Volume 4, Number 7
Issued November 2004

Edited by ECCO--the Estero Concerned Citizens Organization
For further information, to provide information or to add names to our mailing list,
Email Don Eslick at doneslick@worldnet.att.net or call him at 949-4050

December Opportunities for Citizen Participation In Protecting Estero's Quality of Life

Date	Time	Event	Location
Friday, December 3rd	9 a.m.	Lee County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) consideration of FDOT's Works Program for 2005-06 thru 2009-2010	Council Chambers, Ft. Myers City Hall, 2200 Second Street, Ft Myers
Tuesday, December 7th	6 p.m.	Roadway Landscape Advisory Committee consideration of Sandy Lane Landscaping Plan	3rd Floor Conference Room, County Community Development Building, 1500 Monroe, F M
Wednesday, December 8th	5 p.m.	Estero Design Review Committee review of Galleria at Corkscrew; Coconut Trace; T-Mobile; Barkis Car Wash and Plaza del Sol Car Wash	The Perry Room of The Estero Country Club at The Vines
Friday, December 10th	8 a.m.	Land Development Code Advisory Committee consideration of Estero LDC Changes	2nd Floor Conference Room, County Community Development Building, 1500 Monroe, F M
Monday, December 13th	2 p.m.	Estero Civic Association Meeting with  Sheriff Mike Scott; A Presentation on Identity Theft and Gordon Lyons	Grandezza Club House. Enter Grandezza from Ben Hill Griffin Parkway
Monday, December 13th	6 p.m.	Estero Community Planning Panel consideration of Cascades at Estero emergency Access fro Broadway;	Marsh Landing Clubhouse
Tuesday, December 14th	6:00 p.m.	Estero Fire Rescue District Board Meeting	Estero United Methodist Church -- Founder's Hall
Wednesday, December 15th	9 a.m.	Hearing Examiner consideration of Coconut Point DRI amendment	2nd Floor Hearing Room, Community Development Building, 1500 Monroe Street, Fort Myers
Thursday, December 16th	5:30 p.m.	Estero Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours with guest speaker Commissioner Doug St. Cerny	Bank of America at Miromar Outlet Mall
Friday, December 17th	2 p.m.	ECCO Council of Community Leaders Meeting. These meetings are open to the public.	Marsh Landing Clubhouse
Thursday, December 30th	9 a.m.	Estero Palms II HEX Zoning Hearing	2nd Floor Hearing Room, Community Development Building, 1500 Monroe Street, Fort Myers

Index

Page	Subject
2	Calendar
2	Estero Design Review Committee (EDRC) Vacancy
2	Bonita Springs Annexation Moratorium Expiration
6	Paradise Shoppes of Estero in Camargo Trust MCP
8	Miromar Square Corporate Center
8	Estero Parkway Wal-Mart Progress Report
9	Coconut Road Wal-Mart Status Report
9	Estero Palms Phase 2
9	Ginn Golf Course Residential Development
10	Brief Reports on Projects In Process
10	Lee and Estero Growth Report
12	Sandy Lane Alignment Study

Estero Design Review Committee (EDRC) Vacancy

Unfortunately Peter Sargent, a licensed architect, has had to resign his position as a member of the Estero Design Review Committee effective immediately. Consequently, the EDRC is seeking another Estero architect to serve as a volunteer member of that panel. The EDRC meets on the second Wednesday of each month at 5 p.m. at the Estero Country Club at The Vines.

Filling this vacancy is an urgent matter because the EDRC’s meeting schedule is heavy due to a very large number of commercial projects approaching the construction phase. Qualified applicants should call Neal Noethlich, Chairman of the Estero Community Planning Panel (ECPP) at 495-6698. The ECPP created the EDRC and screens and recommends members to the EDRC.

Bonita Springs Annexation Moratorium Expiration

When approved in 1999 the Charter of the City of Bonita Springs established a five year moratorium on annexation of property located in the Estero Fire Rescue District. That moratorium expires in about one month, on January 1, 2005. The South boundary of the Estero Fire District between I-75 and Estero Bay is identical to the North boundary of the City of Bonita Springs.  

