Ft. Myers Development News [Archive]

smiley

December 2nd, 2004, 10:49 PM

Duany, the annoying, strikes again:
http://vh10018.v1.moc.gbahn.net/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20041128&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=411280497&Ref=AR&Profile=1008&MaxW=400&MaxH=400&title=1
The Beau Rivage towers over the Dean Park neighborhood in downtown Fort Myers. ANDREW WEST/news-press.com

http://vh10018.v1.moc.gbahn.net/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20041128&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=411280497&Ref=V3&Profile=1008&MaxW=400&MaxH=400&title=1

http://vh10018.v1.moc.gbahn.net/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20041128&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=411280497&Ref=H2&Profile=1008&MaxW=400&MaxH=400&title=1
The Beau Rivage at the east end of First Street is a new condominium reshaping the skyline of downtown Fort Myers. CLINT KRAUSE/news-press.com

The Article:
Duany’s vision debated

Planner’s criticism confuses leaders

By DICK HOGAN
dhogan@news-press.com
Published by news-press.com on November 28, 2004
Planners, architects and businessmen alike are asking whether the city of Fort Myers has embarked on transforming its downtown into a pedestrian-friendly paradise or just an overcrowded, traffic-clogged place with bad architecture.

Miami-based architect Andres Duany, who created the redevelopment plan approved by the city council in 2003, weighed in on the issue recently with a stinging attack on the city’s performance in a WGCU-FM radio broadcast of a town hall meeting.

The high-rise condominiums being approved along the Caloosahatchee River are too tall and cram too much development into the area, he said, adding that much of the architecture is “mediocre,” local roads will be overloaded and future renovations will be strangled if the city continues on its current course.

Perhaps the most intractable of Duany’s criticisms is literally a matter of taste. Except for Cypress Club, a planned high-rise along the river, he said, “The architecture’s pretty mediocre and that’s too bad. It’s going to look out of date — it’s like buying clothing that’s out of date. It literally lowers the spirit.”

But city officials say Duany had plenty of opportunities to say things were going wrong in meetings and in his reports on the first three projects approved by the city council. In fact, Duany said repeatedly that height and size in and of themselves aren’t critical, they say.

“We’re all wondering how we got off course,” Maureen Lund, the city’s development services manager, said sarcastically at a recent Planning Board hearing on the code that will implement Duany’s plans with specifics such as how many dwellings per acre developers will be able to build, and where.

Lund said she intends to ask Duany where he stands. “We want him to say, in plain English, ‘Yes, it’s too tall.’ ”

But Duany said city officials have only themselves to blame for approving riverfront buildings that are too big and too high. During discussions on the very first project, High Point, he says the city wanted to approve a project much bigger and higher than he had envisioned.

“They basically told us that they really wanted it very badly,” Duany said. “The first developer came in with a big building and the city wanted the height very badly.”

Asked whether he agreed at that point to the larger building, he said dryly, “In the sense that when you’re told, right.”

But city officials tell another version of what happened.

City planner Elly McKuen said Duany never raised objections to height and the overall amount of development in general or to any project in particular. “He’s never communicated that with us, his staff has never communicated that with us. I guess we look at it completely opposite of where he’s coming from.”

But Duany is blunt in his insistence that the city decided early on it was going to go for more development and height than he considers wise — now it’s the city council’s responsibility and he has moved on.
“I don’t want to back off, but on the other hand, I’m completely bored by the thing,” he said. “If you want to know, I think it’s all too high. I’m not an elected official; it’s their responsibility, it’s not mine.”

McKuen said she will call Duany and ask him to have further discussions to elaborate on his objections. Meanwhile, “We’ve sort of just been sitting, trying to absorb what he’s telling us, what he’s really saying.”

The city has no intentions of firing Duany from his $5,000-per-year contract for evaluating new downtown projects, she said. Duany was paid $250,000 for the original study.

Duany's analysis relies on the planning philosophy known as new urbanism, which calls for creating an environment in which people are able to live, work, shop and play within walking distance — with features such as easily accessible parks and pedestrian walkways that encourage people to interact in public spaces and create a sense of community.

