ABOVE: Don Brown loves the beach life and the County Pocket he calls home. BELOW RIGHT: His custom-designed home reminds some of an inverted pyramid. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
If you meander through the neighborhood east of State Road A1A between Briny Breezes and Gulfstream Park, you’ll find narrow streets with bungalows and surfer shacks that comprise the County Pocket. You can almost hear Jimmy Buffett strumming his six-string. Amid the relaxed residents in their swimsuits and flip-flops are at least a handful of success stories. Among them is Don Brown, who bought his first property there in 1979.
“I grew up surfing Lake Worth,” said Brown, 67. “To live on the beach was a dream come true. Surfing, sailing Hobie cats, and catching lobsters is what I enjoy best about the pocket.
“I have been here 43 years now and made a lot of very close friends. There is no other place in Palm Beach County like the pocket. With the narrow roads and tiny lots the county engineers and zoning officials don’t know what to do with us.”
Brown learned how to deal with people while working at his father’s clothing store in Lake Worth and later, West Palm Beach, and went into the real estate business after earning a degree in history from Florida State.
He opened his real estate firm, Southdale Properties, in 1995, and like others in that business struggled through some lean years in the 2000s.
“I was leveraged to the hilt, but worked my way through it and now I’m proud to say I’ve been debt-free for six years,” Brown said.
After living next door to what was his empty lot for nearly 20 years, he built his three-story dwelling in 2009.
“It was a non-conforming lot, too narrow, so I had to get a waiver from the county to build it,” he said. “It’s a townhouse concept and 35 feet high, so I can see the water from the top floor.
“It attracts a lot of attention. If I’m out in the driveway washing my car at least two or three people will stop and ask about it in that short time.”
It remains a work in progress; he and fiancée Donna Kirby spend most of their time in a studio over the garage while work continues.
Brown played all the team sports as a kid but turned to golf and surfing as he got older and still enjoys both: golf as a member of the Lost City Club at Atlantis and surfing in what amounts to his backyard.
“The good thing about both is being self-employed,” he said. “I play golf every day and if the surf is up I can disappear for a couple of hours and nobody notices.”
— Brian Biggane
Q: Where did you grow up and go to school? How do you think that has influenced you?
A: I was born and raised in Lake Worth. I grew up in College Park, which is in the northeast end of town bordering West Palm Beach, and went to Lake Worth High School, graduating in 1974, and then on to Florida State, where I got a degree in history.
My father started a men’s clothing store called Brownie’s Men’s Shop in 1946. I excelled in school, but working in the family business meeting hundreds of customers taught me about customer service. The 1960s and ’70s in Palm Beach County were special since it was still a small-town feel. When I was in high school, I-95 was not yet completed in Lake Worth.
My father sold the location in downtown Lake Worth and moved the store to West Palm Beach. As a young boy and teenager, I worked in the store, and after my father passed away when I was 16 I helped my mother run it.
Q: What professions have you worked in? What professional accomplishments are you most proud of?
A: I have always been self-employed. From paper boy and mowing lawns as a kid to eventually running the family business. When we closed the store in 1989, I opened a real estate office because I didn’t want to go and get a real job. Real estate is a profession, not a job. I parlayed the people skills I learned as a kid into a successful real estate business.
I am most proud of the idea that I never sold out to a big company and remained independent. We have more than 40 agents in the office and a good reputation in the local market. Southdale Properties is in Lake Worth two blocks from where I was born.
Q: What advice do you have for a young person seeking a career today?
A: Figure out how to go to college. When you finish high school, your brain is ready to learn, and four years is enough time to figure out what you really want to do.
Q: How did you choose to make your home in the County Pocket?
A: When I got out of college, I bought my first home in Lake Worth with a vacant lot next door. I built a duplex. My brother came home for vacation and saw an ad in the paper for a house in the pocket. My brother and I partnered up to purchase the property and in a few years he wanted to sell his half, so I figured out how to buy him out. During that time, we bought the two lots next door; I sold the back one to my friend Mark Foley and gave all the money to my brother, keeping the front lot for myself. That is where I live today. It took me 35 years to figure out how to build a house on it.
Q: What is your favorite part about living in the pocket?
A: It’s self-evident. It’s a great spot, being on the beach. I surf, and I still surf to this day whenever there’s waves. It’s kind of a spoiled life to be able to walk out your door and walk down to the beach before your coffee gets cold.
I do a lot of business here in Ocean Ridge and one of my selling points is if you live east of A1A it’s a four- to five-minute walk to the dune.
Q: What book are you reading now?
A: Ben Hogan, An American Life, written by James Dodson. I have been playing competitive golf since I was a junior player. My mother used to drive me to tournaments all over. There are several Hogan books out there but this one is the best.
Q: What music do you listen to when you want to relax? When you want to be inspired?
A: I have always been a big Steely Dan fan. There is no other band like them.
Q: Have you had mentors in your life? Individuals who have inspired your life decisions?
A: When I first became a Realtor I was inspired by my first broker, Tony Locastro, who ran a tiny office with just his wife. He talked me into selling business opportunities instead of homes. This is how I got started. My first deal turned out to be a restaurant, and that led to a lot more restaurant transactions. Half of my business is commercial every year. Tony had two sayings: 1. You cannot sell from an empty cart, and 2. Knowledge is strength.
Q: If your life story were to be made into a move, who would play you?
A: Billy Bob Thornton. I like him, and I’ve had people tell me I look like him. Don’t know if I do or don’t, but he’s got the sense of humor I’d have if I was him. He’s a cool dude.
Q: What makes you laugh?
A: Old Seinfeld reruns. My fiancée Donna will attest to this, I don’t laugh a lot. I’m serious about almost everything and don’t laugh much at jokes. But there’s something about the interaction among the cast; those guys are priceless. Jerry Seinfeld doesn’t use profanity in his act and all his humor is G-rated. And George plays the perfect character.
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