The riverfront home on a half-acre lot at 4551 Pebble Bay South offers the best of both worlds – past and present – with its Old Florida charm and modern technology.
The pecky cypress family room emanates that old Florida feeling, casual and rustic, while other aspects epitomize modern luxury. The whole house is fully automated – lighting, air conditioning/heating and audio/visual systems are integrated through simple-to-use controls on the homeowner’s iPhones or iPads.
“This is a tech-savvy home,” said Deena Dick of Norris & Company Real Estate, who has owned the house with her husband, Wes, since 2012. “I sometimes wonder if I left my garage door open or if I didn’t unplug the curling iron. The automated part is great – I can pull up the cameras of our house on my screen and check the house. I can open the garage and allow a neighbor in to let the dog out.”
“And with cameras, no one is sneaking in or out of my house,” said the mother of three teenage boys.
The house, built in 1973, has been extensively renovated in the past several years to update and upgrade throughout. It has 4 bedrooms, 3 full baths and 2 half-baths, and is listed for $1,850,000.
The private Pebble Bay South property has 165 lineal feet of river frontage, and the house has more than 4,000 square feet under air and almost 1,000 square feet of open and screened-in porches. With both upstairs and downstairs screened-in porches, the floor plan offers the best in indoor and outdoor living.
“When I’m at the chopping station in the kitchen, I can look out at the water, and into the other rooms,” said Deena. “I didn’t want to feel like I was stuck in the kitchen. I can entertain while doing things at the prep station.”
“I love the casual setup of the house,” she added, referring to the extensive outdoor and indoor living accommodations.
The house is one that embodies hospitality, with a design and flow that allow Deena and her husband to be gracious hosts. The bar in the family room offers a view of the water, and sliding doors open to the lanai. The swimming pool and a 100-foot-long dock on the Indian River are only a few steps away and there is a view of a spoil island.
There’s a new octagonal outdoor shower with rain shower and bench, a tiki hut with table, floating dock, underwater lighting, a new filet table and a custom dock box with rod holders.
The first floor screened-in porch was recently redone with a hand-stained cypress tongue and groove ceiling, new screen doors and automated Skeeter Beeter screens, along with a home theater with surround sound.
The 23-foot by 28-foot family room has a new tongue and groove ceiling, a pecky cypress and mahogany built-in entertainment center and shelves with custom lighting, coral stone surrounding the fireplace and an authentic ship light chandelier.
The 14-foot by 20-foot kitchen has a tongue and groove ceiling, custom backsplash, brand new island with butcher block and Jerusalem limestone tops and Sub-Zero under-counter refrigerator.
For more formal get-togethers, the spacious dining room and living room offer nice places to nestle for cocktails, dinner and conversation.
“It flows seamlessly when you entertain here,” Deena said. She and her husband enjoy hosting family and friends in their home, sometimes to watch college football. When their favorite college team is playing, they turn on three downstairs television sets with high performance audio effect.
“It feels like you’re in the stadium,” she said.
The garage has custom cabinetry and organizers with workbench, new non-slip flooring, a utility sink, built-in refrigerator and whole house electronics rack. It also features LED lighting.
The office contains custom closet built-ins and new hand-scraped walnut hardwood floors. There are two half baths on the main level, and a laundry area. Upstairs are four bedrooms including the owner’s suite, and three full baths.
The lifestyle the house affords and the home’s location are idyllic, says Deena.
Having moved from the Washington, D.C. area 4 years ago to settle in Vero Beach, she said: “We escaped the rat race, traffic and snow shoveling. We wanted our kids to grow up at the beach, to be able to skateboard to town to meet their friends.”
“The quality of life you are buying when you live in Florida…well, this house is the manifestation of us wanting to change up the direction.”