Florida Annexation Law

Under Florida law there are two kinds of annexation, "voluntary" and "involuntary" annexation. "Voluntary annexation" is when one or more property owners immediately adjacent to a municipality petition the municipality to be annexed to the municipality. Under this law 100% of all the property owners in the area to be annexed must sign the petition. Because of the 100% requirement, voluntary annexation usually involves a few property owners. Several large developers east of I-75 have used voluntary annexation to become part of Bonita Springs.

"Involuntary annexation" occurs when the municipality seeks to annex properties outside of but contiguous to one of its existing boundaries. The involuntary annexation procedures are much more complex as spelled out by Charter 171 of the Florida Statutes. Briefly Chapter 171 requires the following:

• A map showing the present and proposed municipal boundaries, present major trunk water mains and sewer interceptors, the proposed extensions of such mains and the general land use of the area to be annexed;
• A statement certifying that the area satisfies the following statutory requirements:
• Proposed municipalities must satisfy five standards as specified in the Formation of Municipalities Act (Chapter 165, Florida Statutes).  The proposed municipality must:
• be compact and contiguous and amenable to separate municipal government;
• have a total population … of at least 5,000 people in counties with a population of more than 75,000;
• have an average permanent population density of at least 1.5 persons per acre or have extraordinary conditions requiring the establishment of a municipal corporation with less existing density;
• have a minimum distance between any part of the areas proposed for incorporation from the boundaries of an existing municipality within the county of at least two miles or have an extraordinary natural boundary which requires separate municipal government.  This may be waived by the legislature if they are convinced of the validity of the proposed incorporation;
• have a municipal charter which:
       1 – Prescribes the form of government and defines the responsibilities of the executive and legislative functions;
       2 – Specifies that the legislative body of the municipality cannot be prohibited from exercising its powers to levy  any tax authorized by the constitution or general law;
• A statement setting forth the plans for extending to the area to be annexed each municipal service performed within the municipality at the time of annexation on substantially the same basis and in the same manner as provided to the rest of the municipality prior to annexation and the method of financing this extension of services;
  
• This report must be filed with the Board of County Commissioners prior to beginning the annexation process;
• An ordinance proposing the annexation may then be filed with the governing body of the municipality;
  
• The local governing body must hold at least two public hearings regarding the annexation ordinance;
  
• The local governing body votes to adopt the annexation resolution;
  
• The local governing body shall schedule an annexation referendum at the expense of the municipality.  This referendum will be submitted to a vote of the registered voters of the area to be annexed, and, at the discretion of the municipality, the question may also be submitted to a separate vote of the registered voters of the municipality as well.  Property owners not registered in Lee County will have no say in the matter;
  

Bonita Springs Annexation Plans

Estero Fire Chief Dennis Merrifield asked Audrey Vance, the City Attorney for Bonita Springs, "if the City is actively working on any annexations to the north of the City's corporate boundaries." In response Ms. Vance replied "The short answer to your question is no, but I think it is necessary to answer your question more comprehensively…"

Ms. Vance continues: "Prior to contemplating annexation, the City intends to complete certain prerequisite issues before it begins annexation….one issue involves millage calculations under Florida Statutes (Section 218.23(1))". Recent press reports indicate that annexations into the Estero Fire Rescue District will not cause the City of Bonita Springs to lose access to state revenue sharing programs as long as the rate used by all the overlapping taxing bodies that serve the entire City as extended by the current taxable valuation of the property in the City produces more revenue than was produced by those taxing bodies in 1999, when the City was created. Because the City of Bonita Spring's property tax base has expanded so much during the last five years, the City should easily pass this test even though it may not be able to use any Fire District tax rate in that calculation.

Ms. Vance further states in the letter: " Another issue is the City's goal, although not required under state law, to have an Interlocal Agreement with Lee County as contemplated under the City of Bonita Springs Comprehensive Plan (also not mandatory, nor is there anything in the Lee Plan)." It is not clear what the City of Bonita Springs hopes to accomplish with such an agreement. We would hope and expect that Lee County would consult with the Estero Community and hold public hearings in Estero before entering into such an agreement..

