We’re (Probably) Doomed

The United Nations’ International Panel On Climate Change is out with its last big take on a warming planet, and it’s not good. The panel warns that humanity is just about past the point of no return in ensuring the Earth’s habitable long term. Ways to pull things back from the brink include making commercial buildings much, much more energy efficient. Meanwhile! Developable waterfront property remains very much in demand. A South Florida builder wants to buy an old condo building for $500 million.

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— Tom Acitelli, Co-Deputy Editor

To Avoid 'Climate Time Bomb' We Need Immediate Emissions Cuts: Report

In the final installment of the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)’s sixth assessment report released Monday, the global group of scientists tasked with synthesizing all climate research repeated much of what has already been said about the threat of global warming—but with more certainty and urgency. The world has so far warmed 1.1 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial times, and is on track to exceed 2 degrees of warming, blowing through the limits of what climate experts say our planet can currently support, irrevocably changing climate systems and rendering large swaths of the Earth uninhabitable. “There is a rapidly closing window of opportunity to secure a livable and sustainable future for all,” the report warns. It is highly likely that we will exceed the 1.5 degree threshold — the official goal of the United Nations — by the early 2030s. The only way to avoid exceeding that limit is if global emissions peak in the “next two years,” per the report, which would require a virtually miraculous and immediate shift in focus, along with global consensus, political will and financial investment.

To stay below 2 degrees, developed countries must immediately end all international public and private funding of coal, get to net-zero electricity generation by 2035, and move up their overall net-zero commitments from 2050 to “as close to 2040 as possible,” among other drastic measures, Guterres urged in the message.

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Terra Offers $500M for Oceanfront Miami Beach Condo Building

Take two: Terra has offered half a billion dollars to buy out an oceanfront condo building in Miami Beach, six months after a Related Group-led venture backed out, according to a letter obtained by Commercial Observer. Located at 5445 Collins Avenue, the property, Castle Beach Club, sits on 4 acres along the famed Miami Beach strip, offering 576 linear feet along the ocean. The deal — if finalized — would effectively become the most expensive land purchase in the Miami area. Terra, led by David Martin, will most likely tear down the 18-story building and construct an ultra-luxury condo complex. The site can accommodate a structure up to 200 feet tall. The proposed buyout is part of a growing trend following the deadly collapse of Champlain Towers South, a condominium built in 1981 that was poorly maintained. Some condo associations of similar, decades-old buildings are choosing to sell to developers to avoid footing the bill for costly repairs, now mandated by Florida law.

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