Neighbor fed up with construction of mega mansion on Palmer Avenue
Marc and Sharon Hagle started construction on the 40,000-square-foot home that includes a greenhouse and a gun range in 2021
Nov. 17, 2023
By Beth Kassab
Jerome Henin says he wakes up to the sound of beeping construction vehicles, hears the loud whirl of a commercial-sized air-conditioning unit at all hours from inside his home and must repeatedly clean layers of concrete dust that has settled on his own cars.
“Every morning for three years, I wake up to the sound of these beeps at 6:45,” Henin said. “I open my door every morning … you have so much going on, it’s amazing how traumatic it is.”
It’s not the kind of ambiance you would expect along Palmer Avenue, a mostly quiet road lined with trees and stately lakefront homes where occasional speeders have been the primary nuisance.
For Henin, though, living next to the largest residential construction project in the region has meant a cacophony of disturbances and concerns, according to a letter from his attorney Tucker Byrd to the City Commission and city administrators.
“The city has done little or nothing to address the problems, which seem to compound and increase, almost daily,” the Oct. 27 letter stated.
The letter outlined concerns ranging from whether the permits are still active on the property nearly three years into construction to questions about noise and safety related to the gun range and stormwater runoff.
An attorney for the city responded last week that there are no code violations related to the property and that Henin’s concerns are unfounded.
The response from city attorney Richard Geller said the gun range is “permitted as an indoor, enclosed facility in the basement of the house.”
“The city does not understand your contention that Mr. Henin and his family are in the ‘possible line of fire,'” he wrote. “The gun range includes acoustical tiles for sound amelioration. The city addressed this concern when raised my Mr. Henin before construction began.”
When asked about the construction complaints this week, Marc Hagle, who operates large commercial and residential developer Tricor International, told the Voice, “I’m not going to comment on all of that,” and hung up the phone.
Hagle and his wife Sharon purchased the property in 2017 for $3.6 million. The couple has been called the first married pair on a commercial space flight after they took an 11-minute ride on a Blue Origin rocket some 62 miles above earth last year.
The Hagles made headlines this year over a lawsuit they filed against the CEO of OceanGate Expeditions, the company that operated the submersible vehicle to view the wreckage of the Titanic, before the sub imploded this summer, killing everyone on board. The couple had made a deposit to ride on one of the undersea voyages, but their trip was delayed.
Henin, a native of France, is also a developer of residential and commercial properties in Florida and Europe. His home next door to the Hagles was built in 1926 by famed Winter Park architect James Gamble Rogers and at 9,700-square-feet is less than a quarter of the size of the house under construction.
Henin said he is disappointed by the city’s response to his concerns. The city attorney suggested he call the police about noise complaints and said the Hagles’ contractor has said he will perform sound testing periodically to make sure there are no violations.
Geller, the attorney for the city, also said officials are not aware of any terrain alterations that would cause stormwater runoff onto the Henin property nor is there anything the city can do about a large electrical transformer box installed about 40 feet from Henin’s driveway because it serves the entire neighborhood and utilities crews must be able to access it.
“The city should be our guardian … should be our protector,” Henin said. “They are saying it’s not our problem, basically.”
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While there may be no code violations (so the city thinks it’s just whining) I can confirm this affects your mental health greatly. I endured years of tear down and rebuild on three sides of my tiny lot. It was pure hell. Our narrow road was parked up blocks in either direction causing real traffic issues. Workers and equipment arrive and start making noise at 6:30 even though work can’t start until 7. My driveway was frequently blocked. Music you don’t like is blasting from 7 until around 4 daily. Power tools noise constantly. My AC filters had to be changed three times as often and the furniture had to be dusted all the time. My dogs barked all day long from the loud noise and were so anxious. My teen daughter trying to walk the dogs was leered at by the occasional creeper jerk (most were not, just hard working people I gained a new respect for, but some gave me pause). I even got termites from the bungalow tear down next door! All I can say is one day it will all be over and just a distant bad memory, Mr. Henin. Hang in there!
Tell us who you are.
First world problems. No one cares
The McMansion is in poor taste and defeats the architectural integrity of Winter Park. It’s not lost on anyone this homeowner builds Walmarts for a living.
Shame on the real estate industry that fights historical presence in Winter Park. I listened to the realtor argue “tear down” before even opening the market.
The former house, had plenty of redeeming qualities that fit Winter Parks’s timeless brand of architecture and it was salvageable.
The foundation of WP’s appeal is eroded by by new construction like this and the ho hum “modern farmhouse “ on Interlachen by “award-winning” architect.
Money doesn’t buy common sense or style.
Tell us who you are.
Totally agree. Well stated.
I feel for Mr. Henin. On a more impressive scale he is going through what my neighbors and I have suffered for about eight years now in the “Tree Streets.” Almost every house sold is demolished and a mansion built in its place. Multiple houses are always under construction. Bulldozers, cement mixers, backup beepers, impassible sidewalks. I cannot begin to describe here the endless disruption.
Given the fact that Winter Park is basically being re-created as a brand-new city, the city staff needs to be much more proactive about disruption to existing long-term residents. I cannot control the dirt and chaos one code-enforcement report at a time. Suggesting solutions I have received indifference bordering on disdain from our building officials. It is a systemic problem that needs coordinated attention from permitting, building and code.
The situation with the Hagle construction is the inevitable culmination of the city’s blind eye toward unlimited construction in residential areas.
