PORT ST. JOE, Fla. (WMBB) — On Wednesday, the duPont home that was built in 1938 was lifted off the ground and moved to a new location.

The building is known to many as ‘The Chateau’ and it’s a big part of history in the Port St. Joe community.

At one point, members of the duPont family lived there, it was also a bed and breakfast, and then a bank. In 2011, Port Inn owners David and Trish Warriner bought the structure and the land it sits on.

“My office was that room right up on the top right so we had our office area, we rented the downstairs to a wedding planning business that did local events here in town,” David Warriner said.

Then in 2018, a category five storm hit the area and destroyed the home.

“Hurricane Michael flooded the downstairs, knocked out the windows, knocked out the doors, dropped that tree on the top of the building, it damaged some of the roofing,” David Warriner said.

Since Michael, the roof has been replaced but other repairs have been a bit complicated.

“The city was required by the federal government to change flood maps after the hurricane, they readdressed everything and the building was in a precarious position when it came to the flood map so I was going to have to jack the building up and put a new foundation on it,” David Warriner said.

Warriner was worried he would have to destroy the property.

“When the letter showed up and said, bring it up to code or tear it down, literally demolish it in 30 days, I had to give it some thought because there’s no way I was going to bring it up to code in 30 days, it was impossible,” David Warriner said.

Warriner decided to sell the house to a man named Ralph Rish. On Wednesday, Rish had the historic home moved across town.

“We’re going to move it today about four miles just to the east side, we purchased 74 acres and we’re going to build the boulevard into it and the end of the boulevard will be ‘The Chateau’ building and then we’re going to turn it into a restaurant and a bar,” Rish said.

Many community members stood along Highway 98 to watch ‘The Chateau’ head to its new home.

“In the early 2000s when it sold I actually put an offer in and tried to buy it. Unfortunately, I was not able to buy it at that time, which would have included the property as well, but then now here we are 20 years later, so excited about it,” Rish said.

The house now sits just outside city limits near the Gulf Franklin Center of Gulf Coast State College. Rish said he hopes to have the restaurant open by Memorial Day of 2025.