The exterior of a 103-year-old seaside mansion designed by iconic Palm Beach architect Addison Mizner — and subdivided into six condominiums in the 1980s — will likely need significant repairs, a town official has told the Code Enforcement Board.

Cracked stone columns, crumbling windowsills and "spalling" concrete details are evident at various spots on the exterior walls of condo Unit No. 1 at The William Gray Warden House condo building on North Ocean Boulevard. During the code board’s most recent meeting, Jason Shinn of Shoreline Construction told officials he had been hired by The Warden House Condo Association to repair stonework for a small section of the building’s northeastern facade. He said the project would cost a little more than $21,000. But town staff said that project represents just a portion of the repairs needed at the award-winning building, 200 N. Ocean Blvd. At the July 17 meeting, Planning, Zoning and Building Director Wayne Bergman described the exterior as having “extensive” damage that would require significant work. Town Hall's only guidance was that the repairs must be extensive enough to satisfy a town ordinance that “requires the exterior of a structure shall be maintained in good repair, structurally sound and sanitary.”

The historic building's deteriorated state has triggered a code enforcement case against the Warden House Condominium Association.

Designed in 1922 by Mizner for Standard Oil Partner William Gray Warden, the former mansion is considered a good example of the architect’s Mediterranean-Revival style. Even after its conversion to condos by the late developer and real estate investor Robert Eigelberger, the U-shaped building's interior still features Mizner's handcrafted tile floors, antique European stained-glass windows and intricate stonework detailing, as well other historic elements.

 

Code board members ordered the condo association to pay a $150 administrative fee and bring the building into compliance by Aug. 18 or face a fine consideration hearing during the board’s Aug. 21 meeting.

Condo president says work will be done to satisfy town's concerns

After the meeting, condo association President Tim Rooney Jr. told the Palm Beach Daily News the building's leadership is prepared to expand the project as much as needed to satisfy the town’s concerns. He said on July 22 that the association was working to hire an engineer to inspect the property to better understand its condition.

Rooney said the association and its contractor are not yet sure if the work will require any repairs for structural deterioration or will be limited to fixing cosmetic problems. Any deficiencies will be addressed once the inspection process is completed, he said.

"It's a house that was cut into six apartments back in 1980 when it underwent significant renovations and restorations — and it's just time to readdress the building," said Rooney, whose extended family owns the Pittsburgh Steelers and has deep roots in Palm Beach.

The estimated cost of any additional work won't be determined until the inspection is complete and the scope of the work finalized.

Private developer Glaser raises issues before code board

At the July 17 meeting, Palm Beach and Miami developer and real estate investor Todd Michael Glaser spoke to code officials about the state of the building. Glaser said he is planning buy Unit No. 1 once there is a building permit to fully repair the exterior walls.

Glaser has a contract pending on the condo unit, which is listed for sale at nearly $26 million. The unit last changed hands in 1991 and is owned by Duc Nhu Holdings Inc., property records show.

According to emails reviewed by the Daily News, Glaser had been requesting that the town review the condition of the building since June 2024.

He told the board that most of the damages appeared to have occurred within the past year.

Glaser presented photographs during the July 17 meeting that he said showed deterioration at the Warden House. Vice Chair Scotch Peloso told Glaser the photos of the property gave the board more "context" about the situation but at that moment were not allowed to be admitted as evidence as part of the code-enforcement case.

Glaser, who lives in a landmarked home across town, told the code board he attributed the building's deterioration to a lack of maintenance over many years.

Glaser later told the Daily News a thorough building inspection is needed to determine if there is structural deterioration.

Whatever the inspection reveals, the condo association would likely need to consult about any work with town's Landmark Preservation Commission, which oversees properties that have earned landmark protection.

The Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach also would have to be consulted under a longstanding agreement that requires the nonprofit organization to serve as a guardian of the building’s historic exterior.

Designed as a mansion but converted into condos in the early 1980s

The conversion of the Warden House from a mansion to condos grabbed local headlines about four decades ago. By the 1970s, the original mansion had been vacated and remained untouched until Eigelberger purchased the building in 1979 and rehabilitated the original facade, while converting its interior into the six condo units. That same year, Palm Beach passed its landmark preservation ordinance, and The Warden House became one of the town’s first landmarked structures.

Three years after Eigelberger completed the rehabilitation project, The Warden House was added to the National Park Services’ National Register of Historic Places in 1984. In 1988, Eigelberger’s rehabilitation project — along with a similar one at nearby Bienestar, another historic mansion — earned the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach’s inaugural Robert I. Ballinger Award for historically sensitive renovations.
Years of coastal winds weathered The Warden House's eastern facade

In the 44 years since the Warden House was converted into condos, the building has undergone work to keep it maintained, building records show. Roof repairs occurred in 2009, 2012 and 2021, according to the town’s permit database.

But the database shows the building's exterior walls have had little to no work done since 2000.

In a tour of the property, a reporter from the Daily News noted what appeared to be signs of exterior deterioration at Unit No. 1 in the building’s northeast section. At various windows, the stone columns appeared cracked or crumbling.

The crumbled stonework exposed what appeared to be rebar at one of the unit’s east-facing windows. At another window on the unit’s south side, the top of the cast-stone window frame had crumbled and chunks lay on the windowsill.

The deterioration has sparked some safety concerns, according to code officer John Moriarty, who spoke at the July meeting. He said he had seen pieces of the exterior's cast-stone detailing on the Warden House's northern driveway. If the repairs aren't made, a piece of stone could possibly end up falling on someone, Moriarty told the board.

Even so, the situation did not qualify as a significant "life-safety" issue for residents, he noted.

Rooney said the erosion is likely the result of the salty coastal winds, noting that Unit No. 1 is one of the apartments closest to the Atlantic coastline.

How will the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach be involved?

It’s not just town ordinances that regulate the condition of the building’s exterior as the building operates under a so-called “conservation easement” with the Preservation Foundation, related to the Warden House's designation in the National Register of Historic Places.

Signed in 1987 and spearheaded by Eigelberger, the easement doubles as an agreement between the Warden House Condo Association and the Preservation Foundation, giving the foundation perpetual rights as a guardian of the building's historical architecture.

According to the document, the condo association is required to “maintain the building in a good and sound state of repair,” and ensure that The Warden House’s exterior remains in good condition.

As part of the agreement, the Preservation Foundation has the right to inspect The Warden House's exterior at will and require the condo association to repair any deterioration identified at the site.

Moreover, the agreement has a clause that allows the Preservation Foundation to leapfrog the condo association and spearhead any repairs needed to restore the building to its original condition.

Aimee Sunny, the foundation's director of preservation and planning, said the organization is monitoring the code-enforcement case and is ready to provide guidance and review any proposal from the condo association.

A representative of the foundation did not attend the July 17 meeting.

“The Preservation Foundation is really the steward of this building. If you read the easement, it states they need to go there and check the property regularly,” Glaser said.

Rooney said the association acknowledges the agreement and plans to reach out to the foundation through Shoreline Construction to ensure its involvement in the repair process.

He said the condo association had worked with the foundation and landmark preservation officials at Town Hall when the building's roof was repaired in 2021.

“We are certainly going to adhere to whatever is required to be fully compliant with all our obligations,” Rooney said.