Casa Casuarina Closed. Thanks Scott Rothstein.

Our sister paper, New Times Broward-Palm Beach has done some pretty amazing reporting on the Scott Rothstein mess. Among the fallout from the alleged $57 million the Broward lawyer allegedly stole in a Ponzi scheme: South Beach.Gianni Versace's former mansion on Ocean Drive, where a big buck restaurant and hotel...

By Chuck Strouse

November 11, 2009

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Our sister paper, New Times Broward-Palm Beach has done some pretty amazing reporting on the Scott Rothstein mess. Among the fallout from the alleged $57 million the Broward lawyer allegedly stole in a Ponzi scheme: South Beach.

Gianni Versace's former mansion on Ocean Drive, where a big buck restaurant and hotel have been operating, was closed after owners read about Rothstein's problems with the feds on Bob Norman's Daily Pulp blog.

Rothstein, you may have read, had a big expensive wedding at the landmark Casa Casuarina with Charlie Crist in attendance. He had formed a company called the Bova Group to run it. It is also owned by Tony Bova, who owns Bova Prime in Fort Lauderdale. The fate of that restaurant is unclear.

This is a big blow to the South Beach joint where Andrew Cunanan shot Versace. It recently attracted famed chef Wolfgang Birk and has always been a tourist attraction.

Many hoped it would again become a luxury destination on South Beach. Now it has to outlive a second stench.

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Chuck Strouse is the former editor in chief of Miami New Times. He has shared two Pulitzer Prizes and won dozens of other awards. He is an honors graduate of Brown University and has worked at newspapers including the Miami Herald and Los Angeles Times.

Contact: Chuck Strouse

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