To do that, new urbanists such as Duany often put more development in an area than other planners would — but at the same time require builders to provide features such as public parking and access to the riverfront. He suggests giving developers incentives to do those things.

Not all planners agree that new urbanism is new or that Duany is providing a useful service.

"I've never been very impressed with Duany to start with," said John Kremski, former planning director for the city of Fort Myers and now a commercial real estate agent with D'Alessandro & Woodyard. "I basically think he's a snake oil salesman."

Duany's ideas are nothing special, Kremski said — just basic tenets of urban planning that have been around for a century. "He's got the things in the word processor and he takes the names of the cities and streets and plugs them in. But he's got a huge following and it attracts a lot of developers, which is the city's purpose."

Others say Duany's ideas are sound but the city council is selling Fort Myers short — granting too much development without asking for enough in return.

"We're not getting our bang for the buck," said Bill Mudgett, a Fort Myers architect who also sits on the city Planning Board.

It's too easy for developers to get up to a 100 percent increase in the number of units they can build by doing things such as creating a well-designed building or providing access to the river, Mudgett said. "Duany's idea all along was to give people extra density if it's good for the city. It's in there (in the city's rules) but we're making it too easy."

The result, he said, is that in some waterfront projects such as The Vue, a 27-story tower recently approved by the city council, builders can get close to 100 units per acre, double the 50 they are entitled to before they get extra units for doing things that are good for the city.

Mike Flanders, a city councilman and downtown architect, said he doesn't think the council is doing a bad job so far. "I'd give us a B on an A to F scale."

The Vue, for example, even though "it will cast a shadow on part of Centennial Park," is a good project, he said. "They're adding another 800 feet of linear frontage (on the river) for the public to walk on."

City officials also defend the overall amount of development, saying that the additional traffic from new residents can be dealt with through mass transit and road improvements even on East First Street, the area most affected.

A traffic study to be released next month will make recommendations that will solve the problem through widening First or Second streets and adding trolley service, said Don Paight, executive director of the city's Downtown Redevelopment Agency.

But Bill Spikowski, a private planner who also sits on the Planning Board, said early indications are that if East First were widened to three lanes one way westbound, the existing grassy space and palm trees would have to be ripped out in order to avoid spending $30 million for property.

That destroys East First as the public space it was intended to be in the plan, he said. "We have this new urbanism plan, but First is going to be a throughway — too many approvals."

As for height itself, Paight said, all the high-rises are built so that right on the street, there are only two to five stories. "You're not going to be staring up at a high rise canyon and it's going to accommodate retail and restaurants."

But Duany said allowing the allowable development in downtown to be eaten up by the first few projects will leave holes in the cityscape as others aren't able to do their own projects unless the city comprehensive plan is amended.

That's not good, he said: "I feel that redevelopment should happen uniformly, that all the empty sites should receive a part of the allocation."

The number of new residences in downtown is capped at 2,777 under an agreement with the state although one developer, DevPro, already has said it shouldn't have to abide by the cap on the number of residential units, and Lund said if the city changes course now after allowing three projects at high density, others who already have applied also could challenge the rules.

McKuen said the cap may not be an absolute limit. "We are trying to work with the Department of Community Affairs," which imposed the cap.

Part of the problem may be the sheer speed at which the development proposals have come in, she said. "I don't think we ever thought we'd have the interest in the downtown we have now."

Duany said that despite what he considers excessive development granted to the first applicants, the city still can succeed in creating a good urban environment if it pays attention to elements such as providing enough access to the river by pedestrians and motorists.

"If they're careful," he said. "The question is what they're going to do with the rest."

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041128/NEWS01/411280497/1008/NEWS0106

smiley

December 2nd, 2004, 10:50 PM

The real problem is that the bridges frame downtown and the condos are ouside teh bridges. I don't think the old folks are gonna walk that much.

smiley

December 2nd, 2004, 10:55 PM

The other question is that, because the Oasis thing was announced in June or July 2004, why is it not in the map from last week?

Jasonhouse

December 3rd, 2004, 12:29 AM

From that Oasis article...

Described as a gated condo village

WTF is this?

