by Reverend Dr Bob N. Wallace | Everglades Community Church
The Cape Romano Dome House was a fascinating structure consisting of six dome-shaped modules sitting on stilts above the Gulf of Mexico. It was originally built on an islet located approximately 300 feet (91 meters) offshore from Cape Romano Island, south of Marco Island, and north of Chokoloskee Island in the Ten Thousand Islands off Collier County, Florida.
The Dome House was constructed in 1982 by retired independent oil producer Bob Lee who spent much of 1978 and 1979 surveying and purchasing land on Morgan Island, Florida, with the intention of building a vacation home. He eventually purchased four adjacent plots of land for his project. In 1980, Lee began constructing his vacation home. In 1980. he purchased a barge to transport supplies for the building. The locals, however, had difficulty accepting this unconventional structure. Some believed the domes were home to evil spirits or aliens. But the truth was much less sensational. They were white-painted concrete structures built with a distinctive dome-shape to sustain storms and be hurricane-proof. The six stout, interconnected dome structures formed the rooms of the house. Some of these domes had two levels. The total floor area was 2,400 square feet (220 square meters), featuring three bedrooms and three bathrooms. Lee’s daughter, Jane Maples, recalled that building the Dome House was the fun part for her dad. He loved the seclusion of living on the island, enjoying activities like fishing, shelling, and watching the weather.
Lee was daring ahead of his time. He designed the house to run on solar power and be self-sustaining. The concrete walls were made from sand sourced from the island. Gutters were installed to collect rainwater, which was then purified and used throughout the home. He believed corners of rooms were wasted space, so he opted for dome-shaped ceilings to create a feeling of openness. As a result, the rooms felt exceptionally large and open.
Before erecting the Cape Romano structure, Lee built a full-scale model on land he owned in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Interestingly, the Tennessee dome house is still standing today. His innovative approach to sustainable living and unique architectural design made his Dome House a landmark in that area.
Unfortunately, the islet where his other Dome House stood in the Gulf of Mexico south of Marco Island was gradually eroded by successive hurricanes over the years.
By 2004, water levels began to meet the concrete pillars holding up the home. In 2005, Bob Lee sold the house to John Tosto, a Naples resident, for $300,000. Tosto intended to renovate the home, and Lee advised him to construct a seawall to end the erosion that had been ebbing away at the island for years. Tosto decided against this, and instead hoped to move it, using a crane, from its current location to a higher piece of land on the island on high concrete pillars. He estimated the project to take three or four months.
In 2007, the Collier County Code Enforcement Board ordered the structure to be demolished by the owners within two years because it was unsafe. In 2013, Florida Weekly reporter Cynthia Mott wrote in an article that while snorkeling at the site, she discovered the ruins now served as a reef, with diverse marine life.
On September 28, 2022, the remaining dome structures above water finally collapsed due to Hurricane Ian which made landfall in Southwest Florida on Cayo Costa Island, a pristine barrier island located along the Gulf of Mexico, north of Marco Island and west of Fort Myers, Florida. Just below peak intensity, Ian tied with several other storms as the 5th-strongest hurricane on record to make landfall in the contiguous U.S.
The Dome House has changed ownership several times, with the most recent ownership being the state of Florida since 2018. Despite its eventual demise, the Dome House remains a memorable piece of Florida’s architectural history. It was truly a unique and visionary creation by Bob Lee, blending sustainability, seclusion, and innovative design. Some of the pilings still stand above water. But the Cape Romano Dome House remains a captivating piece of Florida’s history. Its legacy lives on, even as it merges with the sea.
