Volume 5, Number 6
Issued October 2005
Edited by ECCL--the Estero Council of Community
Leaders
For More Information about Estero Go To www.esterofl.org
This Report is available on the Estero Fire Rescue website at
www.esterofire.org
and the Estero Community website at
www.esterofl.org
November Opportunities
for Citizen
Participation
In Protecting Estero's Quality of Life
|
Date
|
Time
|
Event
|
Location
|
|
Tuesday,
November 1st |
6 p.m. |
County
Roadway Landscape Advisory Committee |
County
Community Development Building, 1550
Monroe Street, 3rd Floor Conference Room |
|
Monday,
November 7th |
7 a.m. |
Gulfshore Playhouse Charity Golf Classic (for more info
see
www.gulfshoreplayhouse.org) |
Tiburon
Golf Club |
|
Tuesday,
November 8th |
6 p.m. |
Estero
Fire Rescue District Board Meeting |
Estero United Methodist Church - Founder's Hall |
|
Wednesday, November 9th |
5 p.m. |
Estero
Design Review Committee review of the Stoneybrook
Commercial; Coconut Town Center; Belle Lago Clubhouse; ABC
Fine Wines and Steak n Shake @ Paradise Shoppes; CVS
Pharmacy @ Plaza del Sol; Empire Galleria and Estero Animal
Hospital |
The
Perry Room of The Estero Country Club at The Vines
|
|
Thursday, November 10th |
2 p.m. |
Estero
Historical Society with presentation by Kristen Coury of
Gulfshore Playhouse |
Art
Hall, Koreshan State Historic Site |
|
Friday,
November 11th |
2 p.m. |
Estero
Council of Community Leaders Meeting …open to the public,
see the agenda at
http://esterofl.org/eccl/minutes/index.htm |
The
River Club at Pelican Sound |
|
Monday,
November 14th |
6 p.m.
|
Estero
Community Planning Panel review of Corkscrew Palms Commons |
Marsh
Landing Clubhouse |
|
Thursday, November 17th |
1:30
p.m. |
Annual
State Legislative Delegation Public Comment Session |
Edison
Community College |
|
Wednesday, November 23rd |
9:30
a.m. |
Lee
County Hearing Examiner consideration of the Cypress Shadow
zoning application |
2nd
Floor Hearing Room, 1500 Monroe Street, FM |
|
Monday,
November 28th |
8:30
a.m. |
Land
Planning Agency consideration of the proposed changes to the
Estero section of the County Land Development Code
|
Commission Chambers, 2nd
Floor, 2120 Main Street, Ft. Myers |
|
Monday,
November 28th |
7 p.m.
|
Estero
Civic Association Program on Road Safety with Sheriff Mike
Scott; Fire Chief Dennis Merrifield and Lee County Traffic
Engineer Harry Campbell. |
Stoneybrook Clubhouse |
Index
To learn more about Estero and its
growth management efforts view the new website of:
-
Estero Community Planning Panel (ECPP);
-
Estero Civic Association (ECA);
-
Estero Design Review Committee (EDRC), and
-
Estero Council of Community Leaders
(ECCL)
www.esterofl.org
The site is still in formation.…
your suggestions for improvement are
most welcome.
During September Lee
County issued building permits for another 349 housing units in
Estero worth a record $91,769,146 excluding the value of the land
under those units. The old record was set last month at about $61
million.
The County’s monthly report also includes two significant
commercial permits, not included in this total. They are $5.9
million for the new Hampton Inn, to be built on the southwest corner
of I-75 and Corkscrew Road, and $4.3 million for the
Estero Medical
Center, located in Plaza del Sol on the northeast corner of Three
Oaks Parkway and Corkscrew Road.
The following table shows how the first nine months of 2005
compares with the same period during the prior five years:
|
Year
|
Total January- September
Housing Units
|
Building Value of Units
|
Average Building Value Per
Unit
|
Percentage of Single Family
Units
|
|
2000 |
1,710 |
$235,670,871 |
$137,819 |
38.8 |
|
2001 |
1,748 |
$266,468,382 |
$152,442 |
46.1 |
|
2002 |
1,124 |
$190,366,447 |
$169,365 |
56.4 |
|
2003 |
1,255 |
$193,968,479 |
$154,557 |
42.2 |
|
2004 |
1,253 |
$277,114,447 |
$221,161 |
64.7 |
|
2005 |
2,273 |
$496,004,626 |
$218,216 |
51.8 |
The 2,273 housing units permitted during the first nine months of
2005 exceeds the total units permitted in any prior year by 525
housing units, or 30 percent. This year’s permitting is up 81% from
last year.
