For Floridians, heartbreak is a constant. In my little town, just this month, demolition began on the historic winter home of the Barnum & Bailey circus, in the face of years of campaigns and fund-raising by citizens to preserve their heritage – located on municipal, not private, property.
And then this happened a few miles north. An added insult: the fixtures, windows, precious woods and more were only a nuisance, so they were left in place for the bulldozers. After all, the whole thing – as the story points out – was already 12 years old.
SARASOTA – A 6,100-square-foot house built just 12 years ago on this tony barrier island was being torn down Monday to make way for what neighbors say will be a three-story home for Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik.
The half-acre bayfront property at 112 N. Washington Drive was bought five months ago for $4.25 million. . . .
The classically inspired house, designed by architect Clifford Scholz and built by the late Mike Collingwood, was yellow with white trim and had a double staircase leading to the front doors.
The arched Palladian windows were framed with white shutters. Iron gates over the gray paver driveway and an ivy-covered masonry wall provided privacy.
The property had two wings that made the pool area private, too.
It obviously was not sufficient for such a grandee who is, no doubt, a legend in his own mind. He came, saw a tear-down, did it.
You can have wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, or democracy. But you cannot have both.
Whatever Works 
Too much money, too much ego. What will the new house have that the old one didn’t…except…I want, I want, I want.
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John Henry, one of the owners of the Boston Red Sox, did the same thing. A few years ago, he bought a very large home in Brookline, Mass., tore it down, and had an over sized mansion built just for him and his wife…
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And this is going to be his weekend place as he built another mansion in Tampa (50 miles away). Prepare for the revolution!
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