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Monday, March 14, 2016

734 Amelia Street, Key West, Florida

The newly constructed house at 734 Amelia Street is a lovely addition to the Key West home scene. Few occasional visitors and locals probably recognize this location. This two block stretch of Amelia Street which runs east from Simonton to Windsor Lane was omitted in the Historic Historic Sanborn Fire Maps from 1889 through 1912. St. Mary's convent school yard was and still is located across the street where a tall stone wall insulates the school yard from public view. One of the maps referred to the entire area as "tropical gardens". I found the black and white aerial photo below taken in 1960. I added a notation to show the location of the home that was located thre at that time. I also found a photo of the former house that was razed. The lot sat vacant for as many years as I can recall. That explains how the current owner obtained permission to build a new house in a town where old homes are treasured.
The listing Realtor describes the new house this way:
"This beautiful, brand new home boast 3 large bedrooms with 3.5 baths equipped w/ bluetooth audio and shower wands. Master features his & her closets, gorgeous bath & private balcony. 2100sqft of open living space with many upgrades including hand scraped engineered oak flooring, quartz counter-tops, induction cook-top range, built in microwave drawer, high power ultra-quite dishwasher, X-large 34 cubic foot refrigerator. Built to 180 m.p.h. wind load, maintenance free Hardie board siding, Trex composite decking, aluminum impact windows & doors in highly desirable X Flood Zone. Outdoor living area entertainment center, plus a wonderful outdoor kitchen area w/ commercial 120 lb ice machine. Relax poolside or soak in the spa after a long day. Off street parking."
When you enter the home the first thing I noticed was the handsome wood floors and then the stylish  staircase that leads to the second floor. My eyes were drawn to the rear of the home where the great room is located. This  area is bright and welcoming. Two sets of impact glass doors open out to the partially covered rear deck. Another door opens to the east side deck. Windows on either side provide garden views. This space is so inviting and it is not decorated yet. I had to touch the quart counter-tops that are impregnated with just a touch of color. What I thought was a simple French refrigerator is actually a large refrigerator with normal cold food storage on top and frozen fools on the bottom. The built-in breakfast bar will keep the chef a part of whatever is going on inside this area. The guest powder room is located off the kitchen. Note the crewon molding, extra large baseboards, handsome real wood doors used throughout the house.
 
The pool and garden area will probably be a very well-used part of the living that occurs in this home. There is a built-in automatic elevated television system where the TV will rise out above the cut stone base. What I call the mini-kitchen (or bar) is on east side deck which would presumably be used for outdoor dining. The sunny pool is long enough to really swim in. And there is a spa for whatever it is that one does in a spa.
There is a first floor bedroom which is large enough to serve as a master bedroom in later years when climbing the stairs may be come a challenge. Windows on two walls allow generous light to enter this space. The en-suite bath is large and comfortable. While each bathroom is unique in vanities chosen, they all use porcelain tile floors and glass shower enclosures. Both second floor bedrooms have private decks. The occupants of this bedroom have use of the front porch. The second floor hallway is quite large and provides a good separation between the bedrooms. The hallway includes a bank of closets where the laundry and the AC are located.
The second floor front guest bedroom is quite large as is the private en-suite bath. This bedroom includes a pull down ladder to attic storage. The covered front deck provides views of St. Mary's school yard across the street. The master bedroom at the rear has views of the pool and  the southeast skyline. Notice the underside of the canopy. This same motif is employed in all covered outdoor roof locations. Note as well the porcelain decks off the master bedroom. Trex decks are used in the other outdoor areas.
CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet for 734 Amelia Street that is offered for sale at $1,695,000. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to schedule a private showing of this new home with a lot of money saving features built in. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.




3 comments:

FloridaAG said...

Additionally, the builder, who also built my house, is top notch and the work is of the highest quality.

Gary Thomas said...

I don't think people appreciate how much hidden long term value and dollar savings are incorporated into a house like this. The savings on wind storm and flood insurance year over year will amount to tens of thousands a dollars each decade.
Likewise, not having to paint a house every three to five years will mean it is less costly to maintain, but also will stand up to our sometimes hot and humid climate.
Little things like large closets and big bath rooms means an owner, family, and guests will have real functionality in their private spaces. Too many old houses are contrived situations where owners make-do.
Gary

FloridaAG said...

Exactly the reason we ended up building our house - of course there are not exactly a lot of buildable lots in Old Town. We house hunted for a very long time and were close to closing but after evaluating the insurance/maintenance costs on the very old houses we were looking at, we decided to go another way and fortunately were able to make it happen.

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