DeSoto County · about 70 min (54 mi) from the shop
Kitchen Remodeling in Arcadia, FL
Restoration-minded kitchens, cabinetry and furniture work for Arcadia's early-1900s homes, designed in 3D and built in Sarasota.
- Built in our Sarasota shop since 2011
- 4.4★ from 52 Google reviews
- 3D model before anything is built
- Solid-wood boxes, dovetail drawers
Arcadia kitchen remodeling calls for a light hand with old houses. The DeSoto County seat has a National Register historic district, listed in 1984, full of frame homes from the late 1800s through the 1920s, and new cabinets there should look as if they belong. We draw them, make them from solid wood at our Sarasota shop on Lewis Ave, and fit them in place.
The drive is a little over an hour, about 70 minutes and 54 miles east, so we plan fewer, well-prepared visits.
Brick Downtown, Porch Houses and the 1912 Courthouse Era
A Thanksgiving Day fire in 1905 burned much of Arcadia's business district, and the city required brick or masonry for the rebuild, which is why downtown still reads as one period. Around it, residential streets hold frame houses with tall ceilings, heart pine floors, wide casings and deep porches, built in the decades around the 1912 Classical Revival courthouse.
Kitchens in these homes were often added onto or remodeled several times, and floors and walls have settled. We scribe cabinets to fit and, where original trim is missing, make matching profiles through our finish carpentry and millwork work. Family tables and chests from these houses are good candidates for furniture refinishing as well.
Storms have reworked many of these houses more than once. Charley crossed Arcadia in August 2004 after coming ashore at Punta Gorda to the southwest, and in 2022 Ian's rain pushed the Peace River above its 1912 high-water mark. Repairs after each storm left a patchwork: a replaced ceiling in one room, a newer window in another, a rebuilt porch out front. Before we draw, we note which walls are original plaster or wood and which are later drywall, because that changes how cabinets are fastened and scribed.
Services for Historic District Homes
These three core services fit Arcadia, along with trim, doors and flood repair for older houses.
Kitchen Remodeling
A kitchen design that respects an early-1900s house, with licensed trades for plumbing and wiring. Where the kitchen sits in a later rear addition, floor heights and wall framing can change mid-room, and the drawings show it.
Custom Cabinetry
Inset or face-frame cabinets in solid wood, scribed to settled floors and walls. Inset doors and beaded face frames suit the porch houses around the courthouse, in painted or stained hardwood.
Furniture Refinishing & Restoration
Heirloom tables, chests and dressers repaired and refinished in our Sarasota shop. Old Arcadia pieces often carry several layers of finish, which come off before joints are reglued and the wood is refinished.
Crown Molding & Trim
Casings and baseboards made to match original profiles in historic rooms. We take a short sample or tracing at the measure, then make the trim in stain-grade or paint-grade wood to match.
Custom Wood Doors
Early-1900s Arcadia houses have tall interior doors in sizes no store stocks; we build matching wood doors to the existing openings so a kitchen remodel does not end with a modern slab door.
Flood-Damaged Cabinet Replacement
For houses near the Peace River that took water in 2022, replacement cabinets are drawn to the dried-out room and built in solid wood that holds fasteners if it is ever wet again.
DeSoto County Permits and City Zoning in the Historic District
In Arcadia, building permits are issued by the DeSoto County building department, while the City of Arcadia's planning and zoning office reviews projects inside city limits. Ask both offices what applies to your address, especially in the historic district. Rewiring, re-plumbing or removing a wall belongs to a Florida-licensed contractor. For keeping new wood cabinets in shape, see how to care for wood cabinets in humid Florida.
DeSoto County's building offices are at 201 E. Oak Street, in the middle of the historic downtown, so a permit question for a house in the district is a short trip for your contractor. National Register listing by itself does not restrict what a private owner does inside a house; local zoning and the building code do, which is why the city's planning and zoning review is the step to ask about early. Our drawings go to your contractor for that application, so the cabinet layout and any wall change are reviewed together.
Planning Trips East on State Road 72
A measuring visit comes first, where we also photograph trim and hardware worth matching. The working drawings and 3D model follow, reviewed at your home or at our shop by appointment. Installation is the last trip. Smaller furniture can be brought to our Lewis Ave bench; for a heavy sideboard or bed, ask whether we can collect it, which may carry a charge.
Reviews
What customers near Arcadia say
4.4★ average from 52 reviews on Google. Quotes are from public Google reviews, shortened where marked.
“SRQ Woodwork did a terrific job with our kitchen cabinet project. Not only did they understand and embrace our design concept but they executed it with a remarkable level of attention to detail and professionalism. Further, their price was very reasonable.”
“SRQ recently installed lovely built-in shelves that has become the focal point of our living room. i highly recommend Graham's workmanship.”
FAQ
Arcadia kitchen remodeling questions
Can new cabinets match the style of a historic Arcadia home?
Yes. We study the house at the measuring visit, including door styles, casings and hardware, then draw cabinets in a matching period style with a 3D model you can review. Inset doors, painted or stained solid wood and reproduced trim profiles help a new kitchen sit naturally in an early-1900s room.
Who issues permits for kitchen work in Arcadia?
Two offices can be involved. DeSoto County issues the building permit, while City of Arcadia staff check zoning for lots inside town. Trade work such as new circuits or a relocated sink is permitted by a Florida-licensed contractor, and our cabinet install is timed around their inspections.
Nearby
Also serving near Arcadia
- Southeast Arcadia, FLAbout 70 min (55 mi) from the shop
- Port Charlotte, FLAbout 60 min (46 mi) from the shop
- North Port, FLAbout 50 min (37 mi) from the shop
- Punta Gorda, FLAbout 75 min (58 mi) from the shop
- Warm Mineral Springs, FLAbout 45 min (34 mi) from the shop
1121 Lewis Ave, Sarasota
About a quarter mile east of US 301, off 12th Street. Shop visits are by appointment. Please call ahead before stopping by Lewis Ave.
Living Well Crafted
Planning a kitchen in Arcadia? Talk it through with the shop.
- Built in our Sarasota shop since 2011
- 4.4★ from 52 Google reviews
- 3D model before anything is built
- Solid-wood boxes, dovetail drawers