The Sad Demise Of Al Capone's Estate

My Al Capone Museum | home

93 Palm Avenue, Miami Beach

The sad day has finally come. All things come to an end. After 101 years, this historical place in Miami is now gone.

Al Capone's former Miami beach home is no more!

Sadly, Al Capone's former home at 93 Palm Avenue in Miami Beach has now been completely demolished as of the second week of August 2023.

This decision was made by the owners who refused to assign it any historical significance, this despite the protests and pleas of the Miami Board of Historical Preservationists. Over 26,000 people signed an online pettion to save the home from the wrecking ball. The owners, who are also realtors, had bought the home for 15 million and immediately tried selling the property, minus the house, for 31 million. It has now been reduced to 19 million this since no one has been interested. The mistake may have been razing the home instead of properly renovating it. It was worth the price with the original home there.

Because of my past personal connection to the home, my heart was broken when it was officially torn down. Shortly before the house was to be demolished, I tried contacting the owner with a special request. I wanted the original door numbers as a keepsake to be framed and presented to Al's granddaughter since she had many memories there.

After several attempts, I managed to contact the new owner's wife. I told her I had spent time there, did research on it for the past 35+ years. She was very nice, understanding, and told me "Yes, absolutely!" to the door number request. I was elated!

Two hours later she wrote back apologizing that her husband was not okay with it! My heart was broken a second time.

Weird thing was their sons weeks later emailed me through the site asking me if I wanted to buy something before demolition. I asked again about the old door numbers. They never bothered to reply again.

People are strange! Just like a friend once told me, I may have been denied my request, but I will always have the memories. That, no one can ever take away from me!

The house was often up for sale. 6 owners just in the last 10 years! Even back in the past, some hinted at a Capone curse!

Three couples who had owned the house later divorced. One caretaker died in a hurricane. One owner died of cancer. Another owner almost died in a boat explosion in front of the boat dock.

Mr. Harry Renkert narrowly escaped death on October 14,1961, when his yacht exploded in the back of 93 Palm Avenue.

The explosion could be seen for miles. Mr. Renkert was the owner of Capone's home in 1961.

Ad in 1967 Miami Herald. Owner is anxious to sell the home? I wonder why?

Here is a ownership history of Al Capone's Miami Estate

After the Capone era, the house was sold by Mae Capone to Cleveland realtor Thomas Warren Miller in 1952. After living there a couple of months in 1955 to destigmatize the Capone aura, he sold it and took most of the furnishings Mae left behind with him. (Verified)

*(Most of that ended up in an April 1992 Capone auction in Chicago by Leslie Hindman).

After Miller left, the house was owned by Mr. Harry Renkert 1956- 61 (Verified).

Next it was sold to Dr. James C. Chimerakis, a Coral Gables physcian and surgeon. 1960's (Verified).

In October 1967, Dr. Chimerakis tried to sell the house for $75,000, but It remained on the market for a while. He finally sold it to William Knowles on June 12, 1968 for $48,000 (Verified).

1968 Miami Herald Real Estate Ad

On January 8, 1969, the home was sold to Mr. Roy Fowler for $50,000 (Unverified).

In 1971, Delta airline pilot Henry T. Morrison was looking for a home. He liked 93 Palm avenue and without even knowing it was the old Capone abode purchased it for $56,000 (Verified).

After 35 years, Henry Morrison placed it on the market in 2006, and was owned in 2011-13 by Peter Corsell (Verified).

Sadly, in October 2013, my friend Peter Corsell sold it after renovating it. It proved a headache for him as Miami Beach were complaining about anal building requirements at the time. It was purchased by a French couple through a Florida company managed by New York accountant Anthony Panebianco. It was sold for $7.4 million (Verified).

The French couple divorced shortly after acquiring the home, it was now back on the market only six months later and sold to a private investor and managed by MB America. They purchased the home for $8.5 million and an additional 1.75 million was put on further renovations. (Verified)

It was later supposedly sold to soccer agent Mino Raiola in 2016 (Unverified and not at all true).

In 2021, a real estate agent, who was also the same agent that was selling the home for MB America, and his partner, a developer, bought the home from MB America for 10.8 million. MB America had decided to sell after failing to make money using the place for film shoots, and as a rental space for special events.

