317 Angela Street, Key West - A New House in Old Town

Just listed, but not by me, 317 Angela Street, Key West. This is a brand new stick built house located in the Historic District. Locals and frequent visitors to Key West know that our old houses are protected and may not be torn down to build new houses. The explanation as to how this house came to be built is simple - the prior house (see the black and white photo below taken in 1965) was torn down in 2008 when the structure was declared "unsafe" by the city. The lot sat vacant for several years and was eventually purchased by the current owner in 2015.  The new house is an homage to what used to be on the corner of Mickens Lane and Angela Street. The new structure looks like many of the historic homes which expanded over the years with new buildings added to the rear or second floor additions over earlier one-story houses. This house has each of these elements.

The above series of photos show the original house, the vacant lot, the house framed in, and the newly 2622 square foot five bedroom five baths plus two additional half baths home. The lot measures 42' wide along Angela Street and runs 100.5' deep along Mickens Lane. The owners worked around the old trees on the front and side. Though new, this house comfortably into the lot's  location and looks like it has sat there for decades.

Long time readers of my blog know a recurring theme I write about upon entering new homes for the first time. My eyes are trained to look through whatever is going on inside and seek the rear view. Was I ever amazed in this place. Wow! Who would have thought what looks to be an assemblage of historic additions would have a great room of dramatic proportion? Then I saw something I had not seen in Key West before - a ceiling suspended in air where two right angles met exposing the pool and outdoor dining area. The chef's kitchen was to my right. Though stylish in every aspect, it warranted only a moment's notice as I walked out to the terrace to look up and see how this assemblage of things worked and kept from crashing down. This was genius.

There are two bedrooms on the first floor located on either side of the central hallway. Each has a private bath as do each of the three upstairs bedrooms. Because of this location just one and one-half blocks from Duval Street and a hop-stick-and-a-jump from Ft Zachary Taylor State Beach and Park, I think this house was designed with monthly vacation rental in mind to house large family groups. I toured the second floor bedrooms with a fellow agent who I several inches taller than I at which time I remarked that tall men could actually live in a house like this.  So many of the actual historic homes in Old Town have small bedrooms and low ceilings and result in a lot of make-do efforts to squeeze in make a big man squish a bit to fit inside a diminutive house. That's not going to be necessary at this house where the rooms are large and tall to accommodate all.

The first floor front bedrooms shows the design elements carried forth in the others upstairs. A faux old wall is in every room and contrasts to the bright white walls and ceiling with tie-collars that accentuate the height and add to the drama of the space. Each bedroom has an en-suite and closet, a feature not found in a lot of actual conch cottages. You won't notice it until you actually go to this house, but the design wizards at city hall like to pinch for accuracy as much as possible so they made the builder maintain the floor level height of the original house but allows the builder to step down one step to the main living level. This adds to the sense of the houses having been built or added onto in phases.

The master suite is remarkable for many reasons beyond its size. There is, of course, the large master bath and double door walk-in closet with a lot of built in storage.  This room in particular looks like a gathering place of young siblings while being with the parents on extended vacations. Or perhaps a place for nanny to govern while the parents are away. The suite shuts off from the rest of the rest if the house to give the parents ultimate solace when required.

In real life the friends and family will spend most time in the living areas - indoor and outdoor.  Those big glass walls will inevitably disappear into the walls as the occupants use this well designed space for the purposes intended. There is necessary shade, there a spaces to sun, there is space to frolic in the pool, and there is a place to tinkle near but not in the pool.

If you are not familiar with this location, you are probably well aware of The Green Parrot which is located one half block west and one half block north. The new Truman Waterfront Park and Amphitheater is located three blocks west of the Green Parrot. Ft Zach Taylor Beach is a short stroll away. Duval Street is one block east of 317 Angela where you can walk to the Atlantic Ocean or the Gulf of Mexico in about 30 minutes in either direction. You'll probably never make, however, because there is always something exciting go on Duval Street.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet for 317 Angela Street offered for sale at $2.300,000. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to schedule a private showing of this newly built home. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

1106 Georgia Street, Key West - The Golden Heron House

People from all over the world come to Key West for many reasons including its old homes and buildings. They love to walk and bike around various neighborhoods where they can see homes from a different era most of which have been restored and preserved and some which desperately need help. Many of these visitors dream about owning a place in Key West. The new listing at 1106 Georgia Street might just be that place for someone reading today's blog.

I dug into my old shoebox and found the black and white aerial photo taken in 1918 which I added an arrow identifying the location of 1106 Georgia Street. Today the large parcel of vacant ground is Bayview Park,  The broad street under the text was then known as Division Street. Today it is Truman Avenue. Much has changed in the hundred years since that photo was taken. The one time grocery at the corner of Georgia and Virginia Street is now a house. And it is now offered for sale at $1,639,000.

Among the striking features of this building is the wrap-around awning which extends out over the public sidewalk - note the dotted yellowish line framing the lot. I also found the black and white photo of the building in 1965. Both the exterior and interior of this property were used as sets in The Rose Tattoo movie filmed in Key West in 1955.  The main floor was a grocery (see also the Sanborn Map above which shows the building as a grocery). The Georgia Street awning was partially enclosed to make the space more private and provides a comfy sitting place to watch the comings and goings in the neighborhood. Tennessee Williams, the author of The Rose Tattoo, lived a couple of blocks to the south and east. This was his neighborhood.

