He returned home in 1842, following the Great Fire, hoping to obtain work on the reconstruction, and publishing several newspaper articles on how he felt it should proceed. He strongly opposed a plan by William Lindley, to rebuild the city on a grid, saying it would destroy the city's character. His arguments were eloquent, but he failed to propose a cohesive counter-plan. He joined with Alexis de Chateauneuf in calling for brick buildings to be given preference over plastered ones, as being in line with "republican tradition". Later, he became a member of a commission responsible for rehabilitating St. Nicholas Church.