Former Mansion of American Gangster Al Capone is Facing Demolition

Al Capone's Miami Mansion
Al Capone's Miami Mansion
photo credit: 93palm.com

Al Capone was born in 1899 in Brooklyn, New York to Italian immigrant parents. He was one of eight children while his mother was a seamstress and his father was a barber. He had a regular childhood and nothing notable could predict his claim to American fame.

Capone later became the most infamous gangster in American history. In the ’20s, Capone began his Chicago operations of bootlegging, gambling, and organized crime which became a multi-million dollar business. At the time of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre on February 14, 1929, he retreated to his Miami waterfront mansion to hide out from authorities.

The Original 93 Palm Avenue Site
photo credit: 93palm.com

After being released from prison after a six-and-a-half-year stint, Al Capone spent his last years living in Miami on Palm Island at 93 Palm Avenue. The waterfront mansion was originally built in 1922 and Capone and his wife purchased the home in 1928 for $40,000, just 3 years before he was sentenced to prison. The title shows that the home was purchased under Capone’s wife’s name.

The home has had many owners, as well as, extensive remodels over the years. The 0.6-acre lot features a colonial-style home with four bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms. The more unique and original features of the home are still there including a black and gold Art Deco powder room, 1920’s ceilings lights as well as the fireplace located in the living room. The home also showcases french doors, hardwood floors, and double-hung windows.

Al Capone's Original Black and Gold Bathroom
photo credit: 93palm.com

The outside features 100 feet of Biscayne Bay water frontage with a 30×60 foot pool next to a 2-story cabana that is water-facing. At the front of the property sits a guesthouse with 2 bedrooms and 1 bathroom.

The home is currently owned by business partners including developer Todd Glaser who purchased the home this summer for $10.75 million. The plan is to demolish the home and build a modern-style spec home with 8 bedrooms, 8 bathrooms, spa, jacuzzi, and sauna.

Modern Spec Mansion on Palm Island
photo credit: Nelson Gonzalez

Glaser and business partner Nelson Gonzalez have condemned the house stating that it sits 3 feet under sea level, has water damage as well as sitting water under the home.

The home is currently on the docket for the Miami Historic Preservation Committee’s historic designation for the September agenda. According to Glaser, he stated that this will not stop their plans for building the new mansion and beginning demolition of Capone’s former home.

The property with the spec home is currently listed for sale at $16.95 million. The modern mansion will be designed by Kodi Karp.

93 Palm Avenue on Palm Island
photo credit: Nelson Gonzalez

Al Capone’s Miami Beach Compound Has Sold to European Soccer Agent Mino Riaola for $9M

Previous listing photo.

Previous listing photo.

The Miami Beach compound mobster and Mr. #1 on the FBI’s Most Wanted List, Alphonse Capone lived, and died in, when not in Chicago, has sold to European soccer agent Mino Riaola for an estimated $9 million. The actual amount has apparently not been made public. The house is located at 93 Palm Avenue, on Miami Beach’s Palm Island. Although the Miami Herald broke the news, the story appears to have been taken down from the paper’s website, which is a little odd. Curbed Miami reblogged it in time, however.

The Palm Island waterfront home was saved from a desperate state and likely destruction and restored to something closer its original appearance by its former owner, who listed the restored house in 2012 for $10 million, had trouble selling it for years, took it off the market to use as some kind of event/film venue, and by now is probably glad to be rid of it. That’s pretty unfortunate because, even though it is kind of an odd house, with a scandalous reputation, it’s still fantastically historical, and still classy. I covered the house frequently while Curbed, so check out their archives. Hopefully Riaola will take care of the house as it deserves to be taken care of, and correct a few of  the mistakes in the renovation. As I noticed during a tour of the house a few years ago with my friend Dana Herndon, who wrote this excellent piece for Curbed on the house, although the renovation undoubtedly saved the house, it appeared at the time to have been done on the cheap.