Listing of the Day
Location: Miami Beach, Florida
Price: $5.6 million
This Art Deco estate designed by famed Miami architect duo John and Coulton Skinner was permitted for demolition, then saved and completely restored to its 1930s grandeur.
Michael Raynes, a developer whose company, R Investors, restores architecturally significant homes in Miami Beach, stepped in to save the Art Deco masterpiece in 2015 and then began a major restoration and modernization.
"It went through three years of restoration, with an addition, new windows, new electric, new plumbing, every possible upgrade," said listing agent Nancy Batchelor.
As part of the restoration, the design team working on the 1934 house "kept the best of the old and either copied the prior style or put in the high-end finishes that the consumer today is looking for," Ms. Batchelor said.
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Architectural details include original chevron-patterned front doors, a cantilevered open-shell staircase in the living room, fine vintage and custom lighting, hidden electrical outlets in the wood baseboards, hand-painted and lacquered doors and baseboards, large honed-coral stone floors on the first floor, and custom-stained wide-plank Spanish oak gray wood floors on the spiral staircase and second level.
The living room is flooded with natural light, with soaring French windows and a 24-foot ceiling. The second floor has 11-foot ceilings.
The entrance features a lush courtyard and a Parisian-style garden dotted with exotic specimens and a hexagonal fountain, as well as a stone drive, all conceived by landscape architect Fernando Wong.
The home has been outfitted with hand-selected furnishings, some of which can be purchased in a separate agreement. These include a rare pair of Jean Michel Frank beds from the Born estate in Argentina; Fontana Arte sconces from Max Ingrand; a Jansen mirror; Jacques Adnet leather arm chairs and an oak bar; an Alessandro Albrizzi periwinkle blue desk; lounge chairs designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar; and rare Stilnovo standing lamps.
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The home’s newly made custom beds, sofas and lounge chairs are also available for purchase.
"People want to step into perfection, and that’s what this house is all about," Ms. Batchelor said.
The opulent formal dining room, which features an adjoining butler’s pantry with a wine cooler, is accessed through a pair of elegant black ebonized doors with PE Guerin door knobs.
All of the bedrooms have custom walk-in closets, and all of the bathrooms have custom built-in vanities with honed marble plinth-style counters. The master bathroom has a spa-like feel with an extra-large Waterworks soaker tub and a Waterworks rainfall shower.
"This house is very well laid out," Ms. Batchelor said.
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Stats
The 4,860-square-foot house has four bedrooms, four full bathrooms and one partial bathroom. It sits on a 12,300-square-foot double lot.
Amenities
Amenities include a very private backyard with a natural-gas-heated pool and patio area, outdoor dining spaces, and an outdoor shower.
Design Pedigree
Natives of Cleveland, Ohio, (William) Coulton Skinner (1891-1963) and his brother John L. Skinner (1893-1972) came to Miami to work on George Merrick’s Coral Gables development, eventually designing 18 residences in the "Villages" section.
From 1927 to 1932, John Skinner served as the first head of the architecture department at the newly created University of Miami.
In Miami Beach in the 1930s, the Skinner brothers designed the Koulton Arms Apartments on 15th Street, the Barbizon Hotel on Ocean Drive, and the Riviera (Bentley) Hotel also on Ocean Drive.
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Neighborhood Notes
The Alton Road house is near the entrance of La Gorce Island and facing Poinciana Park, Ms. Batchelor said. It is just three minutes from La Gorce Country Club, 10 minutes from Bal Harbour and Bal Harbour Shops, and one block from the La Gorce Tot Lot.
"You’re three blocks from the actual beach," she added.
Agent: Nancy Batchelor, EWM Realty International
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