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Celine Dion's Taxes Will Go On

Celine Dion's estate on Jupiter Island
Singer Celine Dion’s new home is one of many multimillion-dollar estates on Jupiter Island, which accounts for 11% of Martin County’s property valuation. [Photo: Splash News]
Celine Dion has gotten unwelcome attention for the water slides and artificial “lazy river” feature she’s built on her Jupiter Island estate, but Martin County taxpayers might want instead to send her a thank-you note.

Dion’s home came onto the local tax roll this year at $6.758 million. Coupled with the value of the land, the Dion estate comes to $16.86 million in taxable value. It helped drive the tiny town of Jupiter Island, on the barrier island where Dion makes her home, to $1.92 billion in taxable value. With a population under 700 and just 535 or so homes, the town accounts now for nearly 11% of the county’s total property valuation, says Martin County Property Appraiser Laurel Kelly. Property in the town is valued at more than all of nearby Stuart, a city of 16,000 people.

With Greg Norman’s home on the market for $65 million, Jupiter Island’s reputation as one of the richest places in America remains intact. Still, Jupiter Island isn’t bubble-proof. CEOs awash with cash gobbled up property mid-decade. Then sales stalled with the global economy. While sales returned in 2009 and are keeping pace in 2010, values are off a solid 35% from the peak, says Adrian Reed, broker-agent with real estate firm Fenton, Lang Bruner & Associates.

Dion’s house was the largest project in a county that overall saw a 10% drop in the value of new construction in 2010 and a 58% drop from 2008, Kelly says. In more good news for Martin taxpayers, Tiger Woods’ new 9,000-sq.-ft. palace should be done in time for next year’s tax roll. Woods spent $44 million just for his 12 acres.

The big projects aren’t impacting the island’s look. Large lots and heavy landscaping requirements keep builders from spoiling the neighbors’ view — and from letting fans gawk.

In mid-June, 61 properties on the island were for sale, in line with the historical pattern, Reed says. The long-term outlook is excellent, he says. “It’s never going to go back to being a forgotten backwater. There’s no place like it. It’s a fantastic and unique community.”