Journal
A practitioner's perspective on custom builds in the US Virgin Islands and coastal Florida, renovations in Romania, and residential architecture more broadly — the design decisions, market realities, and project knowledge that don't usually get written down.
Featured articles:
The USVI New Build Field Guide
The complete overview for anyone planning a custom home in the US Virgin Islands — islands, permits, timelines, cost drivers, and what the process actually demands from the start.
USVI Construction Costs Per Square Foot
Honest cost ranges for a USVI build, what pushes numbers up, and what to pressure-test in a contractor quote before you commit.
What Does the USVI Permitting Process Actually Look Like?
The permit path from submission to groundbreaking — timelines, agencies involved, common reasons projects get sent back, and what to have in place before you file.
St. John vs. St. Thomas vs. St. Croix
A practical comparison of the three islands for buyers deciding where to build — infrastructure, permit paths, cost differences, and which fits which project.
Cisterns, WAPA, and Water in the USVI
Every USVI home runs on rainwater. How cistern capacity is calculated, what WAPA can and can't be relied on for, and how water infrastructure shapes design decisions.
What Is the USVI Coastal Zone Permit and Do You Need One?
When CZM review applies, what triggers it, and how coastal zone requirements affect timeline, buildable envelope, and cost on a USVI project.
Adding a Guest House in the USVI
What lot coverage rules, utility capacity, and the permit path actually allow when adding a detached structure — for owners evaluating whether their property supports it.
Adding a Pool to a USVI Property
Coastal zone triggers, cistern math, site excavation realities, and honest cost ranges for a pool addition — before you commit to a design or a contractor.
The Romania Apartment Field Guide
The complete framework for buying and renovating a Romanian apartment — building eras, structural realities, permit path, budget structure, and what to check before you commit.
Renovating in Romania: What Budget Estimates Always Miss
The costs contractors leave out of their initial quotes, why Romanian renovation budgets tend to overrun, and how to build a realistic envelope before you start.
Contents:
What building on St. John, St. Thomas, and St. Croix actually involves — from land to permit to construction.
Building on the Florida coast — from flood zone to permit to construction.
Renovation in Romania — what the building, the process, and the design actually involve.
The developer's side of the build — feasibility, spec homes, real numbers.
What building from the ground up actually involves — structure, permits, cost, decisions.
Architecture, culture, and the ideas worth arguing about.
Latest articles:
What to Check Before Buying on the Florida Coast
Buying a coastal Florida home or lot? What to check before you make an offer — flood zone, elevation, CCCL, insurability, buildability — an architect's pre-offer guide.
Should You Build an ADU in Florida?
Should you build an ADU — and what actually fits your lot? An architect on when a catalog model is right, when it isn't, and the options before you commit.
Can You Build a Guest House on Your Coastal Florida Lot?
Adding a guest house or detached ADU on a coastal Florida lot — permit path, lot rules, flood elevation, and utilities — a practical architect's read before you commit.
Are ADUs Allowed in Florida?
What you can actually build as an ADU on a coastal Florida lot — the local rules that really govern it (no statewide by-right law passed), plus flood and coastal limits, from an architect.
How Does Renovating Change Your Florida Insurance?
How a coastal Florida renovation changes your flood and windstorm insurance — the design decisions that move premiums, and how to plan for them, from an architect.
How Do You Add On to a Coastal Florida Home?
Adding on to a coastal Florida home — what tying new construction to old under current wind and flood code really requires, and your options, from an architect.
What Does "Substantially Damaged" Mean in Florida?
What "substantial damage" means for a storm-hit Florida coastal home — the repair-vs-rebuild decision and how to stay in control of it, explained by an architect.
What Does an Elevation Certificate Tell You?
Is your coastal Florida home already flood-compliant? What an elevation certificate tells you — and how it can change your renovation's scope and cost before you start.