Not the Weekend by the Ocean They Were Expecting - Key West Behind Iron Bars

The two above photos of Sunset Marina were taken about twelve years apart. The top photo shows the Monroe County Jail which was opened in 1994.  This was about four or five years before the Key West Golf Club Community was developed. Six years later the Sunset Marina was built. Neither were attracted the location because of the jail but despite of it and its neighbor to north, Mt. Trashmore, the long time landfill. It was about this that the landfill was decommissioned and the sky high pile of trash was covered with soil and protective membrane and the planted to avoid erosion.  It is this jail where the wayward spend a day or too many if they disobey the law. Some came here to stay a few days, some came to start a new life, some may leave here to spend more time behind iron bars as guest of the State of Florida. .

All of these photos were taken during the booking process at the Monroe County Jail. All of these people are presumed innocent. I saved some of these photos because many people were bandaged for what seemed to me to be minor charges like "open container" violation. I see tourists walking the streets of Key West everyday with drinks in hand. They do not get arrested. Many were arrested for violating probation or failure to appear. One person was arrested for child molestation and another for murder. You can't tell by looking.

Remember Sergeant Phil Esterhaus would tell the policemen "Let's be careful out there"? I say the same thing to those who come to Key West. 

Key West Real Estate Throwback Thursday - No 27

from January 26,  2009

The Road to Recovery 

   I've mentioned many times that I grew up in one of Denver's suburbs in the 1950's. Life was much slower way back then. I don't have any access to old family photos of driving through the Colorado Rockies in the 1950's. The photo of the antique car isn't back in the 1950's. But it is illustrative of what our lives would be like if Interstate 70 had not been built. 

During the summers of my youth my parents and I would drive up to the mountains to go fishing. We would either go over Berthoud Pass toward Grand Lake, Loveland Pass toward what is now Vail (Vail did not even exist then), or over Monarch Pass toward Gunnison. There were no interstate highways. There were very few four lane roads for that matter. There wasn't any need for four lanes because travel over the Rockies took so long, especially on a cold and snowy day. There was some skiing atop each of the passes mentioned and in small towns like Aspen (back then Aspen was just a small town without any big ambitions). So there was no compelling reason to get anywhere very quickly. 

The interstate highway started to get built in Denver in the 1950's. But it would take more than four decades to complete the Interstate 25 and Interstate 70 and the loops that encircle Denver and the suburbs. But the major marvel was the construction of Interstate 70 through the Colorado Rockies. And I specifically refer to the construction of the Eisenhower Tunnel and later the elevated roadway through the Glenwood Canyon, one of Nature's Wonders. When I was a kid and cars regularly overheated trying to cross the great Colorado passes. It would take hours and hours to get from Denver to any place on the other side (western side) of the Continental Divide. And like I said, there wasn't any particular place to go back then because we didn't have ski resorts and condominiums and golf courses in the mountains. Oops! Maybe the interstate highway wasn't' such a good thing after all. 

What once took so much time now takes very little. The drive between Denver and the western slope now takes a little about three hours. And the life and vitality of the Colorado economy owes so much to that divided highway. When I was going to law school in the early 1970's the construction of the Eisenhower Tunnel was in full bore so to speak. That construction project was massive and it created jobs throughout the Denver area and on the western slope as well. Two crews worked simultaneously to bore the holes that would one day unite the state like never before and that would make travel so easy. 

Nobody in the 1950's could have imagined owning a condo in Vail Colorado where they could ski in the winter and play golf in the summer. But that is just what happened. Little towns like Breckenridge, Silverthorne, and even Aspen experienced tremendous growth in terms of size and property appreciation. And I can tell you that the growth has been sustained over the past thirty years. 

I am not afraid of public works projects to help jump start our failing economy. The TVA changed much of the South after the Depression. The Eisenhower Tunnel helped keep Denver from utter ruin during the Recession of the mid 1970's. Perhaps the Economic Stimulus Package that is working its way through Congress will create a project or two that can have as dramatic an effect on our economy and way of life. We won't know if the package gets derailed and money is spent instead on tax rebates. I am not afraid of government spending to help create jobs. Jobs keep real people working. The dollars get passed around and around and around. When people work, they spend money. And when they spend money that creates more opportunities for everyone. 

