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27-575: Built for CenTrust Bank in 1987, the 47-story building ranks in the top twenty tallest skyscrapers in Miami and in Florida at a height of 625 feet (191 m) and is known for its elaborate night-time illuminations and its dramatic three glass tiers. Designed by the Pei Cobb Freed & Partners architectural firm, the tower consists of two separate structures: A 10-story parking garage owned by

54-542: A $ 1 million Italian marble staircase, and a bulletproof shower door. When the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act of 1989 was passed it banned the purchase of junk bonds by thrifts and required them to dispose of their holdings by 1995. They were also required to carry the bonds on the bank's books at market value, not face value. The act also disallowed supervisory goodwill by phasing it out through 1995. This resulted in

81-572: A $ 5 million fine). He was released in 2004. Paul donated $ 500,000 to the University of Miami and $ 100,000 to Barry University . Paul served as the head of the governing body of Jackson Memorial Hospital . Through his CenTrust Political Action Committee , Paul donated to both Joe Biden 's and Richard Gephardt 's presidential campaigns as well as the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee . Paul

108-431: A $ 5 million fine. He later pled guilty to 29 counts of securities violations. He was released from prison in 2004. The government charged that Paul had used bank funds for personal reasons such as making improvements on his home and paying the expenses on his $ 7 million yacht "Grand Cru." In addition the bank had also bought the sailboat "Bodacious" for $ 233,000. The bank acquired a $ 29 million art collection, including

135-679: A Massachusetts Real Estate Investment Trust called the Westport Company. In 1979, Westport purchased the American Furniture Mart in Chicago for $ 6.5 million with plans to convert it into apartments. In 1983, Paul purchased the near bankrupt Dade Savings and Loan Association through the transfer of 92% of his interest in Westport, renaming it CenTrust Bank . By 1988, CenTrust was the largest thrift institution in

162-1008: A loss. CenTrust was one of the largest buyers of junk bonds ( high yield bonds ) in the country, with over $ 1.4 billion on the bank's books at its peak. It was part of Drexel Burnham Lambert 's "daisy chain" of junk bond buyers like Lincoln Savings in Irvine, Imperial Savings in San Diego, Gibraltar Savings in Simi Valley, Silverado Savings & Loan in Denver, and Columbia Savings in Beverly Hills. CenTrust had dealings with Lincoln Savings' parent American Continental Corporation when it bought $ 9 million in Playtex stock from American Continental Corp. and then sold $ 9 million in stock of Memorex to American Continental Corp. The intent

189-528: The Miami Vice television series and also in a scene in the 2006 version of Casino Royale CenTrust Bank CenTrust Bank, A State Savings Bank was an American savings and loan association based in Miami , Florida that failed in 1990. Its failure in 1990 was one of the largest and costliest failures of the savings and loan crisis . Dade Savings & Loan Association opened in 1934. In 1983,

216-560: The Federal Home Loan Bank M. Danny Wall. He also had meetings with Senators Bob Graham (D-FL), John Breaux (D-LA), Tim Wirth (D-CO), Ted Kennedy (D-MA), Joe Biden (D-DE), Alan Cranston (D-CA), and Donald W. Riegle Jr. (D-MI).(The latter two senators were also members of the Keating Five .) Miami Beach mayor Alex Daoud was convicted of taking $ 35,000 in bribes to help Paul obtain permits to expand

243-549: The Peter Paul Rubens painting "Portrait of a Man as the God Mars" for $ 13.2 million, which Paul kept at his house. The bank's headquarters were located in the newly built CenTrust Tower (now Miami Tower ), a Miami landmark designed by I. M. Pei and featured in the opening credits of the television series " Miami Vice ." CenTrust's executive offices were opulent, featuring gold-plated plumbing, gold-leaf ceilings,

270-421: The bank becoming insolvent. Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI), through nominee Saudi businessman Ghaith Pharaon became CenTrust's largest shareholder with 28% ownership. Pharaon was also BCCI's nominee owner of Independence Bank of Los Angeles, as well as National Bank of Georgia, which was formerly owned by Bert Lance , a close friend of former United States President Jimmy Carter . Pharaon

297-592: The bank's assets in June 1990. CenTrust had $ 8.2 billion in assets at that time and was the 23rd largest thrift in the country. The failure resulted in an estimated $ 1.7 billion loss to the government at the time it was seized. Chairman and CEO David Paul was convicted in November 1993 in federal court on 68 counts of tax fraud, obstruction of justice and misapplication of bank funds. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison and required to pay $ 60 million in restitution and

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324-475: The building was renamed the Miami Tower. The tower's three tiers allow it to have multiple color schemes in tribute to certain holidays and seasons. In 2012, a $ 1.5 million LED system was installed on the tower to allow for more elaborate displays with a much quicker transition time. Below are some examples of the various colors used: The Miami Tower is referenced in several video games and TV shows. It

351-505: The city and the 47-story office tower built upon the air rights of the garage. Preliminary planning for the tower began in February 1980; construction on the garage began by November. The garage was completed in February 1983 and the tower began construction a year later. In August 1984, while the tower was under construction, a 5-alarm fire began on the ninth floor; construction was subsequently delayed for several weeks. On December 15, 1985,

