Cape Romano Dome Houses

For the longest time many in the state of Florida wondered what these mysterious structures were. Some said aliens, others said maybe a secret cult of sorts. But in reality, this series of structures was the holiday home of Bob Lee and his family. Lee, an independent oil producer from the south loved DIY projects, and designed and built the Cape Romano home in 1980. I may also be as brave to say that the home was well advance for its time, being self sustaining and solar powered. Before being built in Florida, Lee built a prototype on his land in Tennessee. Lee purchased the land in Florida for the Dome Houses to be built on. 

The domes unique design helped protect it from extreme weather. Being elevated off the ground protected them from flood water and the dome design itself helped protect the home from hurricane force wind and rain. During huricane Andrew in 1993 several exterior windows were broken and water and debris did get inside.

After that storm, the Domes were visited less and less by the family and was soon abandoned as stronger storms began to hit the slowly disappearing coastline. A man named John Tosto bought the Domes and 2005, but shortly after hurricane Wilma caused significant damage and further eroded the coastline. 

The only way to save the home would have been to build a protective sea wall, but the EPA and local building code enforcement board ordered the homes taken down. Tosto never removed the homes, and soon the sea filled in around them. Only now accessible by boat, some locals like to fish near the abandoned homes. 

Now just a shell of their former selves, the Cape Romano Dome Houses stand in the water as an architectural marvel. For one man, Bob Lee, was able to create a sustainable home that would be sought after in the world today. The homes watery grave serves as a reminder and a warning that we need to design with sustainability in mind because we never know what the world will look like tomorrow.