For more than a decade, these unusual structures built somewhere in the rural area of Marco Island in Cape Romano remain an enigma. Some of the locals and lost explorers consider it the community place owned by a cryptic cult, while some hearsays thought they belong to aliens. At present, the Cape Romano dome houses are owned by the sea’s vastness, almost heading to their watery demise as the day goes by.
The Dome House
The Cape Romano dome houses seem to be like one of the places for supernaturals. Some would refer it to the alien-looking sea creatures smoothly swimming around the house these days. The construction of this house began in 1980 by Bob Lee, an oil producer. He planned to make it his holiday residence, and so he facilitated an ambitious DIY project. Since he had too much time in his hands, Lee designed an advanced property complete with a solar-powered and self-sustaining system.
According to Bob’s daughter Janet Maples, most people who visited Marco Island perceived it as a scary house to the extent of thinking it was heavily guarded by machine guns. Many were intrigued, but most of them hesitated to see the property due to these insane stories.
After Lee’s death, his family revealed that their father created a prototype of the dome-shaped houses at their Gatlinburg land prior to executing his dream vacation house in Cape Romano. He acquired multiple lots back then. Today, the prototype is still standing tall in Tennessee despite having signs of moisture issues.
A mysterious but interesting site to see for locals and tourists
The Adventurous And Ambitious Father
Jane recalled his father loved to invent and made a heat source for the house, which is installed under the flooring system. He also created something that will transport logs and place them near the fireplace, which came from the den walls. Lee was adventurous and a funny guy. Hence, he was so loved by the kids when he was still alive.
The Tragic Demise Of The Dome House
The dome house is the main house of Janet and her son. In 1994, when Hurricane Andrew struck the place, it ruined parts of the house except for its circular and elevated form. After several years, the family hardly visited the site since other houses that sat on the coastline, which were massively damaged by the storm, were left by the owners, one after the other. Just before Hurricane Wilma happened in 2005, a brave Naples resident John Tosto acquired the place because he was enamored by the property since it was built. Unfortunately, the storm aggravated the dome houses’ defects and wiped away a portion of the coastline.
The Tosto family created a restoration plan, but it was obliterated by a government board that ordered to get rid of the houses. Hence, the renovation project for the dome houses went to the water.
Nobody knew the real reason behind why the Tosto kept the houses, which undoubtedly cost them expensive fines from the board. But to this day, locals and tourists find the dome houses very interesting and fascinating all at once.
