- Log In
- Log In
This is the journey of our beloved 1955 Dade County Pine cottage being thoughtfully lifted – literally and figuratively–into a new era. What was once a cozy 1,000 sq. ft. family home will soon be expanded to a 1,400 sq. ft. storm–hardened residence for the Connor McNichols family. This transformation preserves the home’s Olde Florida charm while adding space, comfort, and resilience. Our properties are near several bodies of water–the Gulf approximately 2 miles away, Naples Bay less than 1 mile, and Haldeman Creek about 1,000 feet to the south.
First beam going under the house.
8/13/25 Underpinning the home.
Cottage after Milton
Joe in the barn during Helene
Phase one of the lift is done.
AC Unit keeping the cottage cool and dry with the help of a lot of DampRid products.
The cottage is now up about 16′ where Earth Works can get in to fill, grade, and compact the dirt in preparation for the new concrete foundation.
Cottage being lifted 8/18/25
Coconuts and Passion Flower from the backyard.
The Gorilla cart has been getting a lot of use – from moving plants to picking up construction debris.
To date four generations of our family have lived in the cottage as full-time residents.
09/01/25 Connor’s family is extremely excited to get back into their home.
09/08/25 The iron and metal is in place for the footers and foundation. Soil has been sprayed for termites. Joe ordered pilings from Jason with Decks and Docks. Connor and Missy picked out the decking yesterday; it is a composite material made in Florida.
09/15/25 Today we have a crew of 8+ workers, pump truck and right now two concrete trucks.
09/15/25 Here comes the concrete now through the hose.
Scott Marcotte Construction Crew is on it! They are working on what will be the new front porch, the primary bed and bath addition, along with an indoor laundry.
Beth began researching funding options:
Additional flood insurance proceeds State or Federal grants/loan programs.
After multiple discussions with the County, it became clear that if we wanted this done before the next hurricane season, we’d need to fund it ourselves
By May, the County changed its rules on trusts making our earlier $500 fix unnecessary.
Joe and Tim worked tirelessly with the County, sometimes losing 1-2 weeks in delays depending on who reviewed our file.
Met with plumber, electrician, and carpentry contractor — their names & contacts will be highlighted at project completion.
After much research about local lifting companies, we realized Flint & Doyle were the company to
call. They have an amazing history and scope of work in Southwest Florida for lifting structures –
both commercial and small homes such as ours. We are so thankful they responded to our calls and emails.
After contacting Flint & Doyle, we realized that there is a whole lot more than just lifting a structure. A lot of planning and prep work must be completed before they’ll even consider putting you on the schedule.
Once we realized we needed to assemble a team, we reached out to our longtime friend and contractor, Tim Cabral of Cabral Construction.
Tim is creative, innovative, and deeply knowledgeable about Old Naples cottages.
The addition gives the young McNichols family much–needed space, while keeping the Old Florida charm intact.
Most of their belongings are now stored at:
Our home and Connor’s brother’s garage
Early August 2025: Earthworks came for lot prep around the house, including removing foliage and demolishing two concrete pads under the carport/porch. They are a local family business who have completed several projects for us previously, including the tear–down of the Carson’s 1940s vintage pink cottage. This property was purchased for long–term use- for gardening, play areas for the kids and dogs, and potentially another home for Joe and Beth as they age.
Joe has been working with Naples Lumber to order the new impact–resistant PGT windows for the existing structure and new large beams for under the house.
The lifting process began with Flint & Doyle on site.
Chad Flint and his crew spent a couple of full days prepping the structure, removing sand, shoring up, and installing support beams under the house- two north/south and four east/west.
The next day, Chad and his crew started the lifting process. Watching our cottage rise was both painstaking and impressive.
The initial lift brought the cottage up about 5-6 feet, allowing the carpentry contractor to install beams that will support the home in the future.
Chad’s crew works seamlessly together. They know their craft and put in extremely long days, demonstrating care and expertise.
Note: If you try to reach Chad during a project, he is often running the bobcat continuously, managing multiple projects to help families get their homes lifted in a timely manner.
o Their professionalism, teamwork, and dedication really set the tone for the
project and reassured us that our cottage was in the best hands.
Scott Marcotte Construction Inc. will install these critical beams. Once installed, Flint &
Doyle will return to lift the house to the final height needed to allow foundation work to support the cottage and addition.
