Albert and Carol Derenzo live in a spacious, custom-built riverfront house with beautiful interior finishes, including Brazilian cherry hardwood floors, soaring ceilings and a gourmet kitchen, but Al says his favorite thing about the home is its setting in the serene Orchid Isle Estates neighborhood.
“The peaceful surroundings are No. 1,” he says. “Every morning you wake up to the quiet and see the water and ocean birds out there – that kind of makes you feel wonderful. The back of the house faces west and the sunsets are absolutely beautiful. My wife loves nature and for about the first two years, every sunset was captured in a photo!
“We really like the neighbors. They are friendly, but keep to themselves for the most part. We have neighborhood social events from time to time, but everyone is busy. We manage our own community, and the elected officers do a really good job. Our association dues are only $1,100 a year.”
The 300-acre subdivision has only about 60 home sites, most built on, and much of the surrounding land is preserve, adding to the peaceful, bucolic ambiance.
Fishing is good off the home’s dock and twice a year the Derenzos are treated to spectacular displays of white pelicans that land in the estuary during their fall and spring migrations.
The magnificent birds spend summers in inland lakes in Montana and other northern states and come south around Thanksgiving to pass the winter in warmer climes, gliding on nine-foot wide wings, the second-widest wingspan of any North American bird after California condors.
“It is a great place for kayaking, canoeing and stand-up paddle-boards,” says Al Derenzo. “There are little islands out there you can paddle between, reaching up and pulling yourself through with branches, like going through a tunnel. There is a good supply of redfish and snook and the porpoises spend a lot of time back there.”
“When you look out the back, all you see is water and the unspoiled islands,” says Sally Daley of Daley & Company Real Estate, who is the listing agent for the 4-bedroom, 4.5-bath, 4,264-square-foot home. You feel like you’re a million miles away from everything, yet the reality of it is, you are close to beaches with life guards and only a short drive from all the shops, restaurants and services in Vero’s famed Ocean Drive retail village.”
The two-story, Old Florida-style house built in 2006 by Palm Coast Development sits perfectly on its half-acre lot, appearing as an almost organic element in the landscape. Very islandy with metal roof, bright blue shutters and railed balconies, it is also extremely elegant with extensive millwork, Brazilian cherry and travertine floors, a two-story ceiling in the living room, and inverted hip and coffered ceilings in some other rooms.
Derenzo says Bob McNally, owner of Palm Coast Development, “really pays attention to detail. We were pleasantly surprised by all the millwork when we moved in and all the extra touches, like the fluted columns and built-ins. We also love the design. Every inch is useable, and the quality is just terrific.”
A visitor approaches the house by turning off Wabasso Beach Road (CR-510) at the western end of the bridge that arches over the Intracoastal Waterway, always scenic with cruising sailboats and yachts, and taking a short drive down Live Oak Drive past the Environmental Learning Center. Beyond a gate that controls access to Orchid Isle Estates, Live Oak turns into Seacrest Drive and, shortly, 8585 comes up on the right.
The paver driveway is flanked by stately palms. A three-car garage encloses one side of the motor court and a covered veranda leads to the mahogany louvered double-entry doors.
Beyond the doors is a traditional foyer with a den/office on the right and the beautiful main staircase on the left. Adjacent to the staircase is an elevator convenient for those who do not want to climb stairs or who are lugging heavy suitcases.
Straight ahead is the two-story living room, with a fireplace, built-ins and fantastic water views. To the right of living room is a full bathroom that serves as a powder room and a cabana bath, with a second door leading out onto the back veranda, and then the master suite. The suite includes a 21-foot by 15-foot bedroom with a bay window, coffered ceiling and door leading out to the lanai and pool, two walk-in closets and a lavish master bathroom with double vanities, a jetted soaking tub and an oversize doorless stone shower.
On the other side of the living room is an open-concept gourmet kitchen that flows into a 15-foot by 20-foot family or dining room with an inverted hip ceiling and another bay window looking out at the lagoon. This room, too, has access to the lanai and pool.
In front of the kitchen is a huge walk-in pantry with a second refrigerator, a large laundry room, a half-bath and the entrance to the 3-car garage. Above the garage is a dehumidified storage room, accessed by a staircase instead of a rickety pull-down ladder.
“The house has great storage,” says Daley.
Upstairs are three guest or children’s rooms, one or more of which could be used as a yoga or art studio, exercise room or office.
One of the bedrooms is en suite with a full bath and two large closets. The other two bedrooms share a well-designed Jack and Jill bath, which has vanities on either side and doors closing off the bathing area for privacy so two people can use the bathroom at the same time.
The two bedrooms in back open onto a wide terrace that overlooks the pool area and miles of lagoon.
“The view from that second-floor terrace is a knockout,” Daley says.
The second floor also has water views from the front. Double doors open off a central loft or foyer space onto a front balcony that looks across the road and property opposite at the Intracoastal Waterway.
The upstairs hallway, railed on one side, overlooks the living room, adding some fun and drama to the space.
Downstairs the living room, master bedroom and family room all open out onto a gracious outdoor living room with a summer kitchen and lots of seating areas. Beyond that veranda is the large pool with spa and special features such as a shallow “beach” area where small children can splash and seats built into the sides so a person can sit immersed in the sparkling blue water.
The pool area and veranda are screened to keep out any pesky mosquitos or other pests. Beyond the pool, a boardwalk leads through the mangroves to the home’s dock, where there is space to keep a good-size, shallow-draft boat.
“When the grandkids visit, we don’t have to take them anyplace else,” says Derenzo. “Between the pool and the dock, they stay busy.”
The Derenzos are selling the house to downsize a little bit.
“We just closed on a lot in River Club last week,” says Al Derenzo. “The new house will be about 3,000 square feet compared to about 4,300 here and it will all be on one level. Sally was our realtor on the deal and Bob McNally will be building the house.
“We have been impressed by Bob’s integrity as well as the quality of his design and building work. There were a few little things that needed to be taken care of in this house after we were here a few years and he sent people right out to take care of them.”
Daley says Derenzo’s home on Seacrest is a great bargain at the offering price of $1,699,000. “That is way below replacement cost. It would cost much more than that to build this house today, so someone is going to get a great house at a great price.”
