As soon as rock legend Billy Joel and his wife, Katie Lee
set their sights on this La Gorce Island estate, it became
their mission to own it – and now they do.
Nevermind that at the time that the celebrity couple fell
in love with the island manse, the original builder still
inhabited it – Joel and his wife had their hearts set
on the Biscayne Bay villa - so they met the owner’s
asking price of $13.5 million.
The
beautiful stone structure features 7 bedrooms and 8 bathrooms
and sits majestically on a 303,310-square-foot lot. No doubt
a large part of the home’s appeal for Joel was the use
of beautiful natural materials. A variety of different stone
is used throughout the villa. The palm-lined driveway for
example, paved with gold travertine, as well as the columns
outside, are composed of solid marble.
One of the home’s bathrooms is outfitted in onyx; another
is composed of European limestone. The living room features
a hand-carved stone fireplace and mantel. The home’s
window sills and moldings are all imported travertine, and
there are semiprecious stones sprinkled throughout the house,
making the house a real gem here in South Florida.
-- Taken from "Stone in Love" by Allison Edwards
Summarized by Valentina Mandarin of MLR
Realty.
