Pensive, Listening Ty
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Here is how this home ended up needing this extreme makover!
Makeover Plan An Extreme Surprise
By NICOLA M. WHITE The Tampa Tribune
Published: Jan 8, 2007
TAMPA - In an instant last June, the life the Tate family knew and loved was destroyed in a freak accident.
A turboprop plane trying to land at the nearby Peter O. Knight Airport skidded, tore through an airport fence and careened into their Davis Islands home. The aircraft and the house burst into flames and the pilot was killed.
The house was gutted; the family's minivan turned into a hulk of rusted metal in the driveway.
"There was very little left - some pots and pans, a few souvenirs out of some drawers," Cynthia Tate said.
Sunday morning, the Tates learned their family's luck was about to turn when a film crew rolled up to the Ballast Point home where they have been staying. After months of knowing they were finalists, the Tates found out they would be featured on ABC TV's reality show, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition."
By next week, the Tates, known locally for their Tate Brothers Pizza shop on Davis Boulevard, will have a new home - free of charge - and their story broadcast on national television.
"We knew there was a possibility, but never in a million years did we know it was going to happen," Cynthia Tate said.
The Emmy award-winning show, in its fourth season, showcases families desperately in need of, well, an extreme home makeover. Often, the families tell emotional stories and the show wraps up with hugs and tears as the family sees its new home for the first time.
The work is completed in a week. Thousands of people will work around the clock on the Tate's house. WCI Communities, a luxury homebuilder based in California, and its subcontractors will do the task free of charge.
"It's nice to bring folks together - A, to help a family, and B, why not build a house in a week?" said Tim Oak, regional president for WCI.
Six blocks around the home at 629 E. Davis Blvd. will be roped off to traffic as camera and construction crews take over the neighborhood. On Sunday afternoon, many neighbors came out to root for the Tates.
"We're excited; it's good for them," said Anna Plowman, who lives behind the Tates.
The Tates' house will be built to fit with the rest of the neighborhood. What it will look like is closely guarded because the show builds on the suspense of revealing the new house at the end of the episode.
The Tates' episode could be televised in March, the show's producers told WCI, the homebuilder.
By late afternoon Sunday, the family - including children Ryan, 21, Tommy, 14, and Loren, 11 - walked out of the charred house and hopped into a white stretch Hummer to be whisked away to Costa Rica for a week while film and construction crews knock down and rebuild their home.
The family looked overwhelmed and excited.
"I'm numb, it's a dream come true," Cynthia Tate said. "Seven months ago, I stood across the street and saw everything die."
The Tates bought the four-bedroom home in 1993. It is assessed at $248,000, according to property records. Although the family had insurance, it didn't cover the extreme damage to their home, Tom Tate said.
They never thought about leaving the close-knit neighborhood.
"We were always hoping to come back," Tom Tate said.
Out Of Wreckage, A Home Will Rise
By B.C. MANION The Tampa Tribune
Published: Jan 9, 2007
TAMPA - Four-year-old Colton Dunn climbed up a chain-link fence to get a better view of the track hoe slamming into his neighbors' house on Davis Islands.
"Tear down this house!" the little boy yelled as the machine's mechanical jaws bit into the roof of the yellow frame home.
As the house came crashing down, the stench of charred wood drifted, reminding neighbor Lori Diaz of the awful smell that filled the air on June 12. That's the day a turboprop plane attempting to land at nearby Peter O. Knight Airport skidded into Tom and Cynthia Tate's home of 13 years.
The crash killed the pilot, seriously injured the co-pilot and destroyed the home. Cynthia, home alone with her pets, made it outside. The pets did not.
The house has sat empty ever since. The Tates' insurance won't cover the cost to rebuild, and the property was soaked with jet fuel, which must be removed before any work can be done.
On Sunday, crews from ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" show surprised the family, telling them they would have a new home - and a clean yard - in a week. The family has been staying at a friend's home.
The couple and their three children are relaxing in Costa Rica while WCI Communities Inc., a Florida-based home builder, its subcontractors and volunteers get the job done.
Jackie Soper, a 58-year-old winter resident, was among the crowd of spectators watching Monday's effort. She's a big fan of the show.
"I just love anything that has to do with helping people," Soper said.
WCI Communities, Inc. and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Team Up to Build Dream Home for Tampa, Fla. Area Family.