The total permitted value of these units, excluding land, exceeds
the prior record set last year by nearly $219 million, a 79%
increase, and is more than double the total during three of the last
five years.
The average building value during 2004 and 2005 of about $220,000
(excluding land) is 44% higher than the average for the prior four
years. This increase is due to the rapid increase in the cost of
construction materials, the changing mix in the type of housing
units being constructed (more single family and high rise units)
along with many other factors.
The total value of permitted commercial buildings, exclusive of
land, during the first 9 months of 2005 equals $65.2 million. Only
calendar year 2000, when the
Hyatt Coconut Point Resort was
permitted, exceeds this amount. It is expected that the value of
commercial permits will continue to grow in Estero over the next
several years.
The City of Bonita Springs has been growing more rapidly during
the last two years but still trails Estero on a year to date basis
by 61% in housing unit value and 58% in the total value of permitted
development.
REMINDER: The residential building value understates the cost of
each residence because it excludes the value of the underlying land.
On
October 14th Shirley Furry, Executive Director of the
Southwest
Florida Symphony, discussed the Symphony’s interest in developing a
series of outdoor performances in the amphitheater at the
Estero
Community Park. Mrs. Furry had
toured the facility with several ECCL
leaders during September and found it to be satisfactory for
performances by the Symphony. She expressed an interest in working
with the ECCL, Lee County Parks and Recreation Department and the
Estero community to develop such a program for the 2006-07 “season”.
Mrs. Furry and the ECCL will soon be meeting with the Parks and
Recreation Department to explore the alternatives for staging such
performances at the Park. The Central Lawn in front of the
amphitheater will seat 2,000 to 3,000 for classical, pops or other
concerts by the Symphony.
Later in the meeting the ECCL decided to create a Arts
encouragement Committee to work with all the “Arts” entities
interested in the community, including but not limited to the
Southwest Florida Symphony,
Gulfshore Playhouse, the
FGCU Music and
Graphic and Performing Arts Departments,
Muvico and the Parks and
Recreation Department. All Estero residents interested in the Arts
etc. are invited to join the committee. The committee will be
planning a spring workshop where representatives of the Symphony,
Gulfshore Playhouse etc. will be invited to demonstrate their talent
and discuss their plans with all interested south Lee County
residents.
On October 7th the ECCL Emergency
Medical Services Committee met to discuss information provided to
the committee by Jim Nathan, President of Lee Memorial Health Care
System, about the possibility of Estero obtaining a Freestanding
Emergency Department. At present the Florida legislature has
established a moratorium on approval of this kind of facility, but
it is scheduled to expire on June 30, 2005.
At present the Agency for Health Care Administration, (ACHA) has
approved two such facilities in Florida, in Ocala and Destin. In
both cases the Freestanding Emergency Facility is located about 12
miles from the parent hospital, much like our situation here in
Estero. In addition Texas, California, Virginia, South Carolina and
Delaware have such facilities and the states of North Carolina,
Kansas, Arizona and Washington are in the process of developing
them.
At present the law requires that Freestanding Emergency
Facilities must meet full hospital standards. This makes such a
facility very hard to staff in order to provide the required
services. At present the Estero/Bonita Springs areas does not have
enough doctors practicing or living in the area to make recruitment
feasible. In response to this challenge the Committee and its
professional members will begin to develop a list of physicians in
the area. In addition they will develop a system for tracking all
emergency cases that require transportation from south Lee County to
the areas hospitals including the time that it takes to reach those
destinations. The Estero Fire Rescue District, the
Bonita Community
Health Center, the new Urgent Care of Estero Center and the Life
Care Center of Estero are represented on the committee.
