Miami Arena Set For Auction: Mimimum Bid Is $25M Million

(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — The Miami Sports and Exhibition Authority (MSEA), the owners and operators of the Miami Arena, have finalized plans to auction the Miami Arena to the highest bidder on August 10. The auction will take place at 1 p.m. at the Arena.

The 337,000 square-foot Miami Arena is located on 4.7 acres of prime property in downtown Miami, 721 NW 1st Ave. The land's duel zoning includes R4, a high density multi-family residential area allowing for 300 units per acre.

All interested bidders must submit a $3 million deposit to participate in the live auction with the minimum bid of $25 million. Parties interested in bidding may call Fisher Auction Co. Inc. at 1-800-331-6620 for more information and should attend a "How to Bid" seminar from 1-2 pm on July 27 at the Miami Arena.

"For more than a decade, this Arena has been a place where people have come to enjoy sports and entertainment," said Jim Jenkins, MSEA's executive director. "Although I'm sad to see the Miami Arena close, I'm excited for the future of this downtown area."

Built in 1988, the Miami Arena was home to Miami's National Basketball Association team, the Miami Heat and the National Hockey League team, the Florida Panthers. The Heat played 11 seasons at the Arena before building a new arena, and the Panthers played six seasons before moving north to their new arena. The University of Miami Hurricanes men's basketball team called the Arena home for 15 years but moved in 2003 to a new facility built on the university campus.

For the past several years, the Miami Arena has been the venue for concerts, performances, shows and sporting events and has also been used as a production facility for movies, TV commercials and rehearsals in addition to family shows and special events. Some of the acts to play or rehearse at the Miami Arena include U2, Shakira, Lenny Kravitz, Ricky Martin, Marc Anthony and many more.

Proceeds from the sale of the Arena will be used to help fund a new baseball stadium for the World Series Champion Florida Marlins. –Bob Grossweiner and Jane Cohen