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PALM BEACH TIMES. January 11,1979
Fate of the Harry Oakes mansion is uncertain
istorians fight for Oakes mansion
By MARGARET DeFORD
Times Staff Writer
NORTH PALM BEACH — Before village resi-
dents go to the polls in March to vote on the
fate of the Sir Harry Oakes Mansion, some local
historians are doing their part to see that the
electorate is informed about the choices to be
made.
Nancy Moore and John LaCerda are both in-
terested in seeing the landmark building saved
and are investigating ways to finance the pro-
ject and gain public support for it.
The village council recently decided to close
the building, used to house village recreation
programs, until the voters decide if they want it
demolished or renovated. A safety inspection
revealed unsafe conditions in the roof, walls and
passageways of the building and prompted the
action taken by the council.
A study completed two years ago by ees.hitect
Rudy Arsenicos said it -_ aid cast $500,000 to
rehabilitate building and bring it up to
safety codes. For that price, however, the re-
storation would be superficial rather than struc-
tural and new fixtures brought into the building
to replace unsafe ones might not blend in with
the present architecture, Village Manager Paul
Nicoletti said.
To completely restore the building inside and
out would be "very expensive," Arsenicos said,
"probably at least three to four times the $500,-
000 figure."
Mrs. Moore said the cost of demolishing the
building would be $40,000. An alternative plan to
seal off unsafe areas of the building, such as the
basement, and remodel other areas to bring
them up to code, would cost $55,000 she said.
But even if the residents vote in March to
save the oldest building in the village, a means
of raising the necessary funds must still be
worked out.
LaCerda, president of the 600-mere ,er Yacht
Club Drive Civie Association which is backing
restoration of the building, thinks the possibili-
ties of st-ae and federal funding should be ex-
plored.
Village historian Martha Nadleman wrote a
letter to the state 'Bureau of Historical Sites and
Properties seeking funding information, but no
reply ha': beer; received to the December in-
quiry.
Mrs. More said a special two-year tax levied
to fur,1 the restoration project is also a possi-
blility that may be suggested.
Mrs. Moore feels the building should be
preserved "as a memorial to the people who
pioneered this area."
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"The people need to s;:art something now so
that our children will have something of our his-
tory to carry on," she sa'd. "North Palm beach
has very little of historical value left."
The Oakes Mansion, indeed, holds a prominent
place in the history of the area.
It was built by land developer Harry Kelsey
and opened Jan. 5, 1927 as the Palm Beach Win-
ter Club, to be used as a golfing resort for Jews
and others shunned from private clubs in Palm
Beach. Guests came by bus and boat from Palm
Beach and elsewhere to stay at the club and
view the surrounding property atop a lookout
tower built near the fifth hole of the golf course.
After the hurricane of 1928 and the stock mar-
ket crash of 1929 wiped out Kelsey's dreams, Sir
Harry Oakes, a Canadian gold -mining million-
aire, bought up much of the land in tie area and
purchased the clubhouse, turning it into his resi-
dence. •
He added a two-story addition to the south-
west corner of the bniidirig in the 1930's.
Although the building ' as been used as the coun-
try club clubhouse aro has housed several vil-
lage departments over the years, it is still re-
ferred to as theSir Harry Oakes Building.
The voters will decide in March whether to
save or demolish this physical vestige of the
area's past.
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