The other possibility would be to convince the legislature that
the Estero Freestanding Emergency Facility should be exception from
the “full hospital standards” requirement but would have more
extensive stabilization capabilities than can be provided by the
Bonita Community Health Center or the Urgent Care facility as well
as helicopter and ground transportation facilities.
The moratorium enacted by the legislature also required the AHCA
to prepare a report on Freestanding Emergency Facilities by December
31, 2004. The conclusion of that report reads as follows:
“It is in the public interest to allow hospitals in certain
unique communities to develop freestanding emergency departments and
to have them listed separately on their license. Such communities
are likely to be high growth areas within a reasonable travel time
to the main hospital to enable patient transport for surgery and
inpatient services. This allows growing communities to gain quicker
access to emergency care but avoids the premature development of a
hospital in a community that cannot yet support it.”
However, the AHCA report also recommends that all such facilities
must be regulated by the same criteria as now applies to onsite
emergency departments.
This is one of the topics that the ECCL will discuss when it
testifies before the annual meeting of the Southwest Florida
legislative delegation at their 2006 Legislative Session Public
Forum on November 17th.
On October 4th Kenny Griffin, Real Estate
Specialist from the Southeast U.S. Facility Services Office in
Atlanta, informed the ECCL that the U S Post Office
“are currently
on a hold on all new facility projects nationally. This was
instituted about a month ago while a review is made on each project.
As quickly as we receive notification that we can proceed on this
project, we will do so. We have investigated each offer submitted as
well as others not offered during the site/bldg advertisement. At
the time of the hold, we were ready to advise local officials of the
contending sites (short list) to pursue further. This is the point
where we will pick back up. Sorry for the delay we've experienced
but look forward to getting back on track and pursuing a new
location for the needed facility”.
On April 27, 2005 the U.S. Postal Service held a public hearing
in Estero to receive community input regarding their search for a
post office site in Estero. At that meeting Mr. Griffin outlined the
following site selection process:
- Pubic advertisement soliciting the public for suggestions
regarding possible Post Office sites within the target area.
- Post Office evaluation of the proposed sites and all others
discovered by the Post Office staff.
- Notice of possible sites provided to the Board of County
Commissioners and the public for their comments and suggestions.
- The preferred site is selected and announced to the BOCC and the
community for further comment.
- Post Office purchase of the site.
- Start to construct the Post Office. It typically takes 7 to 9
months to construct such a facility.
It would appear from Mr. Griffin’s comments that the first two
steps have been completed and the last four will commence when the
moratorium is lifted.
On September 23rd the Lee County Metropolitan Planning
Organization (MPO) voted 8 to 5 in opposition to adding a Coconut
Road/I-75 intersection to the County’s 2020 Long Range Plan over the
objections of the City of Bonita Springs and the Southwest Florida
Transportation Initiative (SWFTI), a private sector transportation
lobby group. The ECCL and
The Brooks communities spoke against
changing the plan.
On October 18th the Bonita Springs City Council voted to continue
to seek MPO approval of an amendment to the Long Range
Transportation Plan so that the intersection could be studied using
the $10 million authorized by the recently enacted Federal Highway
Transportation bill. The issue can be reconsidered by the MPO if one
of the persons voting in opposition to the intersection requests
such a vote. The MPO was scheduled to meet jointly with the Collier
County MPO on October 21st but the meeting was cancelled because of
the threat of Hurricane Wilma. The issue may be considered at this
meeting when it is rescheduled or at the MPO’s December meeting.
In addition to the arguments presented in last month’s EDR the
ECCL believes that completing the Estero Parkway Flyover; six-laning
Corkscrew Road around the I-75 interchange and replacing the
existing interchange with one that can accommodate Corkscrew Road
being a six-lane road. These projects will provide far greater
traffic relief; can be completed much sooner and at far less expense
than the proposed interchange.
FDOT is
still trying to obtain the necessary detention ponds along this
route. Once this has been accomplished, FDOT will be scheduling a
community meeting in Estero. Such a meeting is designed to provide
an opportunity for the public to comment on the detailed design
plans for the route.
Regional FDOT has applied for a State Infrastructure Bank (SIB)
loan for the $20 million necessary to construct this road segment.