They were having trouble selling the place and after a couple of years off the market it sold once again. This entry below from reporter Brian Bandell from the South Business report for September 9, 2021.

"Carol Invest USA, managed by Emanuela Verlicchi Marazzi of MB America in Doral, sold the 6,077-square-foot home at 93 Palm Ave. The buyers were Quantum Equity One LLC, managed by Laurent Groll in Sunny Isles Beach, and 93 Capone LLC, managed by Nelson Gonzalez in Sunny Isles Beach. Miami-based City National Bank of Florida provided a $6.15 million mortgage to the buyer.

After the purchase, the agent's sidekick developer made the news with loud derogatory threats to demolish the home if the historic designation to the home was not achieved through meetings with Miami's Historic preservation board. Todd Glaser said the Capone home "Was a piece of crap!" The preservationists had prepared contrary arguements, documents, witnesses as to why this home should be preserved and then voted on to be given the historical site assignation. The meeting to make the decision in favor or not to keep the home intact was to be held on July 12, 2022. Oddly, at the last minute, the meeting never took place! A sudden new law was added to the books by the Governor of Florida. Four months later, Governor DeSantis was re-elected by a landslide. This was funny because at his first election, he barely squeaked by for the win. You can make of these facts what you want. Coincidence or?? Were real estate agents and building contractors lobbying Governor DeSantis to pass this new obscure law? If so, it's totally a dream come true for all of them! $$$$$

Thomas Mooney, the city's director of planning state the following in the Miami Herald. "Before recent state legislation, if a home was built before 1942, the [Miami Beach] Design Review Board had to review the design of the new home."

And so now with the new law, the old house is doomed and new cut and paste glass houses will be the norm from now on in Miami!

The new owners (Developer Glaser and Real estate agent Gonzalez) briefly / oddly, held on to the house for just several weeks until it was sold once again in Sept / October 2021. Glaser gloated in the press that it was like winning the lottery since he made a fast 5 million profit on the house. This time it was sold for 15.5 million (5.5 Million more) to Albert and Karise Claramonte, under 93 Palm Residence LLC, which was managed by Coral Gables accountant Toni Alam. The Claramontes, also just happen to be the owners of the house next door at 85 Palm Avenue. Yes, that's right next door to Al Capone's house! During the first news of the sale, the Claramontes claimed in the press that they were buying the house for their children's heritage, and that no demolition would occur to placate historical preservationists. They later seem to change their minds. During these various back and forth transactions, the Governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis just conveniently happened to pass a law that overrides any historic designation, thus giving the Claramontes the right to totally demolish the Al Capone estate without any opposition or repercussions.

The Claramontes then took out a demolition permit on September 28, 2022. Once that went through approval, they had 9 months to demolish the entire historic homestead at 93 Palm Avenue. They had supposedly hired a contractor friend (Coral Gables Construction) to demolish it all for $25,000.

After the home was completely demolished, and with no interest in the lot, the owners are selling the empty lot for 19 million. Perhaps they thought that knocking down the house would just make the public attention and the Capone aura go away. This is a mistake. Just ask the good citizens of Chicago where every building connected to Capone era has been knocked down over the decades. The result? Year after year, tourists still continue to flock there to see past Capone sites. Yes, even if they are now just parking lots! And they will also continue to do so in Miami! All of these places are forever recorded in history books, websites, tv shows and movies. It's just human nature to seek history and physically visit these historically sacred places. Even if you put up a new fangled rich man's glass encased box on that land, it won't stop the future tourists and tourist boats from constantly passing in the bay to see where the historical Capone home once stood. That is just a plain undeniable fact.

This is what's left of Al Capone's former Miami beach home.

Interviewed by the press about the demolition, Paul George, the resident historian of the History Miami museum, said, “The new owner has come along, paid 15 million plus, and decided not to dramatize this thing; just knock it down and present everyone with a failed accomplishment.”

“That’s essentially what happened here; it lost whatever protection it had. The ghost of Al Capone was vivid in greater Miami all this time, and with the demolition, we lose a sense of place, we lose a picture and an idea of what things were like at a certain time, and we lose that idea of who lived there and how they lived.”