If people want to bitch about certain forms of development, gated off enclaves is a great place to start.

Jasonhouse

December 3rd, 2004, 12:31 AM

btw, should I sticky this thread, or perhaps merge it with Sarasota to make a "SW Florida" megathread?

smiley

December 3rd, 2004, 04:45 AM

Hye they are palnning a gated condo community on the river in Dt Miami - and some guy keeps basically advertising it on this forum because he"knows" the developer. Stupid idea, yes, but nonetheless . .

Yea, sticky it, but I think it would get too confusing with Sarasota - you could make it Ft. Myers, Naples, Marco sort of thing.

Lakelander

December 3rd, 2004, 05:16 AM

Like Smiley said, I think you should sticky it with Naples. Its boom is significant enough to be considered separate from whats going on in Sarasota.

Dale

December 3rd, 2004, 05:30 AM

A recent article in Gulfshore Business talks about Ft.Myers officials exasperated by Duany's tendency to contradict himself on a fairly regular basis.

Jasonhouse

December 3rd, 2004, 06:04 AM

Hye they are palnning a gated condo community on the river in Dt Miami - and some guy keeps basically advertising it on this forum because he"knows" the developer. Stupid idea, yes, but nonetheless . .

If I see it "advertised" (or you do), I am going to delete it. I don't go for that realtor soliciting their own jobs BS here. Unless they want to cough up some advertising dollars, they need to get the hell out of dodge.

smiley

December 29th, 2004, 04:00 PM

Riverfront plan tops agenda

Council election to decide future

By ALISON KEPNER
akepner@news-press.com
Published by news-press.com on December 29, 2004
In 2005, Fort Myers leaders will decide what to build on the city's waterfront — the biggest and most transforming project of the downtown redevelopment.

But, thanks to the city's spring election, voters may be able to determine the choice.

The waterfront redevelopment project should come to the council for a vote in late April — after the April 5 general election. The sitting council already is split on the project, and three of the five council seats are up this spring, meaning whom voters elect will affect what project is chosen.

Fort Myers wants a company to redevelop a 5.6-acre, city-owned site on the south side of the Caloosahatchee River. It includes the Harborside Event Center parking lot, Exhibition Hall, the public boat ramp and parking lot and city pier.

In October, council members voted 3-2 to begin negotiations with WCI Communities Inc. after a

12-member selection committee ranked its plan above those of Antaramian Development Corp. and Throgmartin Waterfront Group.

Mike Flanders and Ann Knight dissented. They want more public space and prefer a plan that preserves the historic Exhibition Hall.

Urban planner Andres Duany, whom the city paid $273,000 to develop its downtown plan in 2001, has criticized WCI's proposal as too massive. Upset about that and other council decisions, he said earlier this month that he wants city leaders to follow his plan or take his name off it.

Councilwoman Veronica Shoemaker's Ward 2 and Flanders' Ward 4 seats are not up this year, securing their chances to vote on a plan.

By their previous votes, that makes the count 1-1. Four council votes are needed to sell city land, making voters' decisions for the other three seats critical.

Ward 5 Councilman Randy Henderson supported WCI. He is running unopposed so far, but candidates have until mid-January to qualify.

In Ward 3, Knight still opposes the WCI plan. Opponent Levon Simms also is concerned about the height of new developments, including WCI's proposed buildings. He is flexible about going slightly higher than Duany's recommended five stories on the waterfront but thinks WCI's suggested 12 to 16 stories is too much.

"There must be some kind of controlled growth," he said. "I'd like to follow the Duany plan as closely as possible."

The most crowded race is in Ward 1. Four candidates have opened campaign accounts: business owner Frankie Jennings, former city building official Clark Richards, teacher Gina Sabiston and pharmaceutical salesman Warren Wright.

Jennings, who was appointed in November to fill Tammy Hall's vacated seat until the election, said she has not reviewed the WCI plan yet but supports Duany's vision. "The public has been sold on the Duany plan."

Richards also said he is not familiar with the details of the WCI plan but worries about how Fort Myers is redeveloping.

"I agree with Duany," he said. "The city always sells out."