Ms. Vance continues: "Staff has not asked for nor has received direction by City Council on the logistics of proceeding with annexation. This is because before asking for direction, there should be adequate data and analysis for City Council to consider the issue." Presumably, this comment by Ms. Vance relates to doing the research necessary to satisfy the first three statutory requirements listed above.

In addition Ms. Vance states: "Given that it is highly likely that you may be approached by persons living within the Estero Fire Rescue District on the annexation issue, I hope that you can relay the following information:

• Florida Statutes, with very limited exceptions that are not applicable in this case, do not permit annexations without a majority vote of the people living within that community or the communities being considered for annexation.
• Kindly assure these residents that the city cannot force annexation where the majority of voters vote against annexation.
• Bonita Springs has never objected to the concept of Estero incorporating. However, in any proposed incorporation, the City of Bonita Springs would ask legislatures to adhere to Florida Statutes (Section) 165.061, which requires in part a minimum distance for any proposed area for incorporation of at least two miles from the boundaries of an existing municipality.
• Annexation will not affect fire district boundaries and its ad valorum or impact fees collected by each respective fire district. The City of Bonita Springs does not have its own fire department but its residents receive service by a special independent district. Fire services are not an issue for consideration in the determination of annexation.
• Water Services in the developed area north of the City's corporate boundary are served by Bonita Springs Utilities. When the City of Bonita Springs City Council and Lee County Board of County Commissioners entered into a franchise agreement with the utility, it contemplated annexation within the thirty year life of the franchise agreement and made provisions that annexations would not affect customer service, prices, etc., of the utility. Other franchises, albeit not three party agreements, have requirement s for parity of services." 

While some of these statements are not as simple or straightforward as they seem, it is useful for the residents of Estero to know the current thinking of the City of Bonita Springs on these issues.

Finally, Ms. Vance concludes her letter with the following: "The City of Bonita Springs will keep you up-to-date if there is any substantive information that will give you a better timeline for when the City Council may discuss the annexation issue."

The Tax Impact of Annexation

The first thing most people want to know is “What will happen to my property taxes if our home is annexed?” The short answer is not much.

In Florida unincorporated areas like Estero are subject to a separate “municipal services” tax imposed by the County. It shows up as a separate line item on your tax bill. Last year 6.4% of each Estero residents total property tax bill was allocated for “municipal services”. This tax rate has not been changed for several years and is not likely to change appreciably in the years to come.

At present the tax rate of the City of Bonita Springs is 17.6 % lower than the County “municipal services” rate. Since the municipal tax is such a small part of the total tax bill, the dollar impact of this difference would be very small for the typical annexed Estero taxpayer. The total property tax reduction for an annexed Estero home assessed at $200,000 would be $43; for a $300,000 home the savings would be $64 and another $20 per $100,000 increase in assessed value.

The homeowner with the $200,000 home would pay total property taxes of $3,757 instead of $3,800, a 1.1% reduction. The homeowner with the $300,000 home would pay total property taxes of $5,635 instead of $5,699, the same 1.1% reduction.

Property tax rates for Fire protection are about twice as high as the municipal services rates …Estero Fire Rescue now has a 2 mil rate while the Bonita Springs Fire district has a 2.3 mil rate. At present total local government taxes (combined municipal and fire) are lower in Estero than in Bonita Springs because of these lower fire district rates.

Paradise Shoppes of Estero in Camargo Trust MCP

As reported several times this year Camargo Trust is the 83 acre parcel on the northwest corner of US 41 and Williams Road. Camargo Trust's size ranks it as Estero's fourth largest mixed use development. The present rezoning request contains the 22 acres of US 41 frontage between Pelican Sound Drive and Williams Road. The remaining 11 aces north of Pelican Sound Drive along US 41 will be rezoned later. 

