The Abrahamson Residence (its pool is our featured image) will be open on March 19 for the Anna Maria Island Tour of Homes. Photo by Jack Elka.
The Brakefield Residence is featured on the Anna Maria Island Tour of Homes. Couortesy photo / Jack Elka.
The Welch Residence will be open on March 19 for the Anna Maria Island Tour of Homes. Courtesy photo / Jack Elka.
On an island that is seeing a lot of new construction, with big houses replacing small ones, the 23rd annual Anna Maria Island Tour of Homes will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, March 19. Tickets are $20.
The 2016 tour will include five island properties in Holmes Beach and Anna Maria. The homes reflect various styles of island living, from bigger and newer to older and smaller, and provide participants with ideas for interior decorating and entertainment.
The Boutique offers original arts and crafts, culinary delights and chances to win a beautiful handmade quilt created by the Eyeland Needlers. All proceeds benefit The Center of Anna Maria Island, which services more than 5,000 children, families and seniors in the community.
Homes on the tour:
-- Erik Abrahamson House, 810 South Bay Drive, Anna Maria. This new custom home on Tampa Bay has “Old World European charm” with antique furniture and décor in a masculine scale. Entering the front door, views are of the Sunshine Skyway and Egmont and Passage keys. A dramatic pool sits on the ground level, beneath the house.
-- Jennifer and Shawn Kaleta Residence, 102 48th St., Holmes Beach. This is a 1930s beach bungalow, overlooking the Gulf of Mexico, that has been completely updated. An archway of oolitic limestone leads to the backyard beach.
-- Lisa and Mike Brakefield Residence, 615 Ivanhoe Lane, Holmes Beach. In this Key Royale home, color plays an important role in the décor. In the kitchen, the counter top, made of reclaimed barn wood from Mike Brakefield’s family farm in South Carolina, is an attention-getter.
-- Diane and Kurt Snouffer Residence, 534 70th St., Holmes Beach. This house, built in 2012, was on a recent tour, but it has been freshened by its new owners. Bimini Bay can be viewed from all rooms on the main level.
-- Dave and Kerri Welch Residence, 513 83rd St., Holmes Beach. Something happened on the owners’ motorhome tour through the United States. On their first stop, they fell in love with Anna Maria Island and have lived in several of its houses since then. They moved into this house in 2015. They, too, have an oolitic limestone arch, leading to the front door.
For more tour information, call Sandee Pruett at (941) 518-7717, or email sandeepruett@gmail.com.
