Gables Estates owner sues for right to demolish

The owner of a sprawling property in the swanky Gables Estates neighborhood that was recently designated historic is suing the city for the right to demolish it, the plaintiff’s attorney told The Real Deal.

The owner, Cascar LLC, is suing the city of Coral Gables, the city commission and the city’s preservation board for up to $7 million in damages, citing the Bert Harris Private Property Rights Protection Act, which stipulates that a property owner is entitled to compensation or damages when a city’s regulation has depressed or hurt the value of a property — in this case, the 290 feet of waterfront land on Biscayne Bay.

The property includes an 11,000-square-foot single-family home built in 1966 and designed by architect Alfred Browning Parker, according to the suit.

The house was built for philanthropist B. Carlin and designed to display and protect artwork from the deterioration of direct sunlight, so none of the windows provide a waterfront view.

In addition, the house requires more than $1 million in repairs to the roof and to remove asbestos, among other issues, the suit said.

The house is “wholly undesirable to a modern buyer purchasing a residence on a large waterfront lot,” the plaintiff said.