“Now you’ve got a vacant lot, and it’s a lot harder to draw a mental picture of what went on there over the previous 100 years than it would be if the building was still standing,”

Bravo and well said Mr. George!


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Al Capone's former Miami beach home is no more! 1922-2023 Sadly, Al Capone's former home at 93 Palm Avenue in Miami Beach has now been completely demolished as of the second week of August 2023. This decision was made by the owners who refused to assign it any historical significance, this despite the protests and pleas of the Miami Board of Historical Preservationists. Over 26,000 people signed an online pettion to save the home from the wrecking ball. The owners, who are also realtors, had bought the home for 15 million and immediately tried selling the property, minus the house, for 31 million. It has now been reduced to 19 million this since no one has been interested. The mistake may have been razing the home instead of properly renovating it. It was worth the price with the original home there. Because of my past personal connection to the home, my heart was broken when it was officially torn down. Shortly before the house was to be demolished, I tried contacting the owner with a special request. I wanted the original door numbers as a keepsake to be framed and presented to Al's granddaughter since she had many memories there. After several attempts, I managed to contact the new owner's wife. I told her I had spent time there, did research on it for the past 35+ years. She was very nice, understanding, and told me "Yes, absolutely!" to the door number request. I was elated! Two hours later she wrote back apologizing that her husband was not okay with it! My heart was broken a second time. Weird thing was their sons weeks later emailed me through the site asking me if I wanted to buy something before demolition. I asked again about the old door numbers. They never bothered to reply again. People are strange! Just like a friend once told me, I may have been denied my request, but I will always have the memories. That, no one can ever take away from me! The Capone Curse The house was often up for sale. 6 owners just in the last 10 years! Even back in the past, some hinted at a Capone curse! Three couples who had owned the house later divorced. One caretaker died in a hurricane. One owner died of cancer. Another owner almost died in a boat explosion in front of the boat dock. Mr. Harry Renkert narrowly escaped death on October 14,1961, when his yacht exploded in the back of 93 Palm Avenue. The explosion could be seen for miles. Mr. Renkert was the owner of Capone's home in 1961. Ad in 1967 Miami Herald. Owner is anxious to sell the home? I wonder why? Here is a ownership history of Al Capone's Miami Estate After the Capone era, the house was sold by Mae Capone to Cleveland realtor Thomas Warren Miller in 1952. After living there a couple of months in 1955 to destigmatize the Capone aura, he sold it and took most of the furnishings Mae left behind with him. (Verified) *(Most of that ended up in an April 1992 Capone auction in Chicago by Leslie Hindman). February 14,1952. After Miller left, the house was owned by Mr. Harry Renkert 1956- 61 (Verified). Next it was sold to Dr. James C. Chimerakis, a Coral Gables physcian and surgeon. 1960's (Verified). In October 1967, Dr. Chimerakis tried to sell the house for $75,000, but It remained on the market for a while. He finally sold it to William Knowles on June 12, 1968 for $48,000 (Verified). 1968 Miami Herald Real Estate Ad On January 8, 1969, the home was sold to Mr. Roy Fowler for $50,000 (Unverified). In 1971, Delta airline pilot Henry T. Morrison was looking for a home. He liked 93 Palm avenue and without even knowing it was the old Capone abode purchased it for $56,000 (Verified). After 35 years, Henry Morrison placed it on the market in 2006, and was owned in 2011-13 by Peter Corsell (Verified). Sadly, in October 2013, my friend Peter Corsell sold it after renovating it. It proved a headache for him as Miami Beach were complaining about anal building requirements at the time. It was purchased by a French couple through a Florida company managed by New York accountant Anthony Panebianco. It was sold for $7.4 million (Verified). The French couple divorced shortly after acquiring the home, it was now back on the market only six months later and sold to a private investor and managed by MB America. They purchased the home for $8.5 million and an additional 1.75 million was put on further renovations. (Verified) It was later supposedly sold to soccer agent Mino Raiola in 2016 (Unverified and not at all true). In 2021, a real estate agent, who was also the same agent that was selling the home for MB America, and his partner, a developer, bought the home from MB America for 10.8 million. MB America had decided to sell after failing to make money using the place for film shoots, and as a rental space for special events. They were having trouble selling the place and after a couple of years off the market it sold once again. This entry below from reporter Brian Bandell from the South Business report for September 9, 