Hi Richard
I'm so thrilled to see the updates and pictures of the 08 hgtv dream home. It looks awesome and I liked the info about the regulations and the pirate history. Very interesting indeed. I've been waiting to see this info on hgtv.com for along time but somehow have not seen it there. This must be the place for 411. thanks indeed!

This house is actually in a Village, Islamorada, not in the unincorporated County and is subject to their rules and codes. The Village ordinance is actually called, "Building Permit Allocation System or "BPAS" not "BRG" as shown above.

Also, the number of permanent residents is decreasing but the number of homes is increasing. The out of town homeowners can all be here on a hoiliday weekend. Thus hurricane evacuation is determined by total number of residences not number of permanent residents.

Most permanent residents will NOT evacuate so the evacuation is more sensitive to total residences. Also the hurricane ecvacuation limitations are suppanted by the environmental carrying capacity limitations nowadays. The environment is wilth us all year round. No high rise structures or structures over water allowed down here.

Hello,

I have no idea how to entry the sweepstake for the Dream Home 2008.

I hope that someone reads this message and direct me to the correct area.

Thank you so much and take care.

I love HGTV and I’m so glad to see that Dream House 2008 it's in Florida and I’m looking forward to have my name choosing as HGTV new home owner.

Glad to find out that Monroe County , Fla. is LOSING population and that the County is enforcing its growth control ordinances.I found Islamorada 51 yrs. ago. Stunningly peaceful and relaxing; I return -- less now-- " remoteness " getaway feeling of memories -gone! However , were I to win the 2008 Islamorada Dream home , I would sell out in Tampa and BE there. Neat choice for you to have chosen. R. J. Courtney

I 3will be watching every inch of this beauty and praying everyday that this one will be mine. Just let me know when to start packing.

The exact coordinates are 24?57'43.61"N 80?34'14.91"W

Hey,Jackand fcole,
Do I have to fly down to Islemorada to visit The Shore in order to see the floor-plan of DH08?Please save me the time and $ and post the plans on the website! I'm tired of visiting the website and being diaappointed daily! I'm sure that others are interested in seeing the plans as well!

Hi guys,
Hope you all had a wonderful fourth of July. When are you going to show more of the construction work on Dream Home 2008. It is so exciting to watch as these homes go up at each step at a time. Hope to see new pics pretty soon hint, hint. You all be safe and careful. abumgarner

Great job

What about hurricanes?

Did you ever check out Canadian Lakes, MI for
a beautiful place to build a HGTV Dream Home?

You would surely be surprised at what you would
find there.A resort community with 5 golf courses,(2 award winning), airport, lakes, lakes
and more lakes. any type of recreation, indoor and outdoor, over fifty subdivisions and even
their own castle.
The northern part is hilly and secluded and the southern part is flat and secluded. Whatever type
of natural settiing you want. Great steps were taken to keep the beautiful natural setting you find in the 9 square acres. Over 84 miles of road,some paved and some dirt. Deer, turkeys,geese,loons,ducks, birds of all kinds, etc. Such a relaxing place to live. Some live year round and some are part timers. All ages of
people to the very young couples to the great grandparents. You won't find a friendlier place to live. Over 61 clubs to join with all sorts of plays, concerts and events going on.

I can dream of a beautiful home in Florida espically in the winter. I am old, crippled and love the water. Fish and walk in sand and water.. All the homes have been breat taking and I am positive this one will be superior to the others...Love to watch as you build them.......Can't wait to see finished home....Barbara Sutton

I do not know how to use your HTML tags for style:
I am interested in your choice(s) because of en-vironmental changes and history in the location in which you are building the home! FOR EXAMPLE:
THE WEATHER, THERE IS HISTORY OF EXTREME STORMS AND ALSO, WONDERED IF YOUR PLANNERS WERE AND EVER CONSIDERED THE CRITICISM OF YOUR BEDROOMS, SUCH AS THE SMALL SIZES; AND ALSO, LACK OF STORAGE, AND VERY PRACTICAL INFO SINCE THE HOME IS IN MORE REMOTE AREA, AS WERE YOUR OTHER HOMES.
aLSO, WONDERED IF THIS HOME IS " GREEN" OR JUST THE " USUAL" AND SOME SMALL PART OF " GOING GREEN; DO THINK THAT YOUR pLANNERS SHOULD HAVE BEEN MORE OPEN TO THE " SMALL PEOPLE" IN THE LARGER COMMUNITIES. sOUNDS LIKE IT IS JUST " GOING RICH" AND NOT CONSIDERING A MODEL OR MODELS THAT WOULD BE MORE FUNCTIONAL FOR LARGER COMMUNITY/CITIES TO SEE. Again, have a Essay/contest to speak to g rass roots as to what they want and yearn for in a Home, which is not an escapist fantasy.
Thank you,
Frances Von Koenig
P. O. Box 742
Fairfield, CA. 94533-0074
707 427 8768