Richards prefers lower buildings near the water with taller structures farther out, like an "upside down wedding cake." He has no set limit on height, saying he would make decisions on a case-by-case basis.

Sabiston attended the all-day October meeting, listening to the three developers present their proposals. She prefers Throgmartin's plan but also likes that of Antaramian.

The WCI plan, as presented in October, would not get her vote. If elected, she wants to steer the council back to Duany's vision.

"I think Duany knows what he's talking about," she said. "If we aren't going to listen to him, we shouldn't have hired him."

Wright attended the October meeting, too. He likes Antaramian's plan. Its 18 stories will need to be negotiated down, but the design provides good view corridors to the riverfront, he said.

If elected, he would not vote for the current WCI plan.

"There's too much bulk," he said.

Three companiesí proposals to redevelop the Fort Myers waterfront, as ranked by a city selection committee:
?
• WCI Communities Inc.

The plan includes two structures with residential and retail units wrapping parking garages and three condominium and hotel towers. About 252 residential units and 250 condominium/hotel units are planned. The majority of the buildings are capped at 12 stories with one corner reaching 16.

Also part of the plan is an expanded marina with about 50 more slips. A renovated City Pier could include a ship store on the ground floor with a restaurant above.

The public boat ramp would be relocated to a site still to be determined. Exhibition Hall would be demolished but commemorated with plaques documenting its historic events. Some arches and other design elements of the buildings also would pay tribute to the hall.
?
• Antaramian Development Corp.

An open-air marketplace at Exhibition Hall anchors the plan. The buildingís vaulted roof would cover vendor stands, kiosks and riverfront cafes. Pedestrians would be able to access a waterfront promenade and marina through the market. Other ideas are an expanded Yacht Basin and concert hall.

The developer wants to build two parking garages screened from view by retail and residential units. Plans show about 100,000 square feet of commercial use and 335 residences. This plan proposes the greatest height at 18 stories.
?
• Throgmartin Waterfront Group

This plan proposes the waterfront be used for parks with construction concentrated on the Harborside Event Center parking lot. The plan stresses public access to - and retained ownership of - the waterfront.

Building heights would be capped at 12 stories with retail and residential units lining the parking garages. This plan has the lowest proposed residential density with 138 units.

The city would retain ownership of Exhibition Hall, which the developer suggests be converted into a marketplace. The boat ramp would remain but become commercial. Three activity boats - including one that could be used as a hotel - also are suggested.
http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041229/NEWS0106/412290464/1008

Dale

December 31st, 2004, 05:10 AM

www.thecypressclub.com

renner01

December 31st, 2004, 01:37 PM

December 29, 2004
Section: South Lee Bonita
Page: 1H

High-rise plan goes to court
Residents challenging Lee County's approval
Denise Scott
Staff

By denise l. scott
dscott@news-press.com

Residents in one WCI community are taking Lee County to court for approving the developer's plans next door.

Sorrento at The Colony Golf & Bay Club in Pelican Landing is challenging the county's decision to approve the Navona high-rise and its parking garage.

The lawsuit came after Sorrento residents failed to convince WCI to camouflage an open, lighted parking deck that would otherwise be visible from their homes.

The court date has been scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 28 before Judge John S. Carlin.

The main complaints:

Navona is high-density with 100 units on four acres, vs. Sorrento's moderate density of 73 units on six acres.

Navona is set back from the road Via Veneto by less than 85 feet and is set back from the seventh hole of The Colony's golf course by just 50 feet.

Navona's plan includes a two-story, lighted, uncovered parking garage covering nearly one acre for 200 cars.

Commissioner Ray Judah last week directed county staff to begin developing changes to county code regarding high-rises and parking decks.

"We evidently don't have any provisions in the Land Development Code addressing unroofed parking garages," Judah said.

"If it's built right smack in the middle of a residential community like Pelican Landing, with all the high-rises, people in the condos have to look at an unsightly garage," he said.

Judah wants county code to require aesthetic and landscaping standards for unroofed decks to make the structures compatible with neighboring residential areas.

