Samantha Carlson
•8/20/2026
A vacant lot in Cape Coral is set to become a home with a much bigger purpose. Bahnam Builders and community leaders gathered Thursday to launch construction plans for what organizers say will be Florida’s first St. Jude Dream Home Showplace. Proceeds from the eventual sale will benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The project is planned for Southwest 24th Avenue. Bahnam Builders hosted a community “Lot Pop” celebration at the property Thursday morning to mark the start of the project. “This is basically the infant stage. This is the beginning. This is where we’re starting,” organizer Queen Ellis said. “We actually have this lot that we’ve purchased. We pay for it in cash. And we’re going to start building here once we break ground.” Ellis said the goal extends far beyond constructing another Southwest Florida home. “They have never been a home built for Saint Jude’s in the state of Florida until now,” Ellis said. “So that makes it even more exciting, because being the first and inaugural home is just amazing to see how everyone’s going to come together and make this happen.” The builder’s announcement identifies the project as Florida’s first-ever St. Jude Dream Home Showplace. Once the house is finished, the public is expected to have opportunities to tour it during open-house events before it is sold. Net proceeds from that sale will benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. “At the end of this whole project, we’re hoping to give $1 million or more to the kids at Saint Jude,” she said. Bahnam Builders owner Alan Bahnam said his company builds homes every day, but this project carries a different meaning. “What we’re doing here differently is we’re doing this for the kids,” Bahnam said. “Kids that actually need bright future, you know, overcoming obstacles and the treatments that they need and the financial burden and those type of things.” Bahnam said a home of this type would typically take about six to eight months to build. Getting it built will also require help from across the community. Bahnam Builders estimates about 100 trade partners and vendors will be needed, with contractors and businesses encouraged to donate labor, materials, services or expertise. Cape Coral Councilmember Joe Kilraine called the project a major opportunity for the city and the families St. Jude serves. “The generosity shown in doing something like this, this home is probably going to be in excess of $1 million,” Kilraine said. “I can’t think of a more devastating impact upon the family” than having a child become seriously ill. Councilmember Laurie Lehmann said her past experience working in pediatric intensive care gave the project additional meaning for her. “I talked to many families that had to, that basically sold everything to have the money to go down to Saint Jude because their child was ill,” Lehmann said. According to St. Jude, families do not receive bills from the hospital for treatment, travel, housing, or food. Lehmann credited the organizers and builder for getting the Cape Coral project to this point. “They worked very hard to get this done,” she said. “And now all of us get to smile and say, yeah, great job.” The project will rely on donations as construction moves forward. Vendors and businesses interested in contributing can contact Bahnam Builders here. DOWNLOAD the free Gulf Coast News app for your latest news and alerts on breaking news, weather, sports, entertainment, and more on your phone or tablet. And check out the Very Local Gulf Coast app to stream news, entertainment and original programming on your TV
