A notoriously stringent homeowner’s association in St. Petersburg revised its rules regarding roof materials due to a mother’s vigilance in the aftermath of an unprecedented hurricane season.

Kathleen Suler lost her home in the tony Venetian Isles neighborhood to Hurricane Helene’s storm surge and wanted an elevated replacement with a more environmentally resilient metal roof. She enlisted St. Petersburg-based Pelican Bay Home Builders , which serendipitously launched its line of wind and flood-resistant spec models just before the storms.

However, the Venetian Isles homeowner’s association (HOA) disallowed anything but tile-roofed homes, and Suler needed a new house within a year to ensure her son could complete his senior year at the same high school. She embarked on a dif

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