On October 13^th and October 27^th Lee County Chief Hearing Examiner Diane Parker conducted the zoning hearings on this property. Several members of the ECPP and representatives of Fountain Lakes, West Bay Club and Pelican Sound testified about their concerns and the developer changes. A detailed list of developer concessions that have been included as conditions of the zoning was included in last month's report.

The Hearing Examiner took note of the community's concern about the dangerous traffic situation that exists and would become worse at the intersection of Williams Road and US 41. She concluded her discussion of this issue as follows::

"The Hearing Examiner shares the concerns expressed by the residents of Estero regarding the existing situation at Williams Road and the potential problems that will be caused by this project having a left-turn out onto Williams Road. Applicant suggested, and Staff agreed, that the situation will be reviewed in more detail at the Development Review stage, at which time, the proper roadway improvements will be determined. Nevertheless, the Hearing Examiner points out that this project will meet site location standards with only a right in /right out access point, and will work with that restricted access point, if no to the extent desired by Applicant. Noting the potential seriousness of his situation to the public health, safety and welfare, the Hearing Examiner has chosen to recommend that the access point be restricted to a right-in/right-out until such time as Williams Road is improved to allow a left turn out for this project."

Representatives of the surrounding communities and the ECPP have continued to meet with the developer since the Hearing Examiner hearing to resolve the outstanding issues also discussed last month. The primary focus of these talks has been a developer proposal to improve the US 41/Williams Road intersection so that a left turn out of the Williams Road exit of Paradise Shoppes would be safe and the existing conflicts between vehicles entering Albertsons and those seeking to turn north on US 41 are reduced or eliminated.

Paradise Properties has proposed to add an additional lane to the north side of Williams Road just west of its intersection with US 41. Their proposal would configure Williams so that it would consist of:

• one westbound through/right lane,
• a dedicated left turn lane into Albertsons,
• a dedicated eastbound left turn lane for US 41, and
• an eastbound through/right lane.

Due to utility relocations, drainage modifications, power pole movements, signal modifications, and maintenance of traffic, these options are expected to cost upwards of $300,000.

This configuration would:

• increases the storage capacity for eastbound traffic on Williams Road making the left turn to travel northbound on US 41,

• the westbound left turn lane storage capacity for Albertsons shopping center would be increased,

• maintain the existing driveway openings for both parcels which will allow those residents living west of the intersection to access (enter and leaving) both shopping centers without having to return onto US 41,

• the left turn lane signal could be designed with a “green arrow” thus providing dedicated left turn movement followed by a green “left turn permissible”, which will add more travel time.

Based on the developer's meeting and email discussions with Lee County Department of Transportation this configuration is favored by Lee DOT staff.

Another design variation discussed with the developer would provide two left turn lanes onto US 41 from the west side of Williams Road. This configuration would increase the storage capacity of vehicles seeking to go north on US 41, but the dual left turn lane signal will be designed with a “green arrow ONLY” thus providing dedicated left turn movement in order to satisfy Lee DOT requirements.  The left on green (“left turn permissible”), will be eliminated due to Lee County safety concerns. Thus the storage advantages of this option are lower than they would appear.

The community representatives and the developer agreed to the following compromise: the developer would remove the two billboards, thus improving the median landscaping on US 41, in exchange for a fifth drive-through that will be screened from US 41 by the building with which it is associated.

On November 29^th the BOCC voted to approve the Hearing Examiner's recommendations with the following additions:

• reduce the number of gas fueling stations from 8 to four. This means that there will be no more than 8 filling stations instead of the 16 that sought by the developer.
• Increase the number of trees to be planted in the 30 foot wide buffer along US 41.
• Require as a condition of the zoning the recommendation of the Hearing Examiner that would not permit the Williams Road exit to include a left turn exit until the Williams Road intersection with US 41 has been improved satisfactorily.

 

Miromar Square Corporate Center

Miromar Development presented their rezoning plans for the Miromar Square Corporate Center to the Estero Community Planning Panel at their November 8^th meeting. The Corporate Center will be located just east of the 400,000 square foot Miromar International Design Center along the south side of Corkscrew Road east of I-75.