Lee County Director of Community Development Mary Gibbs said she wasn't expecting Judah's request.

"That came out of the blue," she said. "We're going to have to look into that and see if we can propose something in the upcoming round" of amendments.

Eslick said county code covers many issues regarding neighboring properties under separate ownership.

"There's nothing in the code that addresses it within a planned development," he said.

However, Gibbs said she isn't sure regulations exist to address the parking garage/high-rise issue at all.

"We'll need to look into it," she said.

Judah said his request should have no bearing on the lawsuit, which was filed prior to the existence of any such regulations.

"The best thing to hope for now is to make sure that type of problem doesn't occur in the future," he said.

Eslick agrees.

"I don't think it will solve the Navona problem, but hopefully it will stop it from happening again," he said.
http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=doc&p_docid=1075090E36274402&p_docnum=3&p_theme=gannett&s_site=news-press&p_product=FMNB

renner01

December 31st, 2004, 01:42 PM

gimme a break

December 25, 2004
Section: Bonita Extra
Page: 1A

Eagle comment haunting developer
'Promise' may prevent construction
Andrea Stetson
Freelance

By Andrea Stetson
Special to the News-Press

When Signature Properties was trying to get Collier County permission to build its Cocohatchee Bay property, one of the company's planners made promises to commissioners that there would be no building while the eagles lived there.

Now, opponents of that project want Signature to adhere to that promise.

But Signature Properties plans to amend its eagle management plan to allow it to build five condos 15 to 20 stories tall with a total of 590 residences. One of those would be just 35 feet from the nest. The federal government has already given it permits to construct near the nest so it wants the county to follow suit.

But back in 2000, when Signature originally received its development permit from the county, planner Karen Bishop made a promise that is coming back to haunt Signature.

"I want you to know that obviously we're not going to do anything until Mr. Eagle decides to find a new place to live," she told commissioners at that time.

"This eagle does sit on a dead tree. So it is only a matter of time before he moves out and, you know, we're patient enough to let him decide on his own when he's ready to go."

Commissioner Frank Halas, who represents North Naples, is concerned that amending a Planned Urban Development order would allow a developer to make promises and then change its mind later.

"They made some promises in public that they should be held accountable for," Halas said.

Halas was referring to additional comments made by Ron Nino, a Collier County project planner. During the PUD hearings, Nino said, "There is an eagle in there. Until the eagle decides to find a new home the development can't go forward.

"It just can't go forward. It's there and it will have to wait until the eagle finds a new home. If he doesn't move the developer knows they are out of luck."

Halas maintains that it was on those promises that the original PUD was issued. Amending it now would open the door for other developers to make promises they don't plan to keep.

"This is a dynamic issue," said Doug Fee, president of North Bay Civic Association, an environmental group that opposes building near the nest.

"We feel that when you stand up at the podium and make commitments into the public record and over and over at the public records and say, 'We know the eagle is there. We won't do anything until the eagle is gone,' you need to keep those commitments."

But Don Corace, head of Signature Properties, said the promises have been blown out of proportion.

"A statement was made by an independent consultant," Corace said. "Karen Bishop made that statement based on the idea that the tree would fall down. It's a statement that I believe was taken out of context.

"I clarified her statement that we would not start construction for 4 to 5 years. No where was there a commitment. No one asked us if we would build before the eagle left."

Signature plans to ask commissioners for an eagle plan amendment in March or April 2005.

"The eagles are sitting on eggs in that nest now," Rebecca Noles of North Naples said during a public hearing on the issue. "How can you come before the commission and ask to build in the nesting area at all?"
http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=doc&p_docid=1074B5850D3469B3&p_docnum=8&p_theme=gannett&s_site=news-press&p_product=FMNB

smiley

December 31st, 2004, 03:49 PM

Cypress Club - these are all renderings (looks to be 33-35 stories, depending on how you count)
http://www.thecypressclub.com/developers/images/Home-Cypress_03a_1.jpg

http://www.thecypressclub.com/viewgallery/images/image4.jpg

http://www.thecypressclub.com/viewgallery/images/image3.jpg

smiley

January 4th, 2005, 05:45 PM

Not very good, but it gives some info:

http://www.news-press.com/assets/pdf/A4103511.PDF

MIAballinboi

January 5th, 2005, 12:26 AM

woow great condos there, cant wait for them 2 get built!

