Why Did We Start The Mended Oak
Welcome to the Mended Oak Store. I’m Jesse Alexander, a licensed professional engineer in the state of Florida and an ordained pastor. Over the last ten years, I spent my days working in structural and architectural engineering, and my nights and weekends serving my community and several area churches as a pastor.
In the summer of 2025, with the encouragement of friends, colleagues, and family, I started Mended Oak Design and Engineering. It feels odd to say "I" started it. Without their support, it wouldn't have happened.
But why now? During that decade-plus with Murray Engineering, I was fortunate to sign more than 15,000 structural plans for homes across Northeast Florida. But about the same time I was celebrating that milestone, I was have conversation after conversation with my kids and other young adults about the affordability of housing. My own children—now grown, educated, beginning careers, and starting families—would struggle to afford the homes I had worked on, most of which were basic, family homes.
That did not sit well with me. I don't want my kids or their friends saddled with huge debt. There's a generation of young adults who are struggling to get the housing they need. I want to do what I can to help them thrive.
So in August 2025, Mended Oak Design and Engineering launched with a mission to offer something that might help with the challenge of homeownership. To make it happen, I started working with some friends, family, and partners to develop architectural and engineering house plans that would be less costly to build - and less costly to buy. Each house is designed to be buildable - to limit the need for specialists. To offer guidance for do-it-yourself-builders, we developed the "Mended Oak Difficulty Scale". Our materials are based on what is commonly available at most building supply stores - which limits special orders. The materials for these houses typically runs about $45 to $60 per square foot. Finally, we provide architectural and signed engineering plans to save you some time and money up front. Our goal is to help you get into the housing solution you need at a reasonable price, whether you decide to maximize savings by building it yourself or by handing it over to a pro.
About me, I’m a preacher’s kid who grew up in Leesburg, Florida. I've served in ministries and churches in one capacity or another since the 1980s. I married Heather in 1992. She works in the school system. In addition to our children, we’ve welcomed a few others. We spend our free time enjoying family, exploring Florida, and exercising our high‑energy 1/2 Catahoula Leopard Dog. We’ve lived on the edge of Jacksonville for the better part of two decades. We love our community and our city and look for ways to be a part of what God is doing here.