If approved as requested the Corporate Center will consist of a 125 room hotel, a 60,000 square foot corporate office center and an anchor office building of 30,000 square feet including a 5,000 square foot first floor bank.

In exchange for some additional square footage Miromar is offering to give up many undesirable uses that the current zoning would permit. The plan calls for a wall and substantial buffering along the southern border of the property just north of homes in Stoneybrook. In addition it provides compatible and very attractive landscaping along the south side of Corkscrew Road, effectively screening the project's parking lots from view from the street.

No building will exceed 5 stories in height and the taller buildings will be located away from the residences in Stoneybrook. At the request of the panel the developer agreed to position the bank drive through away from Corkscrew Road.

The developer indicated that Phase 1 of the International Design Center will be available to tenants next summer and will open to the public in the fall of 2005. The panel congratulated Miromar for proposing another high quality, attractive project in Estero. 

Estero Parkway Wal-Mart Progress Report

As reported last month the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) voted to approve zoning for the 228,000 square foot Wal-Mart superstore proposed for the northeast corner of US 41 and Estero Parkway on October 18th. One month later, on November 17^th, Wal-Mart closed on this newly rezoned property in spite of all the limitations resulting from our negotiations and imposed by the Board of County Commissioners. According to press reports Wal-Mart paid $10.2 million for this 33 acre parcel, or about $310,000 per acre.

Three days later it came to public attention that FDOT's draft Works Program for the 2005-06 to 2009-2010 period has delayed until the 2009-10 state fiscal year the $17 million for constructing the six-laning of US 41 from Corkscrew Road to San Carlos Park because of a shortage of funds. This decision makes the acceleration of the US 41 widening project to the summer of 2006, when the right of way and permitting will be complete, more difficult and expensive. What makes this decision so ironic is that both the design phase and the permitting/Right-of Way phase of the project have been accelerated by several years during the last 18 months.

One of the conditions of Wal-Mart's zoning on this store prohibits Wal-Mart from starting construction of the store until this US 41 widening has started. If this change is upheld by the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) and the State, acceleration of US 41 to 2006 will require a 3 year bridge loan instead of a two year loan with a commensurate increase in the interest expense caused by the longer loan.  

Coconut Road Wal-Mart Status Report

On September 9^th Wal-Mart's attorneys filed a petition in the Lee County Circuit Court seeking to overturn the Hearing Examiner's decision denying Wal-Mart the ability to develop the site without rezoning it. A Hearing on the petition was scheduled for November 15^th but on that day Wal-Mart asked for a delay and one was granted until December 13^th.

Also in mid-November a new real estate sales sign appeared on this 46 acre parcel which is located on the northwest corner of US 41 and Coconut Road. Estero residents and the press started to ask what this meant. Finally on November 23^rd Wal-Mart told the local papers that they no longer had the property under contract and would not be pursuing the appeal of the County's Development Order decision. According to press reports a representative of Hensen Luke Real Estate International Inc. indicated that the property was back on the market at an asking price of $20 million, or about $335,000 per acre.

Press reports also indicated that Wal-Mart still has an interest "in the area and a second store".

Since then the Hensen Luke Real Estate sign was removed from the property, only to reappear about 10 days later. What this means is anybody's guess.

Estero Palms Phase 2

Height Properties is presently developing 30 single family homes in Estero Palms on 10 acres on the south side of Block Lane west of River Ranch Road. On November 8^th they made a presentation to the ECPP for development of 16 additional homes on 5 across the street and immediately east of the new Estero Community Park. The two projects have made provision for pedestrian access to the park.

The only unresolved issue is transportation access to the 10 acre school site located immediately across Block Lane from the parcel now being zoned and west of Phase 1 of Estero Palms. The developer will work with the County to determine what is planned by the School Board and the County on this issue.

