In 2021, billionaire Orlando Bravo paid $39.25 million for Phil Collins’s 1929 Miami Beach mansion; months later, he won approval to demolish it for a flood-resilient home with tropical gardens

Private equity billionaire Orlando Bravo has received approval to tear down a historic Miami Beach estate once owned by English musician Phil Collins. The move clears the way for a flood-resistant luxury mansion surrounded by tropical gardens. Bravo, co-founder and managing partner of Thoma Bravo, bought the Mediterranean Revival home at 5800 North Bay Road for $39.25 million (£28.6 million) in January 2021. According to property records cited by the Miami Herald, the purchase was made through an entity called 5800 NBR LLC. Only months after completing the deal, the private equity executive asked local authorities for permission to demolish the 1920s home and build a new single-family compound designed to meet modern environmental standards. The Miami Beach Design Review Board gave final approval for the demolition and new design later that year, after receiving detailed plans from Bravo’s architectural team. The decision ended a long-running debate over whether the estate should be preserved. The property sits on a 1.2-acre waterfront lot along Biscayne Bay.

Historic architecture facing climate reality

Built in 1929, the original two-storey home had more than 10,000 square feet of living space. It included classic Mediterranean Revival features such as barrel-tile roofs, arched doorways, a courtyard layout and detailed ironwork. Before Bravo bought the estate, it attracted international attention because of its famous owners. Phil Collins, the former Genesis frontman and solo artist, bought the home in 2015 for $33 million. Collins lived there until a high-profile legal dispute with his ex-wife, Orianne Cevey, resulted in the property being put on the market in late 2020. Despite its architectural history and links to well-known owners, including Jennifer Lopez, who lived there in the early 2000s, the building was not given protected historic landmark status by the city of Miami Beach. Local rules allow owners of properties without such a designation to seek demolition, as long as replacement projects follow zoning rules and design review standards. The Miami Herald reported that architectural advisers working for Bravo pointed to structural problems and concerns about rising sea levels as key reasons for replacing the original building.

Designing for future flood risks

Bravo’s replacement plans focus strongly on sustainability, flood protection and adapting to environmental changes. Coastal South Florida faces growing risks from rising sea levels, high-tide flooding and powerful tropical storms. As a result, wealthy property owners across Miami-Dade County are rebuilding homes at higher levels than older buildings. Documents submitted to the Miami Beach Design Review Board describe a modern residence made up of several connected sections and raised well above current city requirements. The new design includes elevated foundations, reinforced seawalls and built-in drainage systems. These features are intended to protect the home from severe weather and future sea-level rise. Architect Kobi Karp, whose firm designed the replacement estate, stressed the need for modern engineering on waterfront properties. In presentations to the design board reported by the Miami Herald, Karp said the new design places living areas on raised platforms. This would allow floodwater to move underneath the home during extreme flooding without damaging the main structure. The design also gives priority to native plants and tropical gardens. Landscape plans filed with the city show large green areas with drought-resistant plants, native shade trees and surfaces that allow water to soak into the ground and reduce stormwater runoff.

Preservation debates in South Florida

The decision to demolish the former Collins estate highlighted a wider debate in South Florida real estate between historic preservation and the need to adapt to climate risks. Preservation advocates in Miami Beach have often raised concerns about the loss of early 20th-century architecture along North Bay Road and Star Island. These areas have attracted wealthy buyers who often purchase older homes mainly for the value of the land. The Daniel Heller Historic Preservation Fund and local residents raised questions at public hearings about whether parts of the 1929 home could be restored or included in the new design. However, representatives for the owner submitted engineering reports saying that bringing the existing building up to current South Florida Building Code storm standards would be technically impractical and financially unviable. Under Miami Beach rules, the Design Review Board decides whether proposed replacement homes fit the architectural character of the neighborhood, even when the existing building is being demolished. The board ultimately voted in favour of Bravo’s project, citing the quality of the proposed design and its compliance with modern environmental codes.

A changing North Bay Road landscape

Bravo’s project is part of a wider trend along North Bay Road, one of Miami Beach’s most prestigious residential areas. Over the past decade, wealthy individuals and finance executives moving to South Florida from New York and California have increasingly bought older luxury estates with plans to replace them with modern homes. Forbes has recognized Bravo as Wall Street’s first Puerto Rican-born billionaire. He moved to South Florida around the time of the purchase as his firm expanded its operations in Miami. Construction at the North Bay Road property began after final building permits were issued. The project is planned to include a main residence, guest house, dock facility and extensive outdoor amenities arranged around the redesigned tropical gardens.