A view looking north toward North Beach Oceanside Park, just past 79th Street, which is slated to become a part of the final segment of Miami Beach’s seven-mile pedestrian beachwalk. On Jan. 26, 2021, the project is scheduled to break ground in the coming months in North Beach. The $4.5 million project will extend the paved walking and cycling path from 79th Street to the edge of city limits at 87th Terrace, east of the North Beach Oceanside Park and Collins Avenue. Daniel A. Varela dvarela@miamiherald.com

The owner of the hedge fund at the center of the GameStop trading controversy recently purchased a home for $44 million in Miami Beach, according to city and county documents.

Gabriel Plotkin, founder of New York-based Melvin Capital, bought the existing residences at 6360 and 6342 North Bay Road for a total of $44 million in November from Westime watch store owner Jean Simonian. The purchase was first reported by The Real Deal in December. Plotkin’s name appears on a Miami Beach Design Review Board application for alterations of the properties. That document was first reported by website The Next Miami.

“The Applicant’s goal is to introduce certain amenities as enjoyed by others to this dream home,” Plotkin’s lawyers wrote in the application dated Nov. 12, 2020.

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Melvin Capital, which started the year with $12.5 billion in assets according to the Wall Street Journal, had placed a large bet that video game retailer GameStop’s share price would fall. In the past week or so, day traders have instead driven GameStop shares skyward, from some $40 to as much as $400. That’s caused Melvin to lose as much as 30%, the Journal reported.

CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin said Wednesday that reports of Melvin filing for bankruptcy were false; the news outlet did report Melvin has received $3 billion from hedge funds Citadel and Point72 to shore up losses. Citadel, owned by Miami-Dade property owner Ken Griffin, has announced it would be opening an office here.

Plotkin’s Miami-based attorney, Mark Meland, did not respond to requests for comment Thursday.

North Bay Road has seen a flurry of buying activity in recent months amid a soaring stock market. New buyers on the exclusive strip include Joshua Kushner, the brother of Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner; Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber; nightlife mogul Dave Grutman; hedge funder Dan Loeb, SoftBank executive Marcelo Claure; Shutterstock founder Jon Oringer; LEVY NYC Design & Production owners Ira Levy and Helene Safdie; and notorious Miami club impresario Chris Paciello.

GameStop shares swung between $112 and $483 before closing down 43.2% at $197.44 Thursday.

This story was originally published January 28, 2021 11:38 AM.