Restoration Includes Moving the House

HARC and a hurricane – and a lot of hard work – are restoring one of Key West’s historic wooden houses to more closely resemble the original.

The house, located on Fleming Street, was moved this week from the very back of the lot up toward the sidewalk, where it originally stood.

The Queen Anne frame home was constructed around 1935 and was relocated to the rear of the lot around 1962. For years, a large tree stood in front and obstructed the view of the house from the road.

In 2017, Hurricane Irma felled the tree.

This year, the Key West Planning Board and then the Historic Architectural Review Commission approved the restoration of the home’s location as well as raising it to a higher elevation for flood protection. The renovations included removing some late-date alterations to the rear of the home. The approved plans also include the construction of two units behind the house.

“Relocation of houses was a common practice in Key West,” says City of Key West Historic Planner Enid Torregrosa-Silva. “In the last years we are seeing more historic wood houses being elevated to make them more resilient. Today’s event brings the historic house back to her original location. The house will be kept on a higher elevation for up to five weeks so the new footers can be built. Once they are built, the house will then be lowered and secured on her new footings.”