501 Cedar St. - Restoration & Rehabilitation

Some projects don't begin with a vision board. They begin with a structure that has been written off.

When 501 Cedar Street entered the market, the condition was severe. Roof failures had rotted through the living room floor and ceiling. There was no active power and no running water. Settlement had spread across multiple piers, leaving floors more than twelve inches out of level and walls three to six inches out of plumb. By every standard measure, the home was uninhabitable.

But this home sits within the Fernandina Beach Historic District. Demolition was not an option. Preservation was the only path forward.

The Work

Stabilizing the structure came first. The full footprint was revealed to within a quarter inch. From there, the work shifted from structural recovery to authentic restoration.

Original windows and porch posts were carefully restored and reinstalled. The existing heart pine beadboard ceiling was selectively removed, stripped of decades of paint, and reinstalled in the hall bathroom. When original siding proved insufficient to cover new openings on the west elevation, reclaimed material from a nearby demolition project was sourced and integrated without visible transition. A single window was relocated to a new opening rather than discarded.

When floor and wall coverings came down, the team discovered concealed fire damage in a load-bearing wall. It was replaced in full. No shortcuts. No compromises.

The rear of the home was expanded with a new addition, overframed onto the existing roof structure and preserving the original roofline within the new attic. The completed home now includes two children's bedrooms, a master suite, a full bathroom, and a reconfigured kitchen and gathering space.

Why It Matters

Historic preservation is not always clean work. The conditions at 501 Cedar were compounding: structural failure, concealed damage, material shortages, and the added layer of Historic District guidelines governing every decision. Each challenge was met with the same standard that has defined our work for over four decades.

The homes in Fernandina Beach's historic district are irreplaceable. When one of them reaches a point of severe decline, the question is never whether the work is difficult. The question is whether it will be done with the precision and commitment it deserves.

At 501 Cedar Street, the answer was yes.

See the full project gallery here: 501 Cedar Street