TSR Cut The Foolery: Wow, Florida, you’re really not going to let any other state outdo you. A Florida couple had their whole dream wedding planned out at this stunning 16,300-square-foot mansion and estate.
The property featured a swimming pool with a waterfall, a hot tub, a bowling alley, tennis courts, a gazebo and an 800-foot bar. The only issue with the mansion was they didn’t own it and had no permission to use it.
Courtney Wilson and Shenita Jones really sent out elaborate invites to all their friends and family to join them for a lavish weekend ceremony and a Sunday brunch at the $5 million mansion. It wasn’t until Wilson and others showed up Saturday morning to set up that they realized the owner, Nathan Finkel, lived there.
“I have people trespassing on my property,” Finkel told a 911 dispatcher, according to the Associated Press. “And they keep harassing me, calling me. They say they’re having a wedding here and it’s God’s message. I don’t know what’s going on. All I want is (for) it to stop. And they’re sitting at my property right at the front gate right now.”
So yeah, unlike a Hollywood movie plot, it appeared the owner wasn’t going to have a change of heart and allow the wedding to take place anyway for all the effort.
Two officers showed up and told Wilson he had to leave, which he did. No charges were filed.
It was discovered that Finkel, whose late father was an early IHOP restaurant franchisee, has been trying to sell the property for two years, and the property was listed for a little more than $5 million.
Wilson allegedly posed as a potential buyer and toured the estate several months ago, according to Keith Poliakoff, attorney for Southwest Ranches, the upscale suburb where Finkel resides.
“A few months later, this guy asked Nathan if he could use Nathan’s backyard for his wedding,” Poliakoff said. “Nathan said no.”
The wild part was, the couple sent out invitations anyway that detailed their love story, like how they reconnected 30 years after high school and how he proposed to her over pizza on Christmas Eve.
The invitations even included an itinerary! The Saturday afternoon ceremony would be followed by a red carpet cocktail hour and a reception that would go past midnight. Sunday brunch would be from noon to 4.
“The guy figured it was a vacant house and didn’t realize Nathan lived on the property in a different home,” Poliakoff said. “This guy had no idea he lived there. You know the shock that must have been on his face when he showed up at the gate and the owner was home?”
Whew! We can only imagine the man’s face!
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