July 1, 2021 update

It's kind of funny that we are going through a similar stimulus package debate twelve years later.  Obama got much of what he wanted passed. Not all. I know Key West got its fair share of the money and put the funds to good use installing needed storm drainage systems. 

How Safe is Anything?

I watched in horror last week at the collapse of the Champlain Tower in Surfside, Florida last week and predicted the outcome of ultimate loss of life. I saw no way for any survivors. Not in that rubble. As the days have now become a week it will become a month of weeks and then more. Bodies will be discovered and identified. Services will be held. The cameras and incessant local news coverage will cease. We will forget and focus on the next tragedy - a raging fire in California or a hurricane in the Caribbean. There is always something awful.

I was standing on the balcony of a three or four story hotel in Corpus Christie forty some years ago with Dan, a fellow attorney who worked in the same bank. We were there on a workout of a problem loan. I was leaning against the corner when Dan yelled at me to back off that. He said something about not knowing what lazy Bozo who installed it. I thought about and immediately understood exactly what he meant. 

I think the collective "we" or "us" assume that the things we routinely use are safe. If that were really trued there would not be so many litigation attorneys. Architects plan buildings. Builders build them. Plumbers, electricians, welders, and tradesmen of all type contribute to the process. Inspectors inspect and presumably pass on the completed project. 

In some instances, usually homes but maybe small apartment buildings or commercial spaces, a homeowner or handyman may make an addition that did not go through formal building approval and inspection process. Or maybe the owner just replaced something that stopped working. Maybe the owner had good intentions or maybe he just wanted to save a bit of money or even just save time. 

If a guy with a drink in hand leaned against that balcony which failed and the guy fell four floors and hit his head that exploded like a cantaloupe who is to blame? Him for being drunk and leaning? The hotel management company, members of the board of directors, the building manager, or the inspector for not doing his job correctly? The general contractor? The guy who screwed the bolts in place. The company who manufactured the bolts? 

Yesterday afternoon I started envision all of the finger pointing and litigation that will arise as a result of tower collapse. This won't get settled in my lifetime. The lawsuits will be endless.

Key West Beach Club Penthouse - Transient Liscensed

 

Just Listed by Preferred Properties Key West 1500 Atlantic Blvd Unit 408, Key West, Florida. This penthouse 2,038 square foot unit has a valuable Transient License which means it may be rented on a weekly basis every week throughout the year. It has spectacular view of the Atlantic Ocean from the moment you enter this spacious two level unit. The listing broker describes the unit this way:

"This oceanfront penthouse at The Key West Beach Club includes a rare and valuable Transient License. It also has space for everyone with four bedrooms, three baths and a large private covered oceanfront terrace. The living room has a dramatic two story ceiling and opens to the terrace. The master suite and a guest suite are on the main floor plus two more guest bedrooms and a full bath upstairs. The kitchen opens to the dining room and living room and features water views as well. The Beach Club is a premier property in Key West and offers a gated entry, covered assigned parking, two pools, tennis, an outdoor barbecue and kitchen with a lounge area. This property has been a successful vacation rental for many years and offers easy carefree living on the Atlantic Ocean."

There are two bedrooms on the main level including the master suite which shares the ocean view deck. The upper level has window views looking north and west to Old Town where you can often see some of the larger cruise ships when in port. The third bedroom and bath are located on this level.

The Beach Club condos are unique in Key West as each one has an ocean front view. This unit is one of just a few that have transient licenses. And it is the only transient licensed penthouse.

There are ocean front pools on either end of the complex plus a tennis court on the far left side of the property. There is a small gym located in the middle. Both buildings have under building parking and storage. And there is abundant guest parking in the front. 

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet on 1500 Atlantic Blvd Unit 408 and 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. If you are looking to make money in Key West real estate, this may be the property you have been waiting for.