Clothing tycoon buys record-setting Bird Key home for $12M

A new record for Bird Key real estate has been set with the Dec. 6 sale of 683 Mourning Dove Drive for $11.5 million.

The six-bedroom waterfront home narrowly eclipsed the previous record for the most expensive sale on Bird Key, 626 S. Owl Drive, which sold on June 1 of this year for $11.25 million.

Teresa Franklin with Dalton Wade Inc. represented the sellers, Douglas and Teresa Franklin, of Sylva, South Carolina. 

Judy Kepecz-Hays with Coldwell Banker Realty represented 683 Mourning Drive’s buyers, Jerald and Kathleen Kamiel, of Sarasota.

Jerald Kamiel is the president of Garan Inc., which is the parent company of Garanimals, a children’s clothing line sold at Walmart. Garan is owned by Berkshire Hathaway. Kamiel’s Siesta Key home at 3500 Bayou Louise Lane is currently listed for $11.5 million.

Located at the southern tip of Bird Key on a 0.5-acre lot, the 5,748-square-foot home at 683 Mourning Drive offers 270-degree views of Big Pass. The home was built in 1996 and renovated in 2016.

The lot was designed to feel like a private island and features a 75-foot infinity pool along with an outdoor hot tub. The house also has its own dock.

Indoors are six en suite bedrooms, a pool bath and a powder room, as well as a “flex room” for an office, workout room or art studio. 

The home is assessed a monthly HOA fee of $62, according to the sellers' listing.