Etched glass French doors open into this one-of-a-kind home with open-air living room (immediately above) located off the main entry. The 2587 sq ft home has five bedrooms, three and one-half baths, two kitchens, and a grotto like pool.  This place is just too cool for words. It has a history of being used as a monthly vacation rental. In fact, a customer of mine has stayed there before. His family loved it.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and to view the striking listing photos of 1106 Georgia Street. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to set up a private showing. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. This home will be on Open House Sunday November 18 from 12 to 3. Drop by and tell the Karen Lane, the listing Realtor, that you read about the property my blog. She would love to have you take a look.

My logo is an image of Tennessee Williams home on nearby Duncan Street. Williams wrote The Rose Tattoo. This is a neat neighborhood filled with interesting buildings and stories.

923 Fleming Street, Key West - Investment Property with Renovation Potential

Not all that much has changed to the house at 923 Fleming Street, Key West during the 52 year time period between 1965 when the black and white photo was taken and 2017 when the color photo was made. The building is a modified Greek Revival which locals refer to as a "Conch House". This just happens to be extra large.  I checked the historic Sanborn Fire Maps and found a much smaller building on this site as early as the 1889 map.  The 1912 Sanborn map shows the side addition and a long more narrow addition at the rear. The 1912 map shows the front porch extending out onto Fleming Street which was noted as being "brick paved". Some of the most beautiful homes in Key West were and still are located on Fleming Street. The listing Realtor describes 923 Fleming St this way:

"Unparalleled 5 bedroom, 4 bathroom, 2,788 square foot, two story home on a 4,500 square foot lot with a gorgeous lagoon style pool and parking. It has three legal units but could easily be converted into a spacious single family home in the perfect Old Town location. The poolside apartment could become a large one or two bedroom guest cottage and the other apartment could become a downstairs master suite. It is beautiful as-is, yet lends itself to capturing your dreams of creating your personal paradise in the heart of Old Town Key West. Your outdoor options include some of the best porches in town and lush landscaping surrounding a beautiful heated lagoon pool. Off-street parking adds to the convenience, but from this location, you can walk almost anywhere. Once inside, your indoor living is framed by Dade County Pine, a fully renovated kitchen featuring exquisite granite counter-tops and hand-crafted Hansel and Bringle cabinets and an extraordinary number of rooms upstairs and down."

The listing Realtor shows the square footage as 2788 sq ft. This is one very large house with two stories of exterior porches (not calculated in the interior square footage). There is also a small cottage at the left rear. The lot measures 45' X 100'. There is a narrow walking lane adjacent to the east property line which is access to a house located at the rear of 923 Fleming but which is not a part of this property.

I saw this property a few days ago on Realtor caravan - a monthly tour or new listings in the Old Town and Casa Marina Areas. I instantly felt at home, but I had never lived here. In 1993 I purchased a similarly large property on Eaton Street. It had been a 13 room guest house, but was closed for two years after it had been foreclosed upon. I was new to Key West and although I had been in a few big houses on various trips to Key West, I really did not appreciate the value of these big old houses nor the value of good location. I do now. Let me share my thoughts. 
1.  This is a big and well built property. It has been well maintained. The photo below shows us that much of the original character has not been mess around with. The metal louvers are still being used. A new owner might want to install new windows, but a purist might prefer to keep the old character in tact.
2.  The house sits right at the city property line. In fact the Sanborn Map suggests that the easternmost porch may extend out onto the public right of way. This fact and the knowledge the lot is 100 feet deep tells the back yard is very large. We can see the pool in the photo, but it is the size of the yard and the potential it offers to a new owner that is the dominant fact.
3.  It has been my experience that a single family residence in a location like this would be more valuable over time than a multi-family. But a multi-family offers a new owner income and different ways to use the property until such time as an owner wants to convert it into a single family residence. The existing apartments are very nice and should command high rents because of their condition and this great location. The photos show the property when fully occupied. The front main floor unit is the only space occupied so a new owner could move in and occupy any of the other spaces and rent the other.
4.  The attic has been updated and offers additional living space that may not be included in the total square footage of the building. This is an amazing space that offers a lot of possibilities.
5.  I usually tell buyers to live in a home for six months or longer before deciding how to change it. Many of our old homes are too small and buyers try to figure out how to create more living or storage space. This place is the opposite. It's pretty big, maybe too big for most buyers. But that size gives a buyer with money and vision opportunities that less wealthy and maybe less visionary folk cannot achieve. 

The second floor front porch wraps around the front of the house to the west. It is a nice place to sit and people watch all year long. Around 5:30 PM on the last Friday in each October that space will be gold as it offers prime time viewing of the People's Parade during Fantasy Fest. Thousands of revelers will pass this location and many will be deliriously jealous of whoever owns this home. I am not suggesting that a new owner convert this so a single family home and rent it as a monthly vacation rental, but if you did the place should be very successful because of the size of the house, number of bedrooms and bathrooms it could have, the awesome pool and garden area, and the perfect location close to everywhere but far enough away from the hoopla. And, oh yes, the proximity to the other very valuable homes in the same block.

I sold two of the larger homes across the street a few years ago. 923 Fleming Street looks mighty pretty from the front porch of 914 Fleming Street. CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and all listing photos. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to schedule a private showing of this property. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.