Demolition on tap for damaged Ibis Isle home

The Town Council has approved an emergency demolition order for a lakefront house that has fallen into disrepair on Ibis Isle.

Through their attorney, homeowners Bruce and Tamara Watkins said they were in favor of demolishing the house at 2252 Ibis Isle Road West.

Normal bureaucratic channels would have sent the demolition request to the Architectural Review Commission. Although the town prohibits demolitions between Dec. 1 and March 1, the Town Council can approve exceptions in emergency situations.

The council green-lighted the demolition, which had been endorsed by the town staff, at its regular meeting last week. The house, however, was still standing as of Wednesday, and it is unclear when it will be torn down. The Watkinses could not be reached for comment.

The couple paid seller Walter Jackson $950,000 for the house earlier this month, according to a deed dated Dec. 3 and recorded a day later by the Palm Beach County Clerk of Courts. The three-bedroom house was built in 1963 and has a little more than 3,500 square feet of living space, inside and out.

In March, the couple bought a property immediately south of the house for a recorded $1.5 million. Along with that vacant lot, their total lakefront property will measure a little more than four-fifths of an acre once the house is demolished, according to Palm Beach County property records.

The Watkinses also have owned a residence across the street at 2255 Ibis Isle Road since 2006. They listed that house, which was built in 1956 and measuring 3,179 square feet, as their mailing address on the deed filed earlier this month.

In a Nov. 20 memo to the council, Planning, Zoning and Building Director John S. Page had noted that an emergency situation exists warranting the immediate demolition of the home.

Pages memo cited reports by code-enforcement staff who had noted a pressing structural problem over the past several months.

A hole in the roof exists, causing significant water-related damage to the structural components, the memo said.

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Demolition on tap for damaged Ibis Isle home