Ormond Beach mansion with ties to pop culture history can be yours for $5M

An oceanfront luxury home in Ormond Beach with a unique connection to a piece of pop culture history can be yours for a cool $5 million.

The 3-story mansion at 489 Ocean Shore Blvd. was originally built in 1994 for a grandson of the man who oversaw the design and patenting of the iconic Coca-Cola bottle. The property was listed on March 2.

Here's what we know about the property and its ties to "The Real Thing":

Its original owner has ties to a piece of pop culture history

The original owner of the home was Chapman J. Root II, whose great-grandfather, Chapman Jay Root Sr., owned The Root Glass Company which created the iconic Coca-Cola bottle for the soft drink maker in 1915.

The elder Root's son, Chapman S. Root, moved the family business from Indiana to Daytona Beach in 1951, where it continues to be located at 275 Clyde Morris Boulevard.

The company now goes by the names The Root Organization and The Root Companies, which includes Tri-Square Realty. Its primary business today is managing real estate investment properties owned by the Root family. Among them are several small office parks in the Daytona Beach area. Tri-Square also helps outside clients buy and sell commercial properties.

The Root family is also actively involved in philanthropic efforts in the Daytona Beach area.

Preston Root, one of Chapman J. Root II's brothers, still lives in the area and was a longtime radio commentator on NASCAR.

A display on the Root family's role in designing the Coca-Cola bottle can be seen at the Museum of Arts & Sciences in Daytona Beach.

When was the house built?

Chapman J. Root II commissioned the design and construction of the oceanfront mansion at 489 Ocean Shore Blvd. in 1994. He and his wife sold it in 2001 for $1.6 million, according to Volusia County property records.

The current owners, Thomas and Eva Finstein, bought the house in October 2020 for $3.2 million, according to property records.

The house is across the street from the Oceanside Country Club and golf course.

Who designed it?

The house was designed by late William Morgan, a renowned Jacksonville architect and author who died in 2016 at age 85.

Wayne Wood, lead author of the book "Jacksonville's Architectural Heritage," described Morgan in a 2016 interview with the Florida Times-Union as an influential figure in what became known as the "mid-century modern" architectural movement that emerged after World War II. Examples of his work included the Museum of Science and History in Jacksonville, as well as that city's Police Administration Building and the riverfront Daniel State Office Building.

"He was probably, after Henry Klutho, the best-known Jacksonville architect of all time," said Wood. "William Morgan was known internationally. He is truly one of the towering figures of Jacksonville."

Chadd Going, the listing agent for the Ormond Beach house Morgan designed, said the architect considered it "his crown jewel." The awards Morgan received for the house included a National Honor Award from the American Institute of Architects, a Modernist Docomo Award, and Regional 2000 Millennium Award of Honor for Design and Design Excellence Award, also from the AIA.

"In the entryway, there's a bookshelf with books and magazines of the awards the house has won as well as (Morgan's) original sketches of the house that are framed," said Going.

It also includes a display of the history of the Coca-Cola bottle and the Root family's role in its creation.

What does it offer?

The property offers 7,483 square feet of living space, which includes a 1,600-square-foot one bedroom/one bath guest house in front of the main house. In total, it offers six bedrooms, six full baths and three partial baths as well as a two-car garage. The driveway and surface parking area in front can accommodate another 14 cars for when the house is used to host parties, said Going.

Amenities include a 63-foot-long, 60,000-gallon infinity pool in back, as well as a waterfall and koi pond surrounded by palm and fruit trees, and a fenced-in zen garden in front. The first-floor gathering room includes 33-foot-tall ceilings and a floor-to-ceiling glass wall overlooking the ocean.

"One of the unusual features in the great room is a cantilever bridge that connects the two sides of the house on the second floor," said Going.

The house also offers "an updated kitchen with top-of-the-line appliances include a Sub-Zero refrigerator and a Sub-Zero wine refrigerator as well as a Gaggenau gas-and-electric stove," said Going.

The 19,200-square-foot lot includes 93 feet of beach frontage.

A video of the home, produced on Going's behalf to market the property, can be seen on YouTube.

The listing agent is no stranger to the area

Going of Premier Sotheby's International Realty in Orlando also represents the current owners of a mansion in Ponce Inlet that was put up for sale last year with an asking price of $14 million.

The asking price for the 6-bed, 8.5-bath Ponce Inlet mansion at 4852 S. Peninsula Drive was lowered in February to $12.9 million. "We've had quite a bit of interest in it from all over the world," he said of the Ponce Inlet property. "We've had a few offers, but not what my sellers are looking for."

What also does he have to say about the Ormond listing?

"The most striking thing to me about the house is how luxurious it is and the location," said Going of the former Root family mansion. "It's right in the middle of the public accesses (to the beach), with 14 houses on either side."

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: For sale: Ormond mansion with ties to Coca-Cola can be yours for $5M