A multimillionaire property developer from Texas has demolished a historic waterfront mansion in Coral Gables, Florida, only months after buying the estate for $36 million. The demolition has sparked anger among local preservationists and architectural historians. Felix Sorkin, founder of the Houston-based manufacturing company General Technologies, bought the 11,000-square-foot property in mid-2023. Known as the Wood Residence, the estate was designed in 1963 by Alfred Browning Parker, one of South Florida’s best-known modernist architects. Despite efforts by local heritage advocates to save the landmark, bulldozers tore down the residence to make way for a large modern mansion, the Miami Herald reported. The loss of the home shows the growing conflict in South Florida between rising land prices and efforts to protect mid-century architectural history.
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