Ginn Golf Course Residential Development

On November 10^th the South Florida Water Management District approved an environmental resource permit for the Ginn Company for its 4,355 acre, 336 home development east of Florida Gulf Coast University on the north side of Corkscrew Road. Houses are limited to one per 10 acres of uplands or one per 20 acres of wetlands to help preserve the county's water quality. Ginn plans to build the homes along the shorelines of the 1,331 acres of lakes left from prior mining operations on the property. In addition Ginn has agreed to preserve 1,092 acres of environmentally sensitive land, to preserve its sloughs, connect its preserves with neighboring preserves, provide wildlife underpasses and keep within the density limits of the Density Reduction Recharge Area in which it is located.

The next step is for Ginn to obtain a Development Order from Lee County. They plan to begin construction of the project in 2005.

Brief Reports on
Projects In Process

Estates at Estero River

This 94 unit single family housing development is located on the south side of the Estero River just east of Sandy Lane and north of Corkscrew Road. In the eleven months since January Coastal Living Homes, the developers of the project, have sold 70 of the planned 94 homes.

Rapallo at Coconut Point

During November Touchstone Homes, developer of Rapallo, began construction of the first two coach home buildings and the amenity complex, The Club at Rapallo. Rapallo is located in the North Village of Coconut Point just south of Williams Road on the east side of US 41. The first 2 story, 10-unit building is scheduled to be completed in March 2005 while the 2 story, six unit building is expected to be completed in April 2005.

The Club at Rapallo includes formal gardens, lagoon pool and spa, sports club and tennis center, and an arts and learning studio. The Club is actually six buildings with towers and colonnades designed to look like a coastal village in Italy. The Club is expected to be completed in April 2005.

First Residential Tower at West Bay Club

During November Lehman Brothers, the developers of West Bay Club, started an advertising campaign for their first high rise residence building. The building has been named "Jasmine" and is advertised as "debuting soon". West Bay Club, located at the far west end of Williams Road, was originally zoned for six high-rise towers, but reduced that number to three, a couple of years ago when the owner at the time was having financial difficulty. Lehman Brothers has filed a rezoning application with Lee County in an effort to restore those three high rise sites. The application has been scheduled for hearing by a Lee County Hearing Examiner in January 2005.

The Reserve at Estero

Toll Brothers has begun construction of the infrastructure for its second Estero housing development called "The Reserve at Estero". This project will be located just east of its other Estero community, Belle Lago, on the north side of Estero Parkway and east of US 41. Toll Brothers plans to build 492 single family homes on this 155 acre site. As befits the country's largest luxury home builder, The Reserve at Estero, will have a fountain entry feature, an attended gatehouse, a lakefront community center with all the amenities and a fitness center, outdoor pool, tennis courts and a sports court.  Toll Brothers will soon begin taking reservations and expects to complete six furnished models in early 2005.

Bella Terra

During November construction began on the 48 foot clock tower that will be the entrance feature for this 1,800 U.S. Homes residential community located about 3 miles east of I-75 on Corkscrew Road. The clock tower will have North Italian architecture in order to be consistent with the community's overall design. The tower's 11,000 square foot base will feature multi-level fountains and pools. The tower will be adorned with two six foot clock faces of polished marble and stucco.

Estero Community Park

On November 29^th construction commenced on the 65 acre Estero Community Park located just south of Corkscrew Road between River Ridge Road and Sandy Lane. Construction had been delayed for several months by the South Florida Water Management District permitting process. The construction of Phase 1 is a 14 month project, thus the park should be open for operation in February 2006.

Lee and Estero Growth Report

The Ft Myers/ Cape Coral metropolitan area has the fastest growing economy in the United States according to a recent Milken Institute report, up from third place last year. For the last six years the Milken Institute has ranked the country’s 200 largest urban areas using an index that ranks these communities on their ability to create and sustain jobs. Our area ranked 5th out of 200 in overall job growth over the last 5 years; in total salary growth over the last five year; and over the last year; and 3^rd out of 200 in job growth during the last year. Clearly the composition of the new jobs being created in our area is improving from what it was earlier. In fact our fastest growing job category is the professional and business services sector …architects, engineers, legal services and company management. 

During October Estero housing development continued to grow rapidly with another 140 housing units being permitted during the month, with a total building value of $29.7 million. That brings the total for the year to 1,393 units, just 32 less than were permitted throughout 2003 with two months to go.  

