On the market in Palm Beach: Updated condo in Bellaria is listed at about $8.3M, furnished

In Palm Beach, it’s become an interior-design mantra: Bring the outside in, whenever possible.

That maxim is certainly apparent in Carol Vance’s vacation condominium on the fifth floor of Bellaria in the South End. All the major rooms have either ocean or lake views, which inspired the interior color palette.

Drapery fabric in blue, green and aqua on a white background, for instance, dress the sliding glass doors and set the overall tone for Vance’s recently renovated apartment, No. 507 at 3000 S. Ocean Blvd.

Vance, whose primary home is in Lake Forest, Illinois, found the apartment in March 2021, when she and her late husband, Bill, were shopping for a seasonal residence.

The three-bedroom, three-and-a-half bath condo — with 3,680 square feet of living space inside and out — has a private elevator foyer that opens directly into the dining area and living room, which face the ocean. The main bedroom suite is immediately adjacent. These spaces open to the balcony offering ocean views.

A central hallway leads past the kitchen to the family room, flanked by two guest suites. They access a balcony to the west, affording views of the Intracoastal Waterway.

Vance, a retired attorney, acknowledges the water views first grabbed her attention.

“They are excellent, above the tree line,” Vance says.

And later, when her husband came to see the apartment for the first time, he agreed.

“He looked at the views, and said, ‘OK, this is the one,’ ” Vance recalls.

But the Vances had only a few months to enjoy their home once their renovation was completed. Bill, a publishing executive, died in September at 75.

“I could hold onto (the condo), but it was for the both of us, and there’s a lot of space,” Vance says. “Now, it’s just me and my pooch.

“Maybe some time in the future I’ll come back to Palm Beach.”

As such, she is offering her condo for sale, furnished, through Premier Estate Properties agent Rosalind Clarke, who has it priced at $8.295 million.

To renovate and redecorate, the Vances worked with Lidia Monti, a senior design consultant for Ethan Allen in Palm Beach Gardens.

“The Vances wanted to have a home in Palm Beach that reflected the lightness and airiness of living by the ocean,” Monti says.

“I selected all the materials, color schemes and products and flew to their home (in Illinois) to show them, and they agreed without many modifications.”

Monti also oversaw the construction, along with the installation of window treatments, furniture and other aspects of the interior design.

“I took care of everything for them, and a year later, they just showed up,” Monti says.

The tile floors were polished, and walls were wallpapered. Custom cabinetry was installed in the living room, and the ceiling was lowered to accommodate lighting.

The main bathroom, finished in marble and tile, was renovated and reconfigured to make room for a wheelchair-accessible shower, and one of the guest bedrooms was repurposed as an office. Closets were custom-fitted. Fabrics and finishes were customized on the Ethan Allan furnishings to coordinate with the overall color scheme.

The kitchen, however, did not need renovating.

“It’s very simple, elegant and pretty with white cabinets,” Monti says. “The only thing we did was to add counter bar stools.”

With a Palm Beach address, Bellaria was completed in 2008 immediately south of Lake Worth Beach’s historic “casino,” with its public beach, pier and shopping area.

Bellaria’s two buildings each have five residential floors and 18 units. The development was designed by the late Palm Beach architect Gene Lawrence for Gordon Deckelbaum and Mike Kempner of Premier Developers.

Bellaria’s amenities include direct beach access, a gym, a billiards room, a media room and a party space.

In the short time Carol Vance lived in the development, she says, she enjoyed Bellaria and its amenities.

“Bellaria is the newest building on the street. It’s well-maintained, clean, and the 24-hour staff is very reliable, she says. “Lidia did a great job with our apartment.

Asked what she’ll miss about island life, she refers to another mantra well known to residents and visitors alike: Shopping and dining out might as well be designated official Palm Beach pastimes.

“People will laugh, but it’s true,” she says. “I hate to admit: I’ll miss the restaurants and shopping on Worth Avenue.”

To see more photos of the Unit No. 507 at 3000 S. Ocean Blvd. in Palm Beach, click on the photo gallery at the top of the page.

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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: On the market in Palm Beach: Updated condo priced at $8.3M, furnished