1674-10 N.B.T. Roney —
Behind The
Front Page
Roney
AMan
Of Vision
By JOHN PENNEKAMP
"UNTIL the big steel ball begins
to smash it down, I won't believe it,"
said my friend as we drove in the
2300 block of Collins Ave., Miami
Beach.
He was referring,
of course, to the Ro-
ney Plaza Hotel. The
end of the hotel, one
o f Miami Beach's
great hotels and pi- s
oneer structures, has
been predicted several
times.
The present own-
ers, Frankel Brothers Pennekamp
Construction Co., Philadelphia. have
proposed a 14-story, 1,162-unit
apartment building for the ocean
front site, appraised as one of the
most valuable properties in the
world. .
It was built b1( B. T. Roney in
1925, opened in 192b', and tor years
could be seen from almost any point
along the beach — it was that big
and dominant in the community that
had not yet started its more modern
day building expansion.
pR 2 7 1968-
* *
RONEY spent $2 million on the
building, sold it in 1932 to Henry L.
Doherty. the public utilities magnate,
who sold it to the Schine hotel inter-
ests, which sold it to Harry Mufson
in 1966. Frankel paid Mufson a re-
ported$3.5 million.
With each change ownership
came reports that a structure
would give way to more modern
one.
However, exce t for the cabana
1 project on the o ean, which Roney
built for $200,00 as an answer to
depression fears expensive remodel-
ing was all that ook place.
1 _ * * *
punning, sola it in 1US2 to Henry L.
Doherty. the public utilities magnate,
i . who sold it to the Schine hotel inter-
ests, which sold it to Harry Mufson
in 1966. Frankel paid Mufson a re-
ported$3.5 million.
With each change .• ownership
came reports that e structure
would give way to more modern
one.
However, exce.t for the cabana
project on the o.ean, which Roney
built for $200,00 i as an answer to
.�depression fears 'expensive remodel-
ing was all that ook place.
* * *
SOMEWHE'E on the site —
possibly in the ew building — there
should be a tri.ute to the memory of
Roney,who di:. in 1952.
Roney, a s 'all man — about five
_ feet four — -as a slender, wispy,
balding, quiet spoken but intense
ua, man who ca e to Miami several
'A years before th- boom and took his
place with the i ther pioneer builders
H ' of the area.
a<
1 He had see the beach from a
boat while trave ing to Cuba, evalu-
ated its future .nd returned to be-
1H: come one of his :ra's real estate and
development geni ses. He pyramided
his ability into mi ions.
In those days :n old three-story
building,the Bisca'ne Hotel, stood at
the southeast corn•r of Miami Ave.
: and Flagler St. Riney bought the
k. property for $210,010 and sold it to
the United Cigar l ompany for $1
million.A part of the Burdine's build-
ing now is on the sit-
* * *
�� IN ANOTHER dea with the late
James M. Cox, one ti - governor of
9 Ohio, he made $4,645,010 in the sale
of 530 lots on the ocean ront north of
iJ. Golden Beach.
Another of his proj• is was the
Spanish Village, a coil tion of 18
— buildings on Espanola Way, and o
1E' some eight hotels. He built and
owned 200 shop units on i ollins Ave.
between Third and 23rd S...
He collected rare map and gave
a collection showing thre principal
periods of Florida history .. the Uni-
versity of Miami.
* * *
HE STARTED his busin•ss life as
a newsboy in Camden, N. , decided
to become a lawyer and w. admitted
to the bar in Pennsylvani., but re-
versed his course when he s.w Miami
Beach.
His initials (the N. B. was for
Newton Baker Taylor) s.arked a
collection of nicknames, " to Back
Talk Roney," "Nothing Bu. Trouble
Roney," among them.These ere not
typical of his character, use. joking-
ly. He was generally k own as
"Newt."
i 4. 1
• buiidmg, sold L.
Doherty. the publicitin utilities1932to magnateHenry ,
who sold it to the Schine hotel inter-
I ests, which sold it to Harry Mufson
___ine,_F,.o»Irn7. ,, ,A Muf nn a re-
* * * i
HE STARTED his busin•ss life as 1
a newsboy in Camden, N. , decided
j to become a lawyer and wa admitted
to the bar in Pennsylvani., but re-
'
versed his course when he s w Miami
Beach.
1 His initials (the N. B. was for
' ' Newton Baker Taylor) s.arked a
collection of nicknames, " o Back
Talk Roney," "Nothing Bu, Trouble
Roney," among them.These ere not
typical of his character, us-. joking-
ly. He was generally k own as
"Newt."
* * *
• HIS CONFIDENCE in he area's
- future never wavered. I 1943 he
'• said:
_t "Shucks, we haven't seen any-
Elthing. During the six or .even years
j following close of the w.. there'll be
more doing than in all of the pre- I
vious years since Flay er built his
railroad into Miami. T
"What's being ..ne here will
appear picayunish. I will be terrific.
"Present upswi•g in real estate
isn't due so muc to the war as to
the fact that pr' es here long have
been much too .w."
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