08-05-2025
Listed at $9.2 million, a 1950s Palm Beach house underwent a down-to-the-studs renovation
In 2003, when Scott and Marisa Vesley were engaged, they chose to buy a house at 225 Jamaica Lane on Palm Beach's North End.
'We purchased it from (the late) Richard (Cromie) and Margaret Cromie when they moved to North Carolina. He was the pastor of Royal Poinciana Chapel,' Marisa says, before her husband picks up the story about the house.
'And then, we completely rebuilt it,' Scott adds. 'We jackhammered the floors, put in new electrical and plumbing, HVAC, everything. It was basically a new house. We just kept the exterior walls.'
The house had attracted them because they wanted to reside in the North End, where Marisa had previously lived, she explains: 'I was already in love with that area, and coming from Chicago, Scott fell in love with it, too.'
On a lot of about a quarter acre, the house is the fifth one from the ocean on the second street north of the Palm Beach Country Club.
The Bermuda-style house itself, Marisa recalls, was built in the early 1950s and lacked a pool. 'It only had two bedrooms with a shared bathroom plus an office, so when we took everything down to the studs and started over, we reconfigured the floor plan to include ensuite bathrooms for the two bedrooms,' she says. 'And the following year, we put in the pool and added the 1,000-square-foot primary suite as a separate sanctuary from rest of the house.'
The result is that the overall layout 'now flows beautifully,' Marisa says. 'We've enjoyed entertaining family and friends.'
But the Vesleys are ready for a change, and although they plan to stay in the area, they've decided to sell.
'I want to build a new home plus I want a lap pool with a spa — and I want a gym,' Scott says.
Marisa says her husband has a keen design sense and understood what the house on Jamaica Lane needed from the get-go.
'He's very talented. He built his homes in Chicago, and he redid this one. He's excellent at design,' Marisa says.
The Velseys have listed the four-bedroom, five-bathroom house — with 3,931 total square feet of living space, inside and out — through Corcoran Group agent J. Richard Allison II. It's priced at $9.2 million.
A deep-pink front door opens into the foyer, which is flanked by the living room and an office. The office has a bathroom, so it could be repurposed to serve as a guest-bedroom suite.
Foot traffic flows from the living room to the family room and a dining area, which accesses the pool-view covered lanai and the adjacent summer kitchen equipped with an Alfresco grill and rotisserie.
The dining area is open to the kitchen with a breakfast space that the Vesleys use as a sitting room.
This side of the house is also home to a cabana bath for the pool, a laundry room and a one-car garage.
On the east side of the family room, a hallway accesses two guest bedroom suites and the primary suite. The latter includes a walk-in closet-and-dressing room finished in zebra wood along with a bathroom equipped with a steam shower.
During their overhaul of the house, the Vesleys completely renovated the kitchen, which features a work island.
'All the built-in cabinetry is custom by our millworker in Chicago and (was) brought here,' Marisa says. 'He had done the millwork for my husband's home in Chicago.'
In 2022, they refreshed the kitchen, 'I wanted to rework the layout a little, and we added new appliances and Walker Zanger Alhambra limestone countertops and backsplashes,' Scott says.
Other recent improvements include the addition of a new tankless hot-water system and the replacement of the roof in 2023. They also replaced two of the three air-conditioning units this year.
Interior details include French limestone floors; plantation shutters at the windows; tray ceilings in the living room, family room and main bedroom; and hand-blown Seguso glass fixtures from Venice.
The family room features built-in cabinetry, and there's a projection/theater system in the main bedroom. The office suite has custom-designed wine storage for 300 bottles.
Outside, the Vesleys' original renovations included new stucco for the walls, accented by wood details. They removed a circular driveway and installed a tabby one in front of the garage. They also enclosed the front yard within hedges and added tabby walkways.
'My husband installed Cashmere Zoysia grass, so we have beautiful green lawns, and I like to garden, so he had built two raised beds for me on the east side of the property where I can grow fruits and vegetables,' Marisa says.
Although the Vesleys are excited about building a new home, they will always recall this residence's charms, she says.
'I will miss this house and the beauty and tranquility of the North End, with the proximity to town, the large beach (nearby) and the Lake Trail at the end of our street.'
Scott adds: 'It's been a great house for entertaining. It's light filled, fun and a great party house.'
He has also appreciated the house's smart-home technology 'with audio, visual, thermostats all controlled by an iPhone.'
But he's ready to move on. 'I need a new project — I'm bored,' he says with a smile in his voice.
To see more photos of 225 Jamaica Lane in Palm Beach, click on the photo gallery near the top of this page.
For more than 20 years, Christine Davis has written about Palm Beach real estate in the "On the Market" feature in the Palm Beach Daily News.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Extensively renovated 1950s house lists at $9.2M in Palm Beach