This decision will be made by the top officials of FDOT about
November 15th. The permitting and right-of-way funding for this
segment was provided by another SIB loan….that was the first time an
SIB loan was approved for a non-construction phase of a project. If
this application is not approved, the ECCL, FDOT, Lee DOT, Wal-Mart
and other developers along this segment will begin to explore other
funding alternatives.
The Transit Element
of the Long Range Transportation Plan Update contains a Chapter (#7)
on Waterborne Transit Feasibility Assessment. Included in that
Chapter is an evaluation of Potential Landing Sites. Among those
that are discussed is ferry service between Lover’s Key State Park
on Ft. Myers Beach and Coconut Road.
The following are a couple of extracts from the study:
“The new developments at Coconut may eventually become a viable
destination for waterborne transit service with connections to
Coconut Point Town Center.”
“If transit service to this destination is implemented, landing
rights could be obtained at the marina to connect to a water bus.”
“A ferry connecting the new developments at Coconut to Lovers Key
State Park, along the route shown in Map 7-2, would be competitive
in terms of travel time, but it would require a good transit or
shuttle bus connection on the Lovers Key side for passengers to get
to the nearby points of interest, such as the beach, hiking trails,
picnic areas, or canoe livery. This location already is served by
the beach trolley, which could meet the ferry at the Lovers Key
landing with a small route deviation. Until substantially more
development occurs at either Coconut or Lovers Key, there is not
likely to be sufficient demand to make this service viable.”
Serious consideration of water ferry service connecting these two
points could be advantageous to the residents of Estero for the
following two reasons:
- It could deter the Lover’s Key to Coconut Road bridge that has
been advocated by the City Ft. Myers Beach for many years, and
- It could provide many Estero residents with easier access to the
Lovers Key beach etc.
It could be advantageous to
Lover’s Key State Park because it is
reported to be among the least utilized State Parks even though it
is a large and attractive park.
You can view the full Transit Element of the Long Range
Transportation Plan at
http://www.swfrpc.org/MPO/LRTPUpdate.htm.
from US 41 to Three Oaks Parkway
Several years
ago the landowners along this road segment agreed to pay for the
maintenance of the median landscaping during the first year after
installation. As a result the project became the highest ranking
arterial roadway in need of landscaping as determined by the
County’s Roadway Landscape Advisory Committee (RLAC) and the
BOCC.
Thus median landscape funding for the road was made available and
the design commenced.
About the time that the landscaping project was to be bid Toll
Brothers sought to rezone the property where
The Reserve of Estero
is now being constructed. The rezoning eliminated the commercial use
included in the prior zoning of that property. Consequently, three
median cuts along Estero Parkway could be eliminated. As a result
Toll Brothers and Leavitt Homes, the developers of
The Cascades,
located immediately across the road from The Reserve of Estero,
agreed to pay the cost of closing those median cuts so that
additional trees and plants could be installed in the median.
Two of those median cuts were eliminated earlier this year, and
the third will be removed next year when The Reserve sales office is
closed. In the meantime the landscape plan was amended to include
landscaping for the new median areas. On June 28th the BOCC approved
a contract for $475,000 with Big Tree, Inc. to install the
landscaping and irrigation system in the Estero Parkway median and
to pay them for the maintenance during the first year after the
plants and trees are installed.
Irrigation work on the project began in September and would
appear to be nearly complete. The contractor has installed both
irrigation wells and one has passed the required pressure test while
the second is being scheduled for that test. The pump stations and
the trees should be installed during the next 30 days.
from Old 41 in Bonita Springs to Corkscrew Road
Several
year ago, when this 3.5 mile road widening project was accelerated
by the Florida legislature, $704,000 was set aside to landscaping
the median. Using some of these funds Lee County hired a landscape
architect in 2002 to design the median landscaping for this segment.
That design was approved by the Roadway Landscape Advisory Committee
(RLAC) the following year.
About that time FDOT changed their rules about the size of trees
that may be planted in the medians of State roads with a design
speed of 50 mph and higher. This new restriction prevents the use of
large trees in the median of this road segment, contrary to the
County’s core roadway landscaping policy. The County appealed this
rule using zoning information associated with all the commercial
developments planned for this road segment. The State denied the
appeal.
