Coral Gables

» 355 Alhambra Circle, a landmark office tower in Coral Gables, is for sale for the first time in the building’s history. Kraft Foods, Merrill Lynch and Washington Mutual Bank are among the tenants in the Class A office tower, which is 95% occupied.

Miami

» Under an agreement with the Florida Attorney General’s Office, Miami-based Carnival Corp. (NYSE-CCL) will refund about $40 million in fuel surcharge fees charged to customers after they booked their trips. The agreement applies to travelers who booked cruises before Nov. 7, 2007, aboard Carnival or its various brands: Carnival Cruise Lines, Costa Cruises, Cunard Line, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises and The Yachts of Seabourn. Competing cruise companies, namely Celebrity Cruises and Royal Caribbean, have made comparable settlements with the Attorney General’s Office, with customer refunds totaling $21 million

» With a February hotel room occupancy of 83.4% (up 0.3% year-over-year), Greater Miami/Miami Beach ranked No. 2 in the national lodging industry index. Based on the average daily room rate, the region placed among the top 25 hotel markets in the country. However, the rate for February was $212.38, down 8.2% from last year’s $231.41, when the region hosted the Super Bowl.

» Bilzin Sumberg Baena Price & Axelrod, a Miami law firm, has created KBS Strategies Group, a new government relations consulting firm. In addition to lobbying politicians and policy-makers, the firm will help clients draft legislation and prepare for testimony before government committees.

» Biscayne Helicopters, an aerial charter and service company, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

» CSA Group, the largest Hispanic-owned architectural, engineering, planning and environmental services firm in the U.S., opened its international headquarters in Miami. The firm is consolidating all of its Miami offices into the new 21,678-sq.-ft. headquarters, including the operations of Brown+Brown Architects, which it acquired in late 2006.

» Miami Children’s Hospital Foundation recently received $2.7 million from an anonymous local donor. The donor left money to the foundation and Miami Children’s Hospital in her estate.

» The National Football League has approved Wayne Huizenga’s proposed sale of a 50% stake in the Miami Dolphins to Stephen Ross, a New York developer.

» World Fuel Services, a Miami-based energy products and services company, will buy select assets of Texor Petroleum Co., based in Riverside, Ill., for about $104 million.

» Related Group, a Miami-based developer, has received a letter from the New York Attorney General’s Office requesting the release of New York buyers from contracts involving about 50 Related condos, according to the South Florida Business Journal.

North Miami Beach

» Equity One, which develops, owns and operates shopping centers, plans to sell seven properties for $197 million to a joint venture with Global Retail Investors. Equity One owns 10% of the joint venture and will use $130 million from the sale to reduce debt, develop existing projects and for general corporate purposes.

Tags: Miami-Dade