The young couple who own this home wanted to just add a second story to the Florida ranchstyle home they bought in St. Petersburg. They tried and tried to get a design that would work, but continued to be stymied by the 50% rule. To continue receiving subsidies for the city in the form or reduced flood insurance rates for all residents, St Pete must abide by the 50% rule. This means that (in a year) you're only allowed to improve or add on 50% of the value of your existing house WITHOUT considering the land value! So logic tells you that if you want to add a 2,000 sq ft second story to your 2,000 sq ft existing home, this won't work. And most people want to add more than half of the size of the existing house. So - your only choice is to tear down the existing house and start over, complying with the current flood elevation requirements. Though an owner could elevate the new home only a few feet to meet the requirements, lots are small enough here that most owners choose to elevate the house "a floor" up so that they can utilize the ground floor for additional garages (it's hard to fit a 3 car garage on a typical waterfront lot) and storage space.
The owners looked around again at just buying a larger house before committing to building new - but concluded that it would be less expensive to build new than to buy old and make changes, and furthermore, they had a wonderful lot in a neighborhood that they loved. The location is on the point of a long finger, with open views across Boca Ciega Bay to the Gulf Beaches (yes, with a view of the Don) and the Gulf of Mexico beyond. Their lot was worth more than they had paid for the lot AND house - another reason to take financial advantage of staying where they were.
They were very considerate to the neighborhood (and increased their own curb appeal and value) by locating the garages on the side of the house, by varying the facade instead of building a rectangular box, and by putting in some mature landscaping - look at the size of a couple of the palm trees!