If I recall correctly, a significant cash donation to the WPPD was made by the homeowners at roughly the same time the homeowners sought approval for the gun range. I’m not saying the two events were connected or that anything at all was amiss; after all, donations to police funds are lovely and the homeowners are well-known philanthropists. It was simply the timing that struck me as peculiar.
Tell us who you are.
Who are YOU???
It sounds like a nightmare for Mr. Hemin! Why would Winter Park allow a house that size for our city. There should have been a limit in time to build it, at least.
A P&Z Board that was on the ball would have instituted a time limit on the construction permit and daily fines of the deadline was exceeded. Instead, they left it open ended so the construction may never end. Sort of like the infamous Winchester House and just as heinous.
A private gun range.
Enough said.
What we need is a “Developers Gone Wild” site where we can all post our problems when they behave badly and don’t remedy the situation. We also need a “City Officials Gone Wild” site when they ignore legitimate issues. But we should also publicly praise developers who keep the surrounding area clean, communicate with residents when there are problems, and take action when needed as we should the city officials who are helpful.
Tell us who you are.
It would be good if the City could have a maximum size for a residential home no matter how much land had been acquired, but I have been told that can never happen. I don’t agree, since there are limits to heights and set-backs. The problem is the size of the property. Houses the size of the Hagle House destroy the neighborhood. Now that the Clayton property is for sale, I suppose we can expect another enormous house to be built on that site.
“The spirit of envy can destroy; it can never build”. Margaret Thatcher
Envy? A hip commercial shopping center building design or the indoor shooting range? No thanks to both. Neither fits the character of Winter Park. Would look better in Tampa or South Florida. Honestly though, to each his own, so if the Hagles like it then good for them. It’s their $ and their lot.
“I wouldn’t accept that monstrosity, even if they paid me to take it.”
– Mr. Kiamoto
Now the WP Library and Events Center has a rival for the “Design Most Out-of-Touch with the City’s Heritage” award. Everybody who likes this house raise your hand!
Neither will age well. Think TWA terminal at JFK before that style of architecture became Vogue again after 60+ years.
For God’s sake stop your whining. when you sell your house
to someone who razes it to build something else, you’ve created
the problem. Hagle has a dream, leave it. it will be over soon enough.
TY! Nobody said life in WP was gonna be easy. 🙂
Sort of ironic that a neighbor who “is also a developer of residential and commercial properties in Florida and Europe” now finds himself next to a massive home project. I wonder if he’s caused any homeowner heartburn across 2 continents of work?
Great comment Pitt, hope you’re well.
I don’t necessarily agree with all of these complaints, however I will say that they may hold some merit and, to some extent, I understand. The issues being brought about the gun range though are 100% un-warranted. The range is encased within concrete walls several feet thick and layered top to bottom, front to back, with state of the art acoustical sound proofing. Word of mouth is the only reason one will ever be aware of its existence. Having said that, your issue may be your snowflake mentality. In that case, you can address your concerns to the United States constitution
Did you read the article? I don’t know how you can say it will be over soon when there will be a gun range with shooting next door to the neighbors. There are enough shootings on the news and now neighbors can hear gun shots in their own neighborhood. Also the transformer on the sidewalk like that is disappointing. It makes that already ugly house really pop.
Clearly the Warner’s are the only ones in favor of this eyesore.
“a show of envy is an insult to oneself”
Warners. Not Warner’s.
Welcome to the game of the New WP. For the last 20+ years, the Hannibal Square, Westside have endured the new growth of historic homes and other homes demolished for mega mansions to replaced them.
In these residential communities, the zoning was changed from R1 to R2. The people didn’t read their notices of the changes. Some
property owners merged their lots (2 & 3) and built mega mansions.
The problems that occurred: congested traffic, 2-way streets became 1-way, flooding, safety, drinking on the street, and poor infrastructure. It happened to the poor Black community, and no one spoke out against the gentrification, so the ball kept rolling!
The previous comment illustrates why the west side needs representation on the commission. We need single member districts.
A single vote from a single commissioner, standing alone, is not enough to stop a project or proposal. A majority vote is needed, sometimes a supermajority vote will be needed. Single member districting will not accomplish what you might suggest.
I strongly believe in private property rights, but that has to be balanced against our neighbor’s right to the peaceful enjoyment of their home, not to mention the preservation of property value. Being a good neighbor is a moral duty, but the standards are set and permits approved by the city.
If you don’t want apartments, you’re tax base needs to come from Mega Mansions. Good news is Mega Mansions generate less traffic–all any one seems to be concerned with nowadays… We should be building dense mixed use but I’m a just a millennial (concerned about property taxes, property insurance, resiliency and community)
Muted Millennial- You’re singing the famed Hamner/Demetree “OAO Chorus”. Our long standing codes (not the tax base) determine the size of homes which can be built on singe family homesites, including at the Palmer Lynx Depot Mega Mansion. With single family home values skyrocketing in Winter Park, why would we need to enable the high-density multi-family residential (R-4) which was removed from our codes in 2016-17? (Pete Weldon made the main motion to get rid of it.) Our tax base is heavily derived from residential and not commercial development in a ratio that will not be reversed. So why NOT focus on quality of life rather than traffic generating mixed use? There are hundreds of apartments in WP and at the city limits of Winter Park. (With hundreds more to come on W Fairbanks pretty soon. ) Suit yourself. Choose one.
All this and no one mentions the 900 pound gorilla Rollins College that continues to consume land and build buildings on roads that can barely handle normal traffic but we let them build a 200 plus room hotel and now a new school of business and a museum in the heart of a residential area.