Building a Website That Reflects the Heart Behind the Living Seawall in Fort Lauderdale

Backed by The Church by the Sea, the project was inspired by both the urgent need to replace a deteriorating seawall and the heartfelt desire to honor a child who became ill from polluted canal water. It stands as a powerful example of what can happen when environmental responsibility and personal connection come together.

From the very beginning, we knew this project would require flexibility, patience, and a whole lot of collaboration. There were multiple voices involved, each bringing their own vision and investment to the table that added complexity to the project but due to our experience working with similar clients, we knew how to address each person and ensure that everyone felt heard and understood over the course of our work.

As such, a big part of our success came down to relationship building. One of the key lessons from this project was identifying sub-leaders within a group who would help us move the project forward and navigate the Living Seawall team’s feedback, streamlining our conversations and making sure we stayed on our timeline.

This kind of collaboration worked so well that we’re exploring how to build it into more of our processes. Assigning sub-leaders for specific areas of a project like content or design helps us give more structure without limiting client input. It ensures that our clients feel heard without slowing down the build process. This also makes the project feel more personal, which was crucial for a community-driven effort like this one.

On the technical side, we leaned heavily on tools like ChatGPT to support both the content and design phases of the project. Since we were working with a diverse group of stakeholders, each with their own priorities and perspectives, using AI-powered tools allowed us to efficiently generate first drafts of web copy that could be quickly reviewed and revised based on input from multiple team members.

It also helped spark visual direction and feedback by helping us create and revise designs that aligned with the tone and goals of the project. This not only saved time but made it easier to iterate on ideas during meetings and communicate concepts clearly across the group. The result is a site that reflects the heart and hope of the Living Seawall project, capturing both the emotional weight of the community’s mission and the practical goals of the construction effort.

Our work building the Living Seawall’s new nonprofit website brought together community voices, thoughtful design, and strong collaboration to support a meaningful cause. By working closely with key stakeholders and adapting our process to fit a multi-leader structure, we created a site that reflects both the spirit of the project and the people behind it. With clear communication, smart use of tools like ChatGPT, and a focus on personal connection, we helped bring this community effort to life online.