Pearl Homes donates concept home to benefit nonprofit

A Bradenton home builder is donating a 540-square-foot concept home to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Manatee County for auction, with all proceeds benefiting the nonprofit.

Measuring 12-by-45 feet, the move-in ready concept home by Pearl Homes includes all fixtures, furnishings, GE Energy Sense appliances and more.

The concept home, described as an additional dwelling unit, or as a live-work home for those who work remotely, is equipped with solar panels and Sonnen electric storage battery technology. It has the ability to be self-sustaining and to contribute excess power back to the community and utility companies.

Marshall Gobuty, founder and president of Pearl Homes, and a former board member of the nonprofit, is donating the concept home as the Boys & Girls Clubs of Manatee County celebrates 75 years of helping local youth realize their potential and envision a bright future.

The donation will take place via an auction this fall.

The concept home provided the foundation for three of Pearl Homes’ communities now in development in Manatee County. The luxury living Gulf Coast residences at Hunters Point in Cortez, and two workforce housing projects in downtown Bradenton, The Epic and The Met.

“There have been many positive changes in the Manatee County community since I first started building Mirabella, which is the development project that led to the creation of the Pearl Home,” Gobuty said in a press release.

“That’s why a big part of saying thanks involves helping shape the future for those who need it most – our kids. Over the years as a board member of the Foundation for Boys & Girls Clubs of Manatee County, I witnessed firsthand, how the clubs helped so many young people,” Gobuty said.

The online auction will be held in September and be managed by Tranzon Driggers, part of the Tranzon, LLC network of auction companies located throughout the United States. The bid amounts will be visible, but the bidders’ names will not be disclosed.

The winning bidder will be responsible for transporting and setting up the home on their property with guidance and direction from the Pearl Homes team. Other terms and conditions will apply. For more information visit the auction website located at: https://www.bgcmanatee.org/MillionDollarHome.

“We are so appreciative of what Marshall and the Pearl Homes team have developed and thank them for their one-of-a-kind donation to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Manatee County,” Dawn Stanhope, president and CEO, said in a press release. “This type of donation, and the funds it will help raise, is more than just a gift. It shows how spirited, devoted and caring members of our community can find new and unique ways to help us carry on our efforts for the future.”

Pearl Homes invested more than $1 million in research and development in the concept home during the past three years. The prototype that was constructed and designed in a research and design center in Manatee County.

“What Pearl Homes is doing to be sustainable captures all that the USGBC is about,” said Mahesh Ramanujam, president and CEO of the U.S. Green Building Council. “Observing Marshall and his team with Mirabella, and now with Hunters Point, clearly demonstrates their commitment to the environment and a long term sustainability.”

Boys & Girls Clubs of Manatee County’s mission is “to enable all young people, especially those that need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens.” In operation since 1946, Boys & Girls Clubs of Manatee County currently provides after-school and summer programs for more than 1,500 young people at six locations, including two traditional clubs and four school-based clubs. In 2019, the club opened a 37,800-square-foot-facility at 5236 30th St. W.

The clubs offer a safe place to learn and grow, where members experience both life-enhancing and character- building programs focused on academic success, healthy lifestyles, and good character and citizenship. For more information, call 941-761-2582 or visit https:/www.bgcmanatee.org.