Jasonhouse

January 5th, 2005, 09:07 PM

Those renderings are awesome IMO. The buildings aren't too bad either. The parking garages are hideous, but what can ya do?

Dale

January 5th, 2005, 09:34 PM

www.oasiscondo.com is up, but in its formative stages.

A small pic in the latest Florida Trend shows a curvacious building, concrete and green glass.

MIAballinboi

January 5th, 2005, 09:54 PM

good find dale, its by the related group gotta be good

smiley

January 6th, 2005, 03:36 PM

It would be nice to sticky the Southwest Florida thread - I know I am one of teh few who actually adds to it, but I think it can get going and it is a whole region of the state

Chico's eyeing downtown sites

S. Fort Myers spot becoming too small

By ALISON KEPNER
akepner@news-press.com
Published by news-press.com on January 6, 2005

DELIVERING YOUR WORLD
The News-Press – Subscribe
Daily email newsletter – Signup
Printer friendly version
Email this article

Lee County-based women's clothier Chico's is looking at sites in downtown Fort Myers to move its headquarters, company and city officials confirmed Wednesday.

The expanding company is outgrowing its office on Metro Parkway in south Fort Myers, Chief Operating Officer Charlie Kleman said, stressing talks are preliminary and Chico's also is looking at places in unincorporated Lee County.

"We're looking to solve the problem for space whether it's in Fort Myers or not," he said.

Mayor Jim Humphrey expects the move could bring 900 to 1,000 "high-paying" jobs to the city.

"Many of their employees will live downtown," he said. "They will be a real asset to our city."

City staff members have suggested four to five sites, including the city-owned parking lot across from Exhibition Hall and the area west of the downtown post office, Humphrey said.

"They want to be downtown. It's important for them to be downtown," he said.

The mayor would give few details about the talks but acknowledged a move could affect the city's waterfront redevelopment plan.

In October, the city council voted to begin negotiations with WCI Communities Inc. to redevelop a 5.6-acre, city-owned site on the south side of the Caloosahatchee River. The area includes the Harborside Event Center parking lot, Exhibition Hall, the public boat ramp and parking lot and City Pier.

If the city is successful in bringing Chico's downtown, "I think WCI would see the benefit of that," Humphrey said. "I feel they would work with us."

WCI spokesman Ken Plonski could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

The mayor thinks Chico's would be a major help in revitalizing downtown.

"They will generate people who want to be downtown — and not just during the winter season but all year round," he said.

If the company moves into the city's coastal high hazard zone — an area that would be evacuated for a Category 1 hurricane — the commercial development could ease pressure on condominium developers vying for the limited number of residential units allowed there.

The zone runs along the Caloosahatchee River between the Edison & Ford Winter Estates and Billy's Creek. It does not include most of the area on the south side of Edwards Drive between the U.S. 41 and Edison bridges or the public waterfront redevelopment area.

The city is trying to get state approval to change the zone boundaries and increase the number of allowed units, but for now, Fort Myers is allowed 2,777 units in the zone with 1,487 already taken by existing or approved developments. Four projects pending review seek an additional 1,217 units.

How the move could affect the rest of the city's downtown plan is unclear. Such a large office is not in the downtown plan designed by Miami urban planner Andres Duany in 2001. Because talks are preliminary, the city has not yet sought Duany's opinion, the mayor said.

Chico's, established in 1983, began in a small store on Sanibel Island, where founders Marvin and Helene Gralnick sold Mexican folk art and cotton sweaters. Today, the company operates 644 women's specialty stores in 47 states, the District of Columbia, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico under the names Chico's, White House/Black Market and Soma by Chico's.