The following table shows how the first 10 months of 2004 compares with the same period during the prior four years:

Year	Total Annual Housing Units	Number of Housing Units	Building Value of Units	Average Building Value Per Unit	Percentage of Single Family Units
2000	2,088	1,861	$252,957,886	$135,926	41.2
2001	2,104	1,863	$268,067,607	$143,890	46.8
2002	1,500	1,355	$237,402,978	$175,205	50.6
2003	1,425	1,304	$197,138,189	$151,180	43.9
2004		1,393	$291,204,538	$209,048	62.5

The first 10 months of 2004 ranks third of the five years in the number of housing units permitted and has the highest building value by a wide margin (15%). In spite of our heavy hurricane season, 2004 continues the housing recovery started in 2002, after the 911 slowdown. 

The building value of the typical housing unit permitted in Estero this year is 19% higher that the next highest year (2002) and 38% higher than all the other years. Much of this difference is due to the increase in the single family home share of the Estero housing market. The residential building value understates the purchase price of each residence because it excludes the value of the underlying land. 

Sandy Lane Alignment Study

The Sandy Lane Alignment Study includes four segments. They are:

• The San Carlos Park segment north of Estero Parkway. The consultant recommends that this segment not be constructed until it can be reevaluated after US 41 is six-laned and Three Oaks Parkway is four laned, but that the County proceed with right-of-way acquisition between the two Toll Brothers communities on the north side of Estero Parkway.

• The North Estero segment between Estero Parkway and Corkscrew Road. This has been the most controversial segment and will be discussed at length below.

• The Coconut Point segment between Corkscrew Road and Pelican Colony Boulevard. The alignment of this segment has been approved by the County as part of the zoning process of the Coconut Point DRI project. The developers expect the County to accept this right-of-way in early December and for construction to start in early 2005.

• The Bonita Springs segment from the southern end of Coconut Point to a direct connection with Old 41. This alignment was approved by the City Council of Bonita Springs earlier this year.
  

On November 12th the Estero Council of Community Leaders adopted the following position regarding the Sandy Lane alignment:

"We support the alignment for the Bonita Spring segment and the segment from there up to Corkscrew Road."

The council has heard no community support and substantial opposition for the extension of Sandy Lane north from Corkscrew Road to Estero Parkway. We believe that the County’s decision to extend Sandy Lane in this area should be postponed until:

• US 41 has been widened to 6-lanes from Corkscrew Road to San Carlos Park

• Three Oaks Parkway has been widened, AND

• A subsequent, through needs assessment for this section has been completed—presented to the community—and approved by the BOCC.

"These conditions are similar to the Consultant’s recommendation for the San Carlos segment which states: “After the widening of Three Oaks Parkway and US 41, the traffic conditions should be reevaluated to determine when this segment may be needed”.

"The Council further proposes that any future County decision to extend this segment of Sandy Lane should:

• Limit the road to two-lanes

• Urge the MPO to reverse its recent decision to extend this segment to four lanes

• During the design phase – involve the Estero community and its Historical Society so that all historical homes are avoided or relocated.

• During the design phase—work with the Estero community to address the environmental issues associated with the nature preserve south of the Cascades.

• During the design phase—work with the residents along Sandy Lane and of the Estero community to address the safety, security, buffering, air and noise pollution problems that this road segment will create as it passes through the community.

• This consideration should include a dialog with the Cascades community on an evaluation of a fly over on Sandy Lane where it intersects with their connecting roadway."

On November 16th the BOCC approved the Sandy Lane alignment as recommended by their consultant. Most of the testimony and Commissioner discussion centered upon the north Estero segment. They were impressed by the estimate that Sandy Lane is forecast to reduce traffic on US 41 in this area by 8 to 10 thousand vehicles per day. They indicated that the initial construction of this segment is expected to be just two lanes and will not be completed until at least 2011, seven years from now.

The county indicated that they would work with the community to preserve or relocate two historic homes. In general the county has indicated is willingness to work with the community during the design phase to address our other concerns.