“It is all about the view,” says Maria McKendrick when asked what makes her Mariners Village home special. “From the moment you wake up in the master bedroom you see the ocean. When you are having breakfast at the kitchen table, ironing your laundry, or keeping an eye on the kids in the pool, that view is always there.”
One of only 23 lots/homes in the gated Mariners Village development in Indian River Shores, the elegant 5-bedroom, 6.5-bath Mediterranean-style house enjoys the gorgeous sea views McKendrick mentions because it sits on a .64-acre oceanfront lot with a private boardwalk leading from the backyard to a peaceful, unspoiled beach. Palm trees, pelicans in flight and the Atlantic’s blue waves set a paradisiacal scene.
But it is not all about the view, actually.
The house has many other virtues as well, including a robust technology infrastructure that goes beyond Wi-Fi in every room to include what McKendrick calls “upwardly programmable” wiring and hookups that make the house “an IT fortress.”
McKendrick says there is more than four kilometers of commination wiring laid into the foundation, including CAT 5 wiring in every room. “The office is wired such that a company president can run his business from the house without any IT challenges, including doing extensive CAD design.”
Originally from Flint, the family was in the business of precision machine tool making and quality control instrumentation for the automotive business, and they brought the same level of attention to their Florida home when they built it in 1997 and remodeled extensively in 2010.
“Rutenberg built the house and one of the secretaries there told me we set a record for change orders and quality upgrades,” says McKendrick. “Every T was crossed and ever I dotted.”
Features include a highly durable, attractive, concrete barrel-tile roof, a beautifully tiled pool overlooking the ocean, Aqualink pool/spa controls, a private walkway over the dunes, intercom system, central vacuum system and private entry gate with keypad (in addition to the community gate on A1A).
The McKendricks built the house to the highest structural and storm-resistant standards, as befitting a direct oceanfront property on Florida’s central coast. “The foundation was constructed in the most solid fashion that the construction sciences can provide a home buyer,” says McKendrick, with 64 steel reinforced concrete pilings 18 inches in diameter that go down 30 feet to marl. “The pilings are tied to the slab, giving the foundation the strength of a [heavily engineered structure such as a] bridge that will not wash away in a strong storm.”
“It is a very well-built house, and a very large house,” says Sally Woods, a Realtor with Dale Sorensen Real Estate, who listed the 5-bedroom, 6.5-bath house for $3,199,000. [SQUARE FOOTAGE]
“It is a great deal at that price, when you look at what you are getting for the money,” says Woods. “It is the largest of the oceanfront homes on the market in Vero in the $3-million price range.”
“All of the bedrooms are suites and there is a separate guest suite with a living room, bathroom, kitchenette, laundry room and bedroom that has a separate entrance,” says Sally Woods’ husband John Woods, who works with her. “We see the ideal buyers as someone with a large family and either live-in help or extended family living with them.”
Whoever buys the home will be getting a grand and elegant villa that would be perfectly in place overlooking the Cote d’ Azure and that also fits in perfectly in its exclusive neighborhood on Vero’s subtropical barrier island.
Passing through the private gate and going up the brick-paved driveway, a visitor enters a two-story rotunda-style foyer overlooked by a charming balcony. To the right is a large office, to the left a convenient powder room.
Straight ahead is a large formal living room with a double-sided fireplace shared with the office and a coffered ceiling. Beyond the living room is the dining room overlooking the pool patio and ocean. To the left of the dining room is a high-end open-concept kitchen that flows into an oversize, oceanfront family room.
Pocket sliding glass doors and windows with mitered glass corners let in floods of light and make the most of the Atlantic views. There is a cabana bath off of the family room that opens onto the patio and the pool, where young children might be playing is visible from the kitchen, family room, dining room and living room.
There is one guest suite on the first floor and four more suites, including a huge oceanfront master and the separate servants or mother-in-law quarters on the second floor.
First level floors are marble, second level floors a rich Brazilian walnut. There are coffered and tray ceilings, extensive crown molding, built-ins, glass block windows in some locations and many other fine architectural details.
And then there is the home’sstrategic location in the heart of Indian River Shores, named the safest city in Florida in 2014.
Mariner Village is close to the Village Shops and all city services, with city hall and the post office close at hand. At the same time, it is only a mile or two from the beachfront shopping and dinging district and the barber bridge to the mainland and Miracle Mile shopping.
“I loved living in Vero and growing up in our house,” says Anastasia McKendrick, who moved to Florida with her parents when she was in grade school and later attended St. Edward’s middle school. “I loved being barefoot and not have to worry about wearing shoes . . . and eating outside.”
“It was a very safe, private environment. My sisters and I rode our bikes around the neighborhood and walked to stores. The neighbors were always great, very welcoming. Having our own ‘private’ beach was fantastic. As young girls we felt very comfortable, not having unwanted eyes on us.”
“Indian River Shores is a wonderful place to raise a young family and I always felt secure when I had my girls in school there and my Husband would commute from Michigan on weekends in his” Piper Malibu aircraft.
“I hold our triple-trained Public safety officers – Police, Fire, & EMS – in the highest esteem as it afforded me great peace of mind knowing [they were nearby].”
And then there is the home’s strategic location in the heart of Indian River Shores, named the safest city in Florida in 2014.
Mariner Village is close to the Village Shops and all city services, with city hall and the post office close at hand. At the same time, it is only a mile or two from the beachfront shopping and dinging district and the barber bridge to the mainland and Miracle Mile shopping.
“I loved living in Vero and growing up in our house,” says Anastasia McKendrick, who moved to Florida with her parents when she was in grade school and later attended St. Edward’s middle school. “I loved being barefoot and not have to worry about wearing shoes . . . and eating outside.”
“It was a very safe, private environment. My sisters and I rode our bikes around the neighborhood and walked to stores. The neighbors were always great, very welcoming. Having our own ‘private’ beach was fantastic. As young girls we felt very comfortable, not having unwanted eyes on us.”
“Indian River Shores is a wonderful place to raise a young family and I always felt secure when I had my girls in school there and my Husband would commute from Michigan on weekends in his” Piper Malibu aircraft.
“I hold our triple-trained Public safety officers – Police, Fire, & EMS – in the highest esteem as it afforded me great peace of mind knowing [they were nearby].”
Ultimate power couple. Another reason to be pleased. Also says process great.
Vital Statistics
111 Mariner Beach Lane
Subdivision: Mariner village
Year built: 1997; extensively remodeled and enlarged in 2010
Architectural style: Mediterranean
Lot size: .64 acres with 90 lineal feet of ocean frontage
Home size: 5,710 square feet under air; 7,673 square feet under roof
Bedrooms: 5
Bathrooms: 6 full baths, 1 half bath
Garage: attached 3-car garage
Views: Wide, unobstructed ocean and beach views
Additional features: Swimming pool, spa, two-story foyer, private gate, private dune walk-over, brick paver driveway, marble and hardwood floors, coffered and tray ceilings, built-in vacuum system, extensive built in hardwiring for technology functions
Listing agency: Dale Sorensen Real Estate
Listing Agent: Sally Woods
Listing price: $3,199,000