378-479: The committee. The committee also leased Paul's yacht for fund-raisers. Paul met with Kerry five times in 1988, while Kerry was investigating BCCI for money laundering . Paul flew in six chefs from France for a $ 122,000 "Great Chef's Party." Its 61 guests included Senator Kerry. (Kerry later wrote an opinion piece for The New York Times entitled "Where Is the S&;L Money?") Paul met four times with chairman of

405-443: The dock at his house on La Gorce Island for his yacht "Grand Cru." David L. Paul David Lewis Paul (May 1, 1939 – January 18, 2022) was an American banker, real estate developer, philanthropist, convicted felon, and founder of CenTrust Bank . Paul was born in on May 1, 1939, in Miami to a Jewish family, the son of Ruth (née Goldstein) and Isadore Paul. His father founded a chain of dry cleaning stores and died when he

432-454: The failing thrift, with 32 branches and $ 2.2 billion in assets, was acquired by real estate developer David L. Paul for $ 32 million and the following year was renamed CenTrust Savings & Loan Association. It grew rapidly to become the largest thrift in the southeastern United States, with over $ 9 billion in assets at its peak in 1989. The bank was placed into government conservatorship in February 1990, with Great Western Bank acquiring

459-404: The first floor is a retail spine covered with green marble. The tower contains 1.16 million square feet (108,000 m) with 503,000 sq ft (46,700 m) of office space and a 535,000 sq ft (49,700 m), 1,500 space parking garage . The tower can be seen in the "Streetwise" episode of Miami Vice which aired on December 5, 1986, as well as in the opening credits of

486-449: The savings and loan was failing. Paul was convicted on 68 counts consisting of 47 counts of bank fraud, 9 of misapplication of Centrust funds, 5 of filing false tax returns, 4 of mail fraud, 2 of obstruction of regulators, one count of conspiracy and one count of making false entries on Centrust books. Facing a maximum of 350 years in prison he was sentenced to 11 years in prison and ordered to pay $ 65 million ($ 60 million in restitution and

513-423: The show from season 3. The building appears during the end credits of the 1986 film Flight Of The Navigator in an aerial shot of Miami. The top floors can clearly be seen still under construction. The roof of the building was the set of Gloria Estefan 's 1994 video for " Turn The Beat Around ". The building is also one of many featured on the backdrop of the stage on The Tonight Show . On January 1, 2010,

540-520: The southeastern United States with $ 8.2 billion in assets. He built the $ 90 million, I.M. Pei -designed CenTrust Tower . In 1989, CenTrust lost $ 119 million and in 1990, Centrust lost $ 1.7 billion and was seized by the federal government after "excessive and inappropriate expenses and investments." Paul was ousted as chairman. On November 25, 1993, Paul was convicted of fraud in Federal Court for making personal use of CenTrust's funds while

567-509: The tower was lit for the first time in Miami Dolphins aqua and snowflakes. By mid-1986, the tower's exterior was complete and the grand opening for the complex was set for early fall that same year. Due to the uneven settling of the tower's foundation to one side by several inches, and the resulting misalignment of the tower's elevator rails, the grand opening for the complex was delayed until February 1987. The complete complex featured

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594-454: The world's only elevated metro station in a skyscraper ( Knight Center station ). It also gained notoriety for its luxurious interiors, including a skylobby on the 11th floor covered in marble and gold and a 10,000 sq ft (930 m) outdoor terrace. Also its indoor gym features mahogany cabinets. The tower is connected to the James L. Knight Center by a pedestrian walkway and on

621-465: Was featured in the opening sequence of the 1980s TV show Miami Vice , even being referred to as the "'Miami Vice' Tower" when it was sold. It is also depicted in the video games Grand Theft Auto: Vice City in the downtown area and in DRIV3R with its name is changed to "The Tower At International Place". The tower appears repeatedly in multiple scenes throughout the movie Miami Vice as well as in

648-497: Was indicted in 1991, and again in 1993 under a revised indictment, but remained a fugitive until his death in 2017. The indictments covered the nominee ownerships of the Georgia and Los Angeles banks, as well as his securities trading activities at CenTrust. BCCI had bought $ 25 million in subordinated debentures out of a $ 150 million offering in a sham transaction in 1988, with the securities bought back two months later by CenTrust at

675-571: Was married three times. In 1965, he married Lynn Pamela Goelet of the influential Huguenot Goelet family in a Jewish ceremony at the Plaza Hotel in Manhattan; they had two sons, Michael and David, before they divorced. He was introduced to his second wife, Joy Fererh Germont Simons (sister of composer Bruce Wolosoff ) by fellow real estate developer and sometimes partner Sol Atlas ; they divorced 2 months later. Paul's third marriage

702-837: Was ten. His mother took her sons David L and Robert A. Paul first to Scranton, Pennsylvania where they stayed with her mother while Ruth was finding a place in New York for her and her two sons. Paul graduated from the Cheshire Academy in Cheshire, Connecticut and then the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania . He started his career in Connecticut where his company, Paul Properties, built two controversial apartment buildings. He then took control of

729-534: Was to boost the prices of the stocks on the thinly traded securities and book bogus profits. Both of the stocks were issued by companies that were clients of Drexel Burnham Lambert. Source: Paul extensively used CenTrust's money to gain political influence, with its political action committee contributing $ 328,000 to campaigns and other political causes. Paul was co-chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee with Senator John Kerry (D-MA), with CenTrust contributing $ 30,000 in political action funds to

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