Search This Blog

Sunday, August 13, 2017

Mob Violence in a Small Town

On March 4, 1968 I participated in a Peace March in Fort Collins, Colorado while attending college at Colorado State University. I wrote a diary back then and found the pages where I memorialized the events of that cold gray day. 

About 1500 students gathered at the campus oval around 3:30 PM.  We headed north on College Avenue and marched six blocks to Mountain Avenue.  I wrote "When we crossed Oak Street everything changed. You could feel the hostility. Townies - young and old - lined both sides of the street. They were quiet, then, but you could feel the hate."  I am sure we singing something. Marchers always sang about giving peace a chance or we shall overcome. The townies started heckling. They got louder and louder. We arrived at the Larimer County Courthouse on Mountain Avenue which is a very broad road with an island divider where the marchers gathered. The street was supposedly closed to traffic. Galway Kinnell, the poet in residence at CSU that year, was speaking when big semi drove straight into the crowd with it's horn blaring. At least the driver gave the marchers a warning he was headed their direction, unlike what happened in Charlottesville yesterday. I wrote "Jesus, that could have been a bad scene!"  It all happened so quick and then it was over. I really did not process the magnitude of what happened because nobody was hurt. (The police chased and caught the driver who complained his son was fighting in Viet Nam.)

The speakers continued, prayers were made, and the crowd retraced their steps back to campus.  Except the return to campus turned violent. Townies rushed the marchers and ripped the signs away from the marchers as if that would silence the call for peace. As we neared campus someone from the Farm House Fraternity began throwing eggs at the marchers. An egg hit a small child in a stroller in the eye. That was horrible. Marchers began to cry and run for safety. One block later we were back on campus and safe. Once you have been a victim of mob violence you can't forget what happened. I was unharmed, but I still remember that cold gray day forty nine years later.

Three weeks after our march Lyndon Johnson announced he would not run for a second term as President. He had lost moral authority in my opinion.

Leaders do not divide; they inspire. I am fearful for where we are headed.



Saturday, August 12, 2017

Key West : Buildable Lots and Renovation Properties


Summer is nearly over. Fall is on the way. This is always the worst time of the year to sell a house in Key West. It is the same way every year. 2017 isn't special in that regard. Many shop owners and restaurants will close for vacation during September. There's no reason to have a crew working if nobody is buying t0shirts or trinkets, eating over-priced food, or sleeping in hotel rooms. Ten weeks from now, however, Fantasy Fest will begin and throngs of thongs will parade on Duval Street. Money will flow like crazy once again. The super boat races follow in November and then Christmas ushers in season when the serious real estate buyers return. Like it or not, our real estate market is still "hot" and prices continue to appreciate year after year.

Potential buyers in the Key West should appreciate the limitations of our real estate market. Unlike many parts of Florida where cities can expand into vacant areas or build skyscraper condominiums near a beach, Key West has a limited land mass and numerous governmental restrictions which severely limit new construction. The Old Town area of Key West has strict rules which disallow taking down historic older houses and impose standards on how existing homes may be renovated. As a result most of our construction involves the renovation of existing properties in Old Town and/or razing non-historic properties in other parts of our island city.

The Key West MLS has a few "vacant lot" a few properties with an existing structure which could be razed or renovated. Building a new house or renovating and expanding an existing property will tax any marriage, but if done correctly, the rewards could be astounding. A new owner will end up with the house of his or her dreams.  Let's take a look.
317 Virginia Street, Key West
317 Virginia Street is located in the Bahama Village area of Key West. It is  a vacant and cleared lot which measures 25.25' X 86.92' or  2195 sq ft lot offered at $369,000. CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet.This lot is located a little over two blocks west of Duval Street and about three blocks east of the soon to be completed Truman Annex Waterfront Park. I think there will be a surge in demand for homes in the Bahama Village area soon after the park opens and the public sees how easy it will be to get to the park.
323 Angela Street, Key West
323 Angela Street has an existing 840 sq ft home plus loft situated on a 4,824 sq ft lot (48' X 100.5') offered for sale at $724,500. This house is located a little over one block west of Duval Street in Bahama Village. A new one and one-half story house is being built right now next door to the west.   CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet.
622 Mickens Lane Key West (vacant lot only)
622 Mickens Lane is a 27.5'  90' vacant lot offered for sale at $381,000. If it were purchased along with 624 Mickens Lane (below) the combined site would be a 4,500 sq ft renovation property located in the X-flood zone just a block and one-half off Duval Street. CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet.
624 Mickens Lane Key West
624 Mickens Lane has an existing 948 sq ft wood frame home sitting on a 90' X 23' lot which is offered for sale at $575,000. CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet.
903 Eaton Street, Key West
903 Eaton Street has an existing 761 sq ft non-historic concrete block house which can be taken down and a new house built on the 5,300 sq ft lot which measures 50' X 103'. This is the largest lot for sale in the Old Town area where a new house can be built. The photo only shows the front 1/2 of the lot. The existing house and even larger lot is located behind the wood fence. CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet. The existing house two bedroom one bath house would probably rent in excess of $2500 per month. A new owner might rent parking spaces in front to locals who do not have off street parking for $150 a month or more creating an additional $450 or more in rent.

