The home's 42 gothic columns, 11 domes, 11 rotundas and 10 high arched windows are visible from the beach — and beachgoers have marveled at the mansion's progress since construction began in 2002.
But now the more than $8 million project, located just north of the Jensen Beach Causeway, at 4545 N.E Ocean Blvd., is nearing completion.
The home has 20,000 square feet of living space. With the garage and decks, it totals more than 50,000 square feet. It can withstand up to 200-mile-per-hour hurricane winds. It has four bedrooms, six bathrooms, four powder rooms and eight entertainment rooms.
The mansion also has an 11,500 square-foot guesthouse with three to four bedrooms and five-and-a-half baths.
"I want to be their landscaper and work for life," said Armando Herrera, a 20-year-old beachgoer from Port St. Lucie.
David Souza, the general contractor with Libra Development, said the project should be finished around the middle of February. The guest house won't be finished for another four to five months.
The existing largest single-home in Martin County is not even half the total size and is for sale at almost $24 million dollars. According to Loretta Ferro and Winnie Okon, both Keyes Realtors, the home is in Sailfish Point, a few miles south on Hutchinson Island. It has a total of almost 26,000 square feet, eight bedrooms, nine baths and three powder rooms.
Robert Eustace, the new mansion's owner, and his wife, Elsa, will be living in the home full-time, Souza said. They might move in sometime in February or March.
Eustace founded a company south of Chicago 20 years ago called Applied Systems Inc. His company used computer software to make insurance agencies work easier and more efficient. He now owns Insuresoft, an Illinois-based insurance computer software supplier.
Eustace, who declined to comment on his new home, owns three other properties in the county that combine for almost 90,000 square feet. According to public records, Eustace's main residence on Doubloon Drive has a total of 10,333 square feet. His other property on Doubloon Drive has 4,899 square feet. He also owns an empty lot on Sewall's Point Road.
Once the mansion and guesthouse are complete, Eustace's homes will have almost 150,000 square feet.