Dream Homes

A Pine Ridge house primed for aesthetes, a stylish newcomer for urban living and a pool with defining character.

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Gold Standard

Naples’ Pine Ridge Estates is stirring up excitement these days, as high-profile homes commanding top-dollar prices keep popping up. Case in point: This 13,000-square-foot, eight-bedroom, eight-and-a-half-bathroom residence at 705 Myrtle Road.

Owned by Keith and Danielle Otto, the home resulted from a family effort. Keith’s brother, architect Kurt Otto of KO Group in New Jersey, drew up the plans with Naples builder Jim Sorbara and selected every background, color and finish, while Danielle chose all the furnishings.

Their painstaking precision included a two-year search for the perfect flooring: wide-plank wood in a St. Moritz finish from Legno Bastone’s European Elegance line. Additional wow-factor elements include a driftwood metal sculpture by Naples artist Ed Koehler installed on a dining room wall; a locally crafted staircase with wood, metal and glass elements; and an abstract marble floor motif at the entryway (a collaboration with Naples’ Ruben Sorhegui Tile Distributors). “From the outside to the inside, every little detail of the home has been catered to and nurtured along the way,” listing agent Jay Campbell of John R. Wood Properties says.

Said details include Cristallo Quartzite countertops and Wolf, Thermador, Miele and Sub-Zero appliances in the kitchen. The primary bedroom is a respite with massive, boutique-style his-and-her closets, as well as a spa bathroom with separate steam showers and water closets. Additional discoveries include a home gym, two offices, a theater, a game room and a kids’ den.

Outside, alfresco entertaining is easy thanks to the bar, dining area and lounge, complete with an outdoor kitchen, a firepit and sound system. The centerpiece 20-by-40-foot saltwater pool, flanked by a fire feature and shooting fountains, flaunts an adjacent spa, firepit and seating area, as well as a chic cabana to sit back and soak it all in. The home was listed at $15.25 million as of January.

Market Watch

As the appeal of living (and working and playing) in downtown Naples continues to gain traction, Stella Naples makes a strong case for vertical living with all the five-star bells and whistles.

The boutique property comprises 10 residences, ranging from 2,149 to 2,878 square feet, at 82 Ninth Street South, walking distance to the beach and Fifth Avenue South. Inspired by Naples’ natural beauty and designed by MHK Architecture & Planning, the units come with in-house design concierge services (via LVDSpaces) that deliver customizable floorplans with two overall design schemes—named Dusk and Dawn—as starting points. As the names imply, the plans vary between sunny, bright spaces and darker, handsome condos. Both marry a modern, transitional color palette—black, white and creamy neutrals—with natural materials, like bleached walnut and raffia, and distinctive accents, including matte black metals, polished nickel and smoked glass. “We created the Dusk model to appeal to a buyer who likes a little more drama and a masculine feel, with dark floors and black hardware on all the doors ... while the Dawn design gives you a bit of shine and femininity because of the lighter floors and the polished-nickel hardware,” LVD’s Dani Marie Glickson, the lead designer and project manager for Stella, says.

Prestige appliances, including Kohler Purist faucets, Sub-Zero refrigerators and Viking gas ranges, are complemented by finishes like handmade ceramic kitchen backsplash tiles, zero-iron glass shower doors, Ruffino cabinetry and wide-plank oak flooring. Custom fluted panels on the kitchen islands and bar cabinets; vertical-paneled mahogany front doors in a dark stain; and design-forward bathrooms with marble chevron tiling add to the posh feel.

Hitting a home run on livability, Stella units have large glass sliding doors that open to the expansive, covered lanai. Outside, all units feature gas fireplaces and private roof decks with Brazilian Ipe floors. “What we’re creating with this project is different from anything else in the market,” Glickson says. “We’re offering luxury-home quality in a condominium product, right in the heart of Olde Naples.” Residences start at $2.5 million as of December.

Must-Have Geometric Pool

Site conditions and neighborhood restrictions could have put a crimp in the pool plans for this Port Royal home built by Limitless Development. Luckily, creative solutions won out.

The saltwater pool, designed by Architectural Land Design, is a showpiece of modern geometry, stretching 53 feet alongside a canal. The angular design starts at just under 8 feet wide at the front edge to nearly 16 feet wide at the back edge. A faux infinity-edge acts as a space saver—by tiling the back beam of the pool in reflective glass agate tiles, the team created the illusion of an edgeless pool without needing the square footage for water spillover that infinity pools typically demand.

This prime entertaining spot also has ample patio space (tiled in shell stone), a west-facing sun shelf and an in-pool firepit with tiered seating. For cooler nights, there’s a separate spa flanked in Trex decking. We want to dive right in.