26 Floral Avenue, Key West
 
Gulf of Mexico


26 Floral Avenue is located in the Key Haven addition to nearby Stock Island just five miles east from Duval Street. This is a 60' X 100' (6,000 sq ft) lot with seawall on a canal which leads to deep ocean water. This lot is nestled between other homes added to the area in the past fifteen years. Those homes are typically two story located over covered ground parking. The houses on Floral Avenue all have first and second floor views of the Gulf of Mexico across the street and water views of the canal at the rear. Owners in this part of town are most often young professionals as well as retired locals who moved here when Key Haven became an upscale bedroom community for locals displaced from Old Town. It's super easy to go out to the boat after a day at the office, grab a beer, and take the boat out for a couple of hours. CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet.

These are the active listings. One might assume there are many other large lots in the Old Town area that might become available in the future. I doubt it. Most of Old Town is tightly developed. Vacant lots and buildable lots are the exception to the norm. Scarcity creates value. I think an investor could buy any one of the above lots and sit on it for five to six years and probably double the value. 

If you are a buyer who wants to build a new house in the Old Town or nearby area please give me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, a phone call. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. Let me take you on a short tour of these particular properties and discuss the possibilities they offer to you. 









Tuesday, August 8, 2017

Key West - A True Story about Senior Living

Today's blog is a true story. All of my blogs (with a couple of exceptions like Bert and Ernie) are true. I want to make sure my readers know what I write is true.

This is a story that while I think the drama as it played out is unique, the problem itself is pretty universal as more and more senior adults are living longer and longer creating issues for their children who themselves are either in or are quickly approaching Golden Years. It is one of adult of how adult children manage the care of their aging adult parents and how and where they live out their adult senior years.

A few short years ago I was working with a woman I will call Shirley. Shirley lived in the Ft Lauderdale area. She and her husband had recently sold their business and had a nice nest egg for their retirement years. He suddenly passed and she found herself wanting to make more of her remaining years than just remembering the past. She discovered Key West and imagined how wonderful a life she could create here. The lure of Hemingway's old haunts and the prospect of new friends and new adventures caused her to look at the interenet and that is where she found me. She had the idea of buying a small place in Old Town, fixing it up, and then traveling back and forth to Ft Lauderdale where her mother lived.

Meanwhile Shirley hired a full time live-in helper to watch over her mother who was able to do many things for herself but who also had lapses where she forgot things.  For that reason, Shirley felt a need to be in Ft Lauderdale more of the time than down in Key West. She made frequent trips to Key West and made offers on a couple of fixer properties which never worked out. Then one day a very expensive bank owned property right in the heart of Old Town came on the market. I put it in my blog and sent her photos. She came down the next day and bought it. It cost a lot more than she planed to spend but she understood that by the time she went through a year's worth of renovation, she would end up spending about the same amount of money. She paid cash and hired a designer guy to do some custom work on the inside to make this old house into her new home. 
One day Shirley got a phone call from the live-in house attendant. Shirley's mother had wandered out of the house and got away. Shirley was very upset that the woman she trusted to take care of her mother had allowed this to happen. The live-in was let go.

A short time later Shirley picked her mother up to go out to lunch.  While they were dining, a truck went to Mom's house and packed her clothing, her bed and dresser, her clothes and photos, and so forth and took them to an assisted living facility in the area.  After lunch Shirley took her mother for a drive. As they approached the assisted living facility her mother exclaimed "What is this? What are you doing to me?" Shirley's mother was very upset. There were tears for loss of freedom and dread of the unknown. This was heart-breaking for Shirley.  But she knew it was best. They went inside and all of Mom's things were put away and the new room looked somewhat like the old room. Mom wasn't happy at first. But as the days and then weeks rolled on and as Mom got to making new friends, it worked out.