2021. "Carol Invest USA, managed by Emanuela Verlicchi Marazzi of MB America in Doral, sold the 6,077-square-foot home at 93 Palm Ave. The buyers were Quantum Equity One LLC, managed by Laurent Groll in Sunny Isles Beach, and 93 Capone LLC, managed by Nelson Gonzalez in Sunny Isles Beach. Miami-based City National Bank of Florida provided a $6.15 million mortgage to the buyer. See Capone Home sells for 10.75 Million After the purchase, the agent's sidekick developer made the news with loud derogatory threats to demolish the home if the historic designation to the home was not achieved through meetings with Miami's Historic preservation board. Todd Glaser said the Capone home "Was a piece of crap!" The preservationists had prepared contrary arguements, documents, witnesses as to why this home should be preserved and then voted on to be given the historical site assignation. The meeting to make the decision in favor or not to keep the home intact was to be held on July 12, 2022. Oddly, at the last minute, the meeting never took place! A sudden new law was added to the books by the Governor of Florida. Four months later, Governor DeSantis was re-elected by a landslide. This was funny because at his first election, he barely squeaked by for the win. You can make of these facts what you want. Coincidence or?? Were real estate agents and building contractors lobbying Governor DeSantis to pass this new obscure law? If so, it's totally a dream come true for all of them! $$$$$ Thomas Mooney, the city's director of planning state the following in the Miami Herald. "Before recent state legislation, if a home was built before 1942, the [Miami Beach] Design Review Board had to review the design of the new home." And so now with the new law, the old house is doomed and new cut and paste glass houses will be the norm from now on in Miami! The new owners (Developer Glaser and Real estate agent Gonzalez) briefly / oddly, held on to the house for just several weeks until it was sold once again in Sept / October 2021. Glaser gloated in the press that it was like winning the lottery since he made a fast 5 million profit on the house. This time it was sold for 15.5 million (5.5 Million more) to Albert and Karise Claramonte, under 93 Palm Residence LLC, which was managed by Coral Gables accountant Toni Alam. The Claramontes, also just happen to be the owners of the house next door at 85 Palm Avenue. Yes, that's right next door to Al Capone's house! During the first news of the sale, the Claramontes claimed in the press that they were buying the house for their children's heritage, and that no demolition would occur to placate historical preservationists. They later seem to change their minds. During these various back and forth transactions, the Governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis just conveniently happened to pass a law that overrides any historic designation, thus giving the Claramontes the right to totally demolish the Al Capone estate without any opposition or repercussions. The Claramontes then took out a demolition permit on September 28, 2022. Once that went through approval, they had 9 months to demolish the entire historic homestead at 93 Palm Avenue. They had supposedly hired a contractor friend (Coral Gables Construction) to demolish it all for $25,000. UPDATE After the home was completely demolished, and with no interest in the lot, the owners are selling the empty lot for 19 million. Perhaps they thought that knocking down the house would just make the public attention and the Capone aura go away. This is a mistake. Just ask the good citizens of Chicago where every building connected to Capone era has been knocked down over the decades. The result? Year after year, tourists still continue to flock there to see past Capone sites. Yes, even if they are now just parking lots! And they will also continue to do so in Miami! All of these places are forever recorded in history books, websites, tv shows and movies. It's just human nature to seek history and physically visit these historically sacred places. Even if you put up a new fangled rich man's glass encased box on that land, it won't stop the future tourists and tourist boats from constantly passing in the bay to see where the historical Capone home once stood. That is just a plain undeniable fact. This is what's left of Al Capone's former Miami beach home. Interviewed by the press about the demolition, Paul George, the resident historian of the History Miami museum, said, “The new owner has come along, paid 15 million plus, and decided not to dramatize this thing; just knock it down and present everyone with a failed accomplishment.” “That’s essentially what happened here; it lost whatever protection it had. The ghost of Al Capone was vivid in greater Miami all this time, and with the demolition, we lose a sense of place, we lose a picture and an idea of what things were like at a certain time, and we lose that idea of who lived there and how they lived.” “Now you’ve got a vacant lot, and it’s a lot harder to draw a mental picture of what went on there over the previous 100 years than it would be if the building was still standing,” Bravo and well said Mr. George!