More recently the County authorized additional funds for US 41
landscaping throughout the unincorporated part of the county and
some of it was allocated to this road segment. Consequently on June
28th the BOCC approved a supplemental contract with the landscape
designer of this project so that they can update the design to add
County financed plants and trees. This contract provides $101,600
for development of a base plan, site investigation, conceptual
design, design development, construction documents and bidding
assistance. Two conceptual designs were presented to the RLAC in
September, both of which will permit larger trees to be planted
later should the State later approve a variance.
The 60% (preliminary detailed) landscape design will be presented
to the Roadway Landscape Advisory Committee (RLAC) at their meeting
on December 6th. It is expected that the design will be completed in
March 2006, with installation to follow after that.
On September 6th the 60%
plans for landscaping this interchange were presented to the
County’s Roadway Landscape Advisory Committee (RLAC). The committee
raised questions about using so much of the budget for pavers under
the bridge and suggested that those funds could be more
appropriately used to add more trees so that they could be planted
closer together and in clusters.
FDOT’s decision to accelerate the Daniels/I-75 Interchange has
permitted the transfer of $100,000 from that project to Corkscrew so
that a total of $400,000 is now available for landscaping this
intersection. These funds should permit the landscape designers to
fulfill the RLAC’s suggestions.
The design firm is scheduled to submit the revised (90%) final
plans for landscaping the interchange last week. No word yet on
their submission.
On October 12th
the developers of Paradise Shoppes and
Steak n Shake met with the
EDRC and the community to discuss their Development Order plans for
a restaurant on Parcel 5 of this 22 acre development on the
northwest corner of Williams Road and US 41. The proposed Steak n
Shake restaurant would contain 4,410 gross square feet and will
provide seats for 99 sit down diners and a drive through facility.
On September 12th the developers of Paradise Shoppes and Steak n
Shake met with the ECPP concerning a proposed drive through
variance. See the September Report for more on this aspect of the
development.
The EDRC noted for the developer that the current
Corkscrew
Overlay Land Development Code provisions require all buildings of
less than 5,000 square feet to have a 30 degree pitched roof and
that this provision will apply to all Estero commercial areas when
the pending revisions are approved by the BOCC, now scheduled for
December. These changes are likely to become effective prior to the
requested DO being approved by the County. The Committee and the
developer discussed the special air handling needs of restaurants
and how they might be accommodated using a pitched roof. The
ECPP
has asked that the EDRC not make any exceptions to this requirement.
The EDRC made the following additional suggestions:
- The Parapet around the entire building needs more articulation
- Add a tile roof over the entryway
- More Architectural details are needed
- Roof Equipment must be hidden
- Trees should be added to the buffer along US 41
- More details need to be added to the pick up window wall
- The sides of the building need more undulation
- Add more sabal palms to the island at the rear of the property
- Consider adding sabal palms with 20 foot trunks in groups of 3/4/5
in front of the drive-thru wall
- Provide more planting areas by reducing the parking by up to 7
spaces, those that are not required by Code
- Check to see if the setback of the parking along the spine road
meets the code requirements
- The width of the small tower entry feature is not in proportion to
the rest of the building
The developer agreed to return next month with changes designed
to satisfy the EDRC’s concerns.
On October 12th Empire Builders appeared
before the EDRC to present their plans for constructing 40,000
square feet of office space in four buildings on the eastern four
acres of the Galleria property along the north side of Corkscrew
Road just across from the entrance to the new
Estero Community Park.
The owner stated that Building One would be their corporate office
headquarters and that landscaping would be nicer than the minimum
requirements.
The EDRC made the following comments and suggestions:
- Asked the developer to return with the required color and roof
tile samples
- Suggested that a covering over the doorways should be added on the
rear of Buildings 3 and 4 because of their high visibility
- The rear and ends of the buildings need more plantings
- A green area with bushes and shrubs should also be added
- The dry detention area needs more undulations and use more
plantings to improve its appearance
- Increase the size of the trees to the soon to be approved
requirement of 45 gallons and 14 feet
- Add more Sabal Palms and more “tall growing” shrubs
- The monument sign needs to be wider than it is tall per the code
revisions
- Add landscaping by the monument sign
- Some of the parking spaces are in violation of the 75 foot setback
requirement. It was suggested that some of the six excess parking
spaces might be removed to eliminate or reduce this variation.