A couple of years ago Shirley came to one of my open houses. We hugged and talked about things. I asked about her mother and was told she had passed away. Her dementia got worse and then she passed. Shirley now spends much more time here. She has a new set of friends and is living the life she imagined but even more than she imagined.

I told Shirley to never ever invite me to lunch.


Wednesday, August 2, 2017

227 Julia Street, Key West, Florida


Just Listed, but not by me, 227 Julia Street, Key West. I had driven past this house before and actually parked next door to it a few times over the years  I assumed it was a very nice renovation of one of the original cottages that still exist in the area which is located about three blocks west of Duval Street and two blocks south of Truman Avenue. The original home first appeared on the 1892 Historic Sanborn Fire Map when it was then numbered 231 Julia Street. The street number changed to 227 Julia St when 1899 map was published.  The map maker identifies the change in number by placing the house number in parenthesis below the then current house number. This helps future searches to keep track of the changes in identifying the property in a time before computers and too much information.
The old map showed Julia Street being  located two blocks to the south of Division Street which is now known as Truman Avenue.  During my research about the Division Street name change I came across the "Autobiography of Stephen Moreno Whalton".  Whalton was born in 1872 and grew up just a few paces off Division Street which he said was previously known as Rocky Road. Mr. Whalton* further wrote:
"Another event in my life that I have never forgotten happened when I was about seven years old, at that time there were a very few houses on the Southeast side of our Truman Avenue, most of that part of the Island was a wilderness, my grandfather and my father raised quite a number of horses in the woods of Key West, and my grandfather gave me a horse and my father had him broken to harness and saddle, this was a stallion, and somewhat mean. The only time that I was put on his back, was on a Sunday morning, when one of my father’s hired men put me on him without a saddle, as soon as he got out of the yard, he started to run, and I was too small to stop him, there was a man coming up the street who stood with his arms open,but when my horse got near this man, he made a quick turn to go by him, and landed me on a flint rock, I recovered from that accident in about six weeks, but I never had a chance to get even with that horse, as my father sold him before I became old enough to handle him. This was the end of the events of my early childhood, which have remained fresh in my memory down through the years, due of course, to the fact, that they made a great impression on my mind at the time of happening."
Imagine a horse running wild down a dirt road and across the fields and "forest" of Key West. What a sight that must have been.  Today this same area is midpoint between all the tourist activity on upper Duval Street and the new Truman Waterfront Park which will link the entire waterfront area from Ft Zachary Taylor Beach and State Park to the Historic Seaport at the eastern edge of Old Town. 
The listing agent asked me if I would like to blog about the new listing. I did my research before I went there thinking that the house was a renovation of the old cottage. I dug into my old shoebox and found a taken of the original house located here in 1965. The house sat on the west one-half of the lot which measure 26' X 45.8' which explains the vacant space to the right.  In examining the Monroe County Property Appraiser records I learned the old house was razed and was replaced by the new 1270 sq ft house which was built all new in 2004. That explains why the current house and the two story addition at the rear looks so sharp. Wait till you see what is on the inside.
The dual front gates at the front retract to provide off-street parking, however, there isn't really that much need for that at the present time. Most of the homes in this area are single family homes. I do know that there has been an increase of vacation rentals in this area. In fact, this home has a good history of use as a monthly vacation rental. When you look at the rest of the photos, you will quickly see why people book this place.
Two sets of bi-fold doors close off the living room to create a second bedroom which has a custom Murphy bed surrounded by additional bookcases and three window seats. The library ladder provides access to an additional small sleeping area located over the bookcase. There is a full guest bath tucked in the corner. The front porch is more for show than actual use as an entry, but it sure "shows" well.
 The stairway is a work of art. I had to stop and take a look at how much detail the owner put into something so many others would might just put in a door to create some storage. Consider all of the design elements fit into the seven feet of or so of floor space. Of course there is the door for storage plus the shelves for displaying pottery, the wainscoting that wraps its way up the stairs to the master bedroom. There is abundant recessed light throughout the house which diminishes the need for table lamps.  Real wood floors give this new house a genuine old house feel. All too often new homes have ceramic or porcelain floors that trick the eye into seeing wood when the material used is not. The black iron hardware add a pop of color everywhere they are located. CLICK HERE to view more photos I took of this home.
The slanted roof gives the master bedroom and bath a genuine old house feel. Wainscoting wraps this room as well.  A chair rail seems to continue to wrap the bathroom where the wood wainscoting leaves off. Wherever you look, there is attention to detail. This home has an abundance of small things that add up to become so much! 
CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet on 227 Julia Street offered at $715,000. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to schedule a private showing. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

*CLICK HERE to read the  "Autobiography of Stephen Moreno Whalton". It's great reading if you love Key West. I promise.

