Now It’s Ugly! Officials Say Old Owner ‘Robbed’ Kellogg Mansion
An already contentious situation is getting uglier.
Last month we told you about the controversy that had developed with the sale of the W. K. Kellogg's summer mansion in Dunedin, Florida. A local doctor with four young children was going to demolish the structure, which dates back to 1925. This had neighbors upset. The incoming owner, Dr. David Wenk, said he was willing to let the mansion to be moved to another location but that the cost of doing that wasn't coming out of his pocket.
Well, now a new twist in the story. Wenk and his family finally closed on the property and last weekend came over to enjoy a Florida sunset. The good feelings turned sour when the new owners discovered that the previous owners had, apparently, sold some historical artifacts from the house.
tbnweekly.com says,
"The previous owner, Dane Webb, had signed a joint agreement with the new owners, David Wenk and Christa Carpenter, the city of Dunedin and its historical society, that stated Webb would remove personal effects but leave the original fixtures. The historical society would then document the mansion and preserve or auction certain artifacts before the new owners were to demolish the structure and build a new home." - tbnweekly.com
The City of Dunedin attorney Nikki Day adds to this: “Ms. Webb deliberately hired a third-party salvage company to remove and offer for sale chandeliers, doors, statues and other historical architectural fixtures,” Day say it was actually more than one salvage company.
The story goes on to quote the city manager saying pretty much anything original to home, dating back to the Kelloggs was gone.
Officials are trying to contact the salvage companies, but claim they don't have a full list of who they were, and to add to the mess, the salvage people are claiming they have a valid contract, and that they don't know these might be stolen goods.
The guess here is, this case is going to court.
Here's a look at the mansion from when it was up for sale.
The former summer home of cereal tycoon W.K. Kellogg
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