ground in April 2026, and the developers secured a $67.5 million construction loan from BHI in mid-2026.

How much do Cora Merrick Park residences cost?

Pricing runs from the $900,000s for smaller layouts into $4M-plus for penthouse product. Three-bedroom residences start from approximately $2.55M at around 1,944 square feet.

How many residences are at Cora Merrick Park?

74 residences across 12 stories, with 12 unique floor plans covering 1-bedroom, 1-bedroom-plus-den, 2-bedroom, 2-bedroom-plus-den, and 3-bedroom layouts plus penthouses. Standard residences range from approximately 678 to 2,651 square feet, with select layouts featuring lanais well past 1,000 additional square feet.

What makes Cora a wellness-focused building?

Cora is targeting WELL for residential certification through the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) -- an evidence-based third-party framework covering air, water, light, movement, materials, sound, and mind. Cora's wellness stack includes advanced air and water purification, biophilic design, non-toxic materials with low-VOC paints, acoustic design, circadian lighting, contrast hydrotherapy plunges, infrared sauna, steam, red-light therapy, and a personalized wellness concierge.

What amenities does Cora Merrick Park include?

Coral Gables' first rooftop padel court, resort-style pool with private cabanas, dedicated yoga terrace, infrared sauna, steam, cold and hot plunges, red-light therapy, treatment suite, fitness center with recovery zone, movement studio, club lounge with chef's catering kitchen, private dining room, coworking lounge, media / screening room, resident tea lounge, dog wash, and a 5,000 sf public park featuring a permanent Jaume Plensa sculpture -- planned for donation to the City of Coral Gables.

Bottom Line

Cora Merrick Park is Coral Gables' first purpose-built wellness-focused condominium and the neighborhood's first WELL-track residential building. Constellation Group and The Boschetti Group broke ground on the 74-residence, 12-story tower in April 2026, with Arquitectonica on architecture and Urban Robot on interiors, targeting a 2028 delivery. Entry pricing from the $900,000s is the lowest in Coral Gables' recent trophy cohort; the rooftop padel court, full spa-and-recovery floor, and Jaume Plensa public park distinguish it from Villa Valencia and the rest of the Gables boutique set.

Want a Data-Driven Read on Cora Merrick Park?

If you're evaluating a Cora pre-construction reservation -- floor selection, deposit schedule, or comp analysis against Villa Valencia, Ponce Park Residences, and Cassia Miami -- reach out to Kyle Benjamin, REHub Miami.

View the Cora Merrick Park building page | Browse Coral Gables condos | Contact us

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Disclaimer: This article is for general informational purposes. Pre-construction pricing, floor plans, finish packages, amenity specifications, and delivery timelines can change between launch and completion. Always verify details directly with the official sales team and developer materials before making any reservation or purchase decision.