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050106/NEWS0106/501060405/1008

smiley

January 11th, 2005, 04:24 PM

I don't feel like pasting it all here - with pictures, but this is an article on the new terminal at the airport in Ft. Myers:

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050111/NEWS01/501110427/1002

renner01

January 13th, 2005, 10:46 PM

gOOD RUNDOWN FROM BROKER SITE
http://www.investinwaterfront.com/

Fort Myers new Skyline

What Where When by Whom

There are eleven waterfront high rise projects planned along the river in Fort Myers that will bring a total of 3275 condos to market by 2007.

A quick project summary for you: These are listed from east to west along the south side of the river, starting at the current Holiday Inn:

1. First River Condominiums These will be built on the site of the existing Holiday Inn Riverwalk. Three towers are planned for a total of 430 homes. No dates set yet. Developer is BSR Group. ( not local)
2. High Point Place. Four towers, 32 stories, 272 homes. Complete in 2006. It is now under construction Developer is Camerata Group (not local)
3. Legacy Harbour. 288 Condos in two 25 story towers. Will also have 64 hotel rooms. This will be built on the site of the Winyah hotel. No dates set yet. Developer is The Sullivan Group (local)
4. The Vue. Being built by the Throgmartin Group (local), this will be 189 condos in 25 stories nestles into a small site along centennial park downtown. 2007 completion. A high class product being build by high class people, This project is a personal favorite of mine, but is a very big project on a very small space.
5. Hotel Monaco. 300 hotel rooms (for sale) in 27 stories. Being built by Homes for America that brought us Beau Rivage. (not local) Complete in 2007
6. The Cypress Club. 292 homes in two 32 story towers. This developer will bring some architectural style to the riverfront.. Completion of first tower mid 2007. Developed by BAP ( not local)
7. Leeward Riverside Club. 94 homes on 18 floors. On the site of the Ta-Ki-Ki and Tides motel. Developed by DevPro ( local)
8. St. Tropez. 150 homes in 25 stories. By same builder as Beau Rivage, Now under construction.
9. St. Raphael. Sister building to St. Tropez. Will start mid 2005. 150 homes in 25 stories.
10. Beau Rivage. Completed and sold out – 124 condos in 22 stories, Built by Homes for America.
11. Alta Mar. This project is adjacent to Beau Rivage, built by Tarragon (not local) and will be complete this coming Spring. 131 condos in 7 stories.
12. The Yacht Club. This project has just been re-announced as OASIS. Slated for 1079 condos in four towers. ( Yes, we did write them a letter this week, letting them know we already have an OASIS in town. – no response yet.) This is the Related Group – not local.

I know of two more projects across the river. Mine (Palm Point – 96 units on 8 ½ acres, and another by Kemp Demming near the Best Western- I do not have much info on that one yet.

Jasonhouse

January 13th, 2005, 10:48 PM

Jesus... We are just beginning to see the fringes of the baby boomers retiring, and look at the highrise growth exploding in Florida.

Dale

January 13th, 2005, 11:46 PM

renner, do you know where the long-planned project (by Gates-McVey) stands to renovate the Ramada Suites tower ?

And thanks for your work. :)

smiley

January 19th, 2005, 03:21 PM

Fort Myers denies waterfront motion

Leaders want council to consider Duany's input

By ALISON KEPNER
akepner@news-press.com
Published by news-press.com on January 19, 2005

A Fort Myers councilman's motion for the city's downtown planner to review its waterfront redevelopment plan was denied Tuesday, with three council members saying they want to wait to decide.

Council members Randy Henderson, Veronica Shoemaker and Frankie Jennings voted against Mike Flanders' request with Ann Knight in support. They are expected to discuss it again at the Feb. 7 meeting, when Mayor Jim Humphrey will be present. He was out of town Tuesday.

City leaders were supposed to have urban planner Andres Duany's reviews in hand before choosing a project, but in October, they voted 3-2 to begin negotiations with WCI Communities Inc. anyway.

In the city's request for proposals released last summer, leaders told developers the city would schedule teleconferences with Duany's firm to review the projects before choosing. The developers were to pay for the cost.

When staff members were not able to set up the reviews before the October meeting, city leaders moved ahead anyway. But Flanders said he still wants the renowned architect's input.

The project is to redevelop a 5.6-acre, city-owned site on the south side of the Caloosahatchee River. It includes the Harