By Anne Geggis
An estate that fetched the heftiest sum ever paid for a Florida residence — and was bought by the world’s fifth-wealthiest person — likely will be getting two new buildings and losing another.
The Manalapan Town Commission unanimously agreed to allow the owner of 2000 S. Ocean Blvd. to proceed with plans to tear down a boathouse and build two, two-story structures — a 10,000-square-foot “guest house” and a studio of nearly 4,000 square feet. The two-parcel lot totals nearly 23 acres, including a 7-acre sanctuary known as Bird Island.
The property has been known as “Gemini” and the “Ziff estate” in the past.
The main house is a 52,396-square-foot structure — roughly 21,000 square feet of it under air — that dates back to the 1940s. The house is unique in Manalapan because it is situated on both sides of State Road A1A.
Three tunnels go under the road to connect parts of the house split by the road. It wouldn’t be allowed to be built today, said Matthew Scott, a lawyer with Greenspoon Marder LLP, representing the owner.
The main house’s position on both sides of the road triggers an automatic requirement that a variance from town development rules be sought any time that changes to the current setup are proposed, according to town officials. The plans also include a detailed inventory of the property’s trees and plans to relocate existing Copernicia palms.
“Our client purchased the property with an eye of being a good steward over the property, improving it,” Scott said. “And so this is a first step in that larger stewardship goal.”
The ocean-to-Intracoastal Waterway property is owned by Florida Realty LLC, according to records. The company, however, has the same California address as the Larry Ellison Foundation. Ellison is the founder and chief technology officer of the software giant Oracle.
Since 2022 when he bought the estate, Ellison, said to be worth some $142 billion, has advanced from eighth-wealthiest person in the world to fifth wealthiest, according to Forbes magazine.
The results of his upgrades to the property will be out of sight, Scott promised.
“The property section is below the grade of the road — something else that could never be done today,” Scott said.
As a result, Scott said, “nothing will be visible to the town or the neighborhood for that matter.”
No questions were asked of those representing the applicant and the variance was approved without any discussion among the commissioners.
The proposal now advances through the regular building approval process.
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