Hi Jack and Richard, Oh my goodness, that sounds really hot down there. I hope that you will have more pictures for us to see as the home goes up. I think it is really neat to be able to watch the construction of the 2008 Dream Home. I have never been to Florida, but from the pictures that I have seen it is absolutely gorgous! Thank you for what pictures that you have posted. It is really appreciated. Keep up the good work, but becareful of the heat! abumgarner

Islamorada is a great place for diving.

How do I enter to win the Dream Home 2008. There is nowhere on your website that shows how to enter.

Thank you for building dream home in a beauitful location this year , and very excited about enter in this year contest.

Hello, Richard this year the dream home is in a beautiful location I am looking forward to enter in this year contest Thank you!

this piece of property NEVER had 8 homes on it!!!it had ONE home on the property since 1968....a Village councilman hired and fired a Village permit person until he found one that issued him 8 permits to build 8 homes on these 2 acres...afterhe sold it the original house was torn down NOT too much property per home when they are near or over 3200 sq.feet per home..
when the remaining 7 homes go up the view from the homes will not be the same as it is now either.....

The above comment will now self destruct within 24 hours!

Actually it was the councilman/mayor who got the 8 building rights. He got over $3 million for the property after the stilt home with 2 illegal below flood apartments got "subdivided" and became 8 dwelling units through a renovation permit that was fudged by the previous building official after the was "encouraged" by the then village manager. Nuff said on this. Can't be taken back at this point. Just a lesson learned.

Islamorada (fka/aka Purple Isle), is an incorporated village (due to a 1997 law passed by the residence who were against any franchise or like buildings in the area). Islamorada is located in Monroe County.

To my understanding, the Buildable Rate of Growth ordinance (amt. of people allowed to reside in an area) is permitting the build due to the pre-existance of eight homes that were on the property. Therefore, there wouldn't be a change in the BRGO because the homes are replacement homes.

Islamorada (fka/aka Purple Isle), is an incorporated village (due to a 1997 law passed by the residence who were against any franchise or like buildings in the area). Islamorada is located in Monroe County.

To my understanding, the Buildable Rate of Growth ordinance (amt. of people allowed to reside in an area) is permitting the build due to the pre-existance of eight homes that were on the property. Therefore, there wouldn't be a change in the BRGO because the homes are replacement homes.

The view on Google is great! :)

The One of Eight:
**The ALBRIGHT** DH08
The Pope
The Navarre
The Wightman
The Brewer
The The Brothers
The Hommell
The Knowles

That first drive down Hammock Lane for the ultimate winner sure would be exciting! Perhaps, fcole can vlog while driving down Hammock Lane???

Interesting comment.......Anonymous at July 24, 2007 2:07 PM (Mostly the first sentence!)

I'm going to enjoy a slice of Key Lime pie and do some "hurrican bravado".

Interesting take on the Conch Republic (dual citizenship)!

I can't wait to see this one! I'm a beach bum at heart.

Hello ,Im so looking foreward to being the one to win this home.my husband and I are retired from the military and need a good home to call our own this would be the perfect place for us to take a deep breath and relax.I will be entring in this contest.

WOW! What a beauty! You're going to make someone very happy. Hope it's me! I can take humid, muggy weather, mosquitos, hurricanes! ANYTHING! And I will NOT be a vacant owner. Oh, no! THIS owner would be a DEFINITE year-round occupant! Mai-tai's, anyone??

WHAT IS THE START DATE TO SIGN UP FOR THE 2008 DREAM HOME GIVE-AWAY?

THANKS,
HAZEL
wh2534@bellsouth.net

Will the new 2008 DREAM HOME have a pool to share with 7 other homes? The drawings don't show much for now. It will be interesting to see the finished home in January.

Sharon,

Good Afternoon! The Dream Home has a very large pool that appears to be the centerpiece for the eight homes. If you go to the Islamorada link that was provided, you will be able to view the homes, pool, and dock area. It appears to be a wonderful sketch that was provided. The color of the homes appear to be identical to the bedroom selections we voted on. If you have difficulty in locating the information, I'll attempt to guide you to the site. :)

Wow, I am so excited. We have a family/vacation home in The Keys just a few miles further down from the 08 Dream Home. I would compare The Keys to The Hamptons as a vacation/second home for many of us from Miami, Palm Beach or Fort Lauderdale (which is where I live). It is much more low key and down to earth here though (no pun intended). It really is a different world. Will stop by to see the progress when I go this weekend.