Committee supports removing 4 parking spaces and to increase
plantings there.
The developer agreed to return to the EDRC next month.
The owner and his representatives
presented their plans for the
Estero Animal Hospital
to the EDRC on
October 12th. The proposed veterinary clinic would be located on the
south side of Corkscrew Road between River Ranch Road and the
entrance to the new Estero Community Park. The developers are
proposing a 7,750 square foot, two story building and a garage (at
the rear of the property) on a 1.35 acre irregular site. The
developers plan was sensitive to many of the requirements of the
Estero sections of the LDC.
The EDRC had the following comments and suggestions on this
project:
- The Old Florida design is inconsistent with the surrounding
developments that have been approved under the provisions of the
Corkscrew Road Overlay, in which this property is located
- Add more Sabal Palms along Corkscrew Road
- Question the parallel parking along the western wall without the
necessary setback
- Need a buffer along the rear of the property because of the
residential use of that land
- Urged the developer to review the landscaping at parallel parking
so passengers could get out of the vehicles. Possibly use mulch and
creeping figs or Jasmine on trellis
- Add sabal palms to the south side of the entry
- No chain link fence allowed on buffered areas
- Committee supports reducing from 20 feet to 15 feet the distance
of the wall from the adjacent residential property.
The developer agreed to return next month with his revised plans.
Representatives of CVS Pharmacy
presented their plans to the ECPP for a proposed 12,900 square-foot
CVS Pharmacy within the Plaza Del Sol commercial development at the
northeast corner of Corkscrew Road and Three Oaks Parkway. CVS plans
to build this store on the Corkscrew Road parcel that is located
just east of the corner parcel. The developer is seeking a change in
the existing zoning that would provide a deviation from the setback
requirement for parking lots located in the
Corkscrew Road Overlay
of the Estero Land Development Code provisions. CVS would like space
for a two lane drive-through facility around the building. The
developer proposed that the building would partially satisfy this
requirement by attaching a 14-foot high porte cochere (portico) over
the drive through lanes on the southwest corner building of the
building.
The Panel objected to the plan as it would become the first
deviation from the Corkscrew Road Overlay building setback
requirements to which all other developers on Corkscrew Road have
complied. They concluded that such a deviation would be unfair to
those developers and would set a dangerous precedent. The only
exception has been to avoid large trees that the County regulations
require being preserved. The developer indicated that they would
rework their proposal and return to the Panel at a later date.
Coastal Living Homes presented their
plans for the proposed
Townhomes at Estero Park residential
development to be located on the south side of Block Lane, west of
River Ranch Road along the north boundary of the Estero High School
grounds. This 5 acre development would contain 30 Townhomes in eight
structures ranging in size from 1,850 to 2,200 square feet.
The Panel was highly complimentary of the project layout and the
conceptual design of the buildings. The layout provides units
fronting on a broad entrance road with garages at the rear entered
by a separate access road. The panel thought this approach would be
a good fit for the community. The Panel asked that the developer
provide aerial photos and site location maps so that the Panel can
more readily assess the impact of the project on its neighboring
properties. This information is required to be provided in the
zoning application to the County and should also be supplied to the
Panel. The Panel cautioned that increased development on Block Lane
presented potential problems on the two-lane street and suggested
that the developer may be asked to fund some of any necessary
improvement. The developer promised to return with a map, other
required documents and updates of the proposed development as it
proceeds through the Lee County approval process.
On October 17th the Simon Property Group announced that the Grand
Opening of the entire Coconut Point Town Center is scheduled for
September 2006. The community center portion, or “Market”, of the
Town Center, the semi-circle of large stores at the north end of the
project will open for business in March 2006.
The company also announced that
Ted’s Montana Grill, a 5,500
square foot restaurant, will be located in the Lakefront section of
the Town Center. This chain, partly owned by Ted Turner, now has
restaurants in twenty states. The Lakefront is expected to be
surrounded by several attractive restaurants. Carlos Cabrera,
General Manager of the
Hyatt Point Resort & Spa announced that the
Hyatt would run shuttles between the Hotel and the Town Center when
it opens.
