METAMORPHOSIS: Building the Dome of a Home

1 INTRODUCTION
When Mark and I were contemplating a move to Pensacola Beach, Florida, I was very concerned
about hurricanes. After asking the locals about storms, I was reassured when I heard repeatedly
that "they hadn't had a storm in years, nothing to worry about, ma'am."
Gathering our hopes and dreams in 1994, we moved from Kansas City to Pensacola Beach. The
home we bought needed to be gutted and completely remodeled. With great energy, we
immersed ourselves into our new project. Four months later, our home was remodeled and we
settled in.
One month later,
Tropical Storm Alberto
became the first of nine
storms we have
experienced in the past
eleven years.
Eighteen months after
moving into the house,
in August 1995,
Hurricane Erin removed
a large portion of our 12
on 12 pitch roof. Most
roofers never returned
our call and if they did I
was told, "There are
other, easier roofs to
repair and replace, why
take the chance?" So,
when Hurricane Opal
slammed into Pensacola Beach only 10 weeks later, we still had a gaping hole in our roof: a
double slam that left us in shocked dismay.
Slowly, as the residents began to replace their homes, we watched with concern as structures
were built quickly and seemingly without thought to how they would weather the next big storm.
Mark began pointing out the various aspects of the new homes that would fail in another
hurricane. Frequently, he would say, "If I were building a new home, I would … " His web surfing
ability served him well as he began researching better ways to build structures on a beach.
Our decision to build a dome home was more involved that simply building a new structure to live
in. When Mark and I visited Malta a few years ago and saw the centuries-old structures, Mark
became more determined than ever to build a structure that would withstand the test of time.
Malta is a country whose homes are used for several generations and their beautifully painted
transportation busses date from the 1950s. Malta‟s generational use of their resources were a
quite a contrast to our disposable society.
Malta‟s structures inspired Mark‟s search for a building that could withstand the test of time.
Mark also had a visionary desire to share the knowledge he acquired through his research with
the public and policy makers. Through the web site, various media exposure, and tours of the
dome, we hoped to stimulate an awareness of building alternatives within the coastal
communities. Our mission statement reflects this desire:
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