Entry into the contest won't start until around Dec '07 or Jan '08, if I recall correctly. They keep us all hanging on with beautiful pictures and blogsites until then! Good luck!

Gee, I hope the house has an elevator... as pretty as it may be, the height and the stairs seem unattractive to me. It would have been wonderful to have a single story home that would fit the beachy theme. But, should I win it, would I take it? Oh heck yea.. better than Kansas and tornados.... Auntie Em must be retiring just down the road there...

Dear Jack, Frank, and HGTV,
VI see from the construction photos that the main living areas are on the second floor of DH08 I really hope that the home will include an elevator for those of us who are disabled. I really plan on winning DH08! I survived a severe stroke in 2001 and need a cane when I walk.(I am fortunate to be able to get out of a wheelchair!) I can climb stairs, but it is difficult.
I hope that it is not too late to install an elevator! Keep deamin,Fellow Bloggers! January will be here before we know it!:>)

i have never owned a home and i am 52 years old.i was recently diagnosed with lung cancer and would love to move into a beautiful home i could call mine. i am sure the weather and the coastal living could be beneficial to me. I'll keep right on praying that this time it will be mine. thank you,wanda

i sooo need to have a home of my own,I have worked all my life but the last 7 yrs. have been hell due to health problems.I have one beautiful son.he is 32 and has all his ducks in a row.He is my life and if I had a "home" he would stop worrying so much about his Mom.We lost his dad suddenly when he was only 43.it almost tore my heart {our} hearts out.So now that the first 53 years of my life has been one test after another, I hope and pray for my own "home" I get so scared one day I will have nowhere to live.I feel I do deserve it, I am good and kind w/ a heart of gold.I dream every year of winning.What peace it would bring me finally.Thanks, Laura

i love the thought of having a house on the beach! whoever wins this house will be pretty lucky. I'm really not computer savy, but will try to stay informed through the rest of construction. i live in the ohio river valley so i know all about the heat and humidity. be safe and take care.

rum drinks and an ice cold beer after a long day on the water are the preference of tourists and locals alike in the purple isles (islamorada is roughly translated "islanda of purple" due to the morning glories blooming profusely over the string if Islamorada's ialands. Most homes are built on stilts due to water surge issues, so steps are always an issue. a huge thing for people entering the contect to understand and appreciate is that building permits can take as much as 3 years to obtain; a huge debate amongst locals. fishing is the major past time since there isn't alot of golf or shopping here - especially in islmorada, where people come from all over the world to fish it's prestine waters and participate in it's rich tournament traditions. they keys are like no other place on this earth and have been my home for years and i wouldn't trade it for anything, but then again i love to fish. good luck to the winner and all people entering...i am sure they will enjoy their experience living and become part of the key's community.

pictures of the 2008 dream home are looking good very nice ,I live in Naples, and love to visit Ialmorada, i would love to have my address be in ISLMORADA IN THE 2008 Dream Home it`s looking good HGTV

Hi
Love all the HGTV Dream homes....started entering at the very beginning--Green home --solar panels for roofing--a tankless water heater--battery operated with marine batteries lithium about 12 of them with a propane backup generator....ha ha.

Concrete and metal studs as well as hig energy effeciate windows and doors...

Oh yeah sick of high energy bills....and would it be great if it was handicapped accessible....for my mother to live with me....

Absolutely wonderful....ideas.

Did the site shut down after 15 Aug. Someone must have a camera! Need to see more pictures.
Think about installing the Elevator now!!

I lived in Marathon for many years,I loved the keys,back in the early 70'till around the mid 80's,after that they are being ruined by the building of soooo much.When we first lived in Marathon we had to drive to Key West to eat at a McDonalds!! now up and down all the islands there are fast food and too much building. The fishing has suffered too. My sons go down ever year at least 2x. they were born in the keys and still love it.I loved Islmorada we owned a condo there,only about 35 miles from Marathon but like a different world.My whole family will be entering so we can go back "home".

I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE MY MOM ON HGTV FOR HER DREAM HOUSE, CAN YOU TELL ME HOW I CAN ENTER HER?

My husband and I are retired. He has been retired over three years. He was in Vietnam and is retired military. He is also a retired police officer. His dream has always been to sat on the beach at the ocean. This would fulfill his lifelong dream.

Yikes!
I'm not as excited about this as I was at first. I wasn't aware of the 7 other homes being built until searching further. Looks a little cramped!

Does anyone have more info of the location. Like where the nerest grocery store is ect?

Also, Anyone know the cost of living there?