View an Exciting Video of Simon’s Plans for the Coconut Point
Town Center on the web at
www.coconutpointretail.com
in the Colony of Pelican
Landing
Between February 16th and July 1st the Chief Lee County
Hearing Examiner heard six days of testimony regarding
Cingular
Wireless PCS’s, formerly AT&T, rezoning request that would permit a
long established cellular site in the middle of
The Colony of
Pelican Landing to be redeveloped with a stealth tower and 15 single
family homesites. During those Hearings the
Pelican Landing
Community Association (PLCA), WCI, The Colony Foundation and many
residents of Pelican Landing and The Colony opposed the proposed
development unless it is developed consistent with the standards
used in the surrounding communities and the developer and the
project’s residents support the communities and their associations
in a manner comparable to the support that is being provided by the
residents of The Colony and
Pelican Landing.
Separate from the zoning process WCI filed suit against AT&T and
Lee County regarding the County’s approval of a Development Order
permitting the proposed development to have access to the main
private road through The Colony, Pelican Colony Boulevard. The judge
in this case ordered the dispute to be arbitrated. Ultimately the
parties reached an agreement that has been incorporated in a
settlement agreement. That agreement contains the following
provisions:
- The cellular tower will be removed from the property by
December 31, 2006 with no replacement tower ever being constructed
on the site;
- The 15 homes to be developed on the site must adhere to the
appearance standards required of all residential units in The
Colony;
- The purchasers of these homes will pay all the same assessments
that Colony residents pay; will enjoy the same privileges as all
other Colony residents and be able to join all discretionary Colony
amenities on the same terms as all other Colony residents.
These terms were communicated to all Colony residents by WCI
without objection. Based upon this agreement all parties supported
the Hearing Examiner’s recommendations when they were presented to
the Board of County Commissioner (BOCC) on October 17th. The BOCC
voted unanimously to approve the zoning for the project as
conditioned.
- JED Development, the owners of the
46 acre property on the
northwest corner of US 41 and Coconut Road, are planning a high end
retail center on the front 34 acres and housing on the 12 acres at
the rear. The retail development will consist of an anchor site for
a 130,000 square foot store and eight out parcels, three of which
are now under contract, one of which will be a bank.
- On October 9th the Super-Target at
Gulf Coast Town Center
was the
first store in that major shopping center to open for business.
Other stores in Phase 1 that will open by the end of the year are:
Staples, Kirkland’s, Regal Cinemas, Petco, Jo-Ann, Babies “R” Us,
Linen n Things.
- The 10 acre commercial site on the northwest corner of Three Oaks
Parkway and Williams Road has been purchased by Pawlet Associates,
LC.
- The
Miromar International Design Center is now 82% leased. Tenants
will soon begin to prepare their spaces and the Design Center
opening is expected by year end.
-
The 65 acre
Estero Community Park is now about 50% complete. The
41,000 square foot community center has been topped off; four shade
shelters have been constructed; the cross-country hill and two lakes
have been completed; one parking lot is finished with two more under
construction. The Park is expected to open for community use next
summer..
- Three of seven buildings in the second phase at
Coastal Village
are now completed. Coastal Village is an off-campus apartment
complex for FGCU students located on the east side of Three Oaks
Parkway just north of Estero Parkway. Phase one, which contains
eight buildings, was completed in August 2004. When the remaining
four buildings are completed in the near future Coastal Village will
contain 200 housing units for 800 students.
-
Estero Urgent Care recently became the first tenant in
Estero Park
Commons, located on the south side of Corkscrew Road just west of
the entrance to the new
Estero
Community Park. This walk-in medical
center will occupy 8,000 square feet of the first of seven
commercial buildings currently under construction on the site.
Estero Urgent Care should reduce the number of trips that Estero and
other south Lee County residents must make to the emergency rooms of
Lee and Collier County hospitals. The facility will be open from 9
a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday at present and will consider
longer hours if the market will support such operation. The
developer of Estero Park Commons indicates that about 40% of their
space is under contract to doctor’s offices; a physical rehab
office; two investment companies; an insurance company and two real
estate companies. The entire project is expected to be completed
within 18 months.