Friday, July 28, 2017

718 Caroline Street, Key West


There are two new listings located 718 Caroline Street and 720 Caroline Street in Historic Seaport Area of Key West. I got a chance to see the interiors a couple of weeks ago before the listing agreement had been signed. I immediately recognized the building had been updated and expanded a few years ago, but I had no idea the building dated back to the beginning of the Twentieth Century.
I first searched the Historic Sanborn Fire Maps that date back to 1889 and successive editions. I found a building on this site on the 1889 map, but I could immediately tell it was not this building because the maps were precisely drawn to identify the size and location in case the building would be destroyed. It was not until the 1912 map that the current building appeared at the corner of Peacon Lane (previously known as Gruntbone Alley). Whereas the previous building was set back from Caroline Street and away from Gruntbone Alley, the 1912 building was located at the property line of both streets. That is the building that still exists today.  The Monroe County Property Appraiser dates the building to 1918.  I think I am correct and no matter if the date is off by a couple of years either way, it is still an old building.
1965
1970
I then dug into my old shoebox and found the top two photos which show the original building in 1965 and 1970. There is a notation on the 1965 photo stating the small building with awning projecting over sidewalk was "demolished" indicating that was done after the photo was taken. The next photo shows the building as it appeared in 1970. Note that both photos show the building is but one story tall. The aerial photo above was taken in 1999. I added a mark to show 718 Caroline Street as it exists today. You can immediately see the building was then two storys tall and has a widow's walk on the roof. I selected to add this photo to the blog because it also shows the Historic Seaport just a short 18 years ago before the massive renovation took place there. During the past four years Caroline Street was rebuilt as well to provide better access for the movement of people and vehicles in the area.
 The building as currently configured consists of two ground floor commercial units (not for sale) and two residential condominiums distinguished by different street numbers.  718 Caroline Street is a 1589 sq ft two bedroom two bath unit with incredible views to the north and the south.
The main living level is actually on the second floor of the building. Both units share the broad and sunny deck on this level. When you pass through the double front door opening you enter into a light filled living area with treetop views of nearby Peacon Lane.  That lane begins one block to the south at Eaton Street and ends at Caroline Street. Most people (including locals) do not know it exits. Almost all traffic will emanate from the few people who live on this lane and the few tourists who happen upon it by accident.
The smaller of the two bedrooms is located at the front of the building where it shares the balcony with 720 Caroline Street both of which have commanding views of Caroline Street. The historic seaport is located one block to the north. Pepe's Cafe is located one block to the east and Dante's is located two blocks further. Dante's has become favorite daytime hangout of locals and returning guests. They can swim and/or drink and dine all day long by the huge pool.
The master bedroom of 718 Caroline Street has a couple of views unlike others you'll probably experience elsewhere in Old Town. From the south third floor private deck you can view the rooftops  of the other homes on Peacon Lane.  This unit has the only access to the widow's walk atop the house. There you have a commanding view of the Caroline Street corridor and the historic seaport.
CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and to view more photos of 718 Caroline Street offered at $825,000.
720 Caroline Street has 1567 sq ft of living space on two floors. The open concept living area integrates nicely with the broad second floor sundeck. The smaller of the two bedrooms fronts onto the Caroline Street balcony. The master suite is on the second floor. It has expansive view of the southern skies. CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet for 720 Caroline Street offered at $825,000.
The commercial and residential condominiums share proportionately in the monthly condominium dues which cover all building insurance, building maintenance, and common area maintenance. 718 Caroline pays $861.90 and 720 Caroline pays $849.94.
These units are being offered separately, however, one buyer might prefer to buy both and claim a stake in the future of Old Town. This building has both a historic past and prominent presence.  Please contact me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to schedule a private showing. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.


Disclaimer

The information on this site is for discussion purposes only. Under no circumstances does this information constitute a recommendation to buy or sell securities, assets, real estate, or otherwise. Information has not been verified, is not guaranteed, and is subject to change.
Powered By Blogger

Counter



Free Counter

Key West

Key West
You could be here!

Blog Archive

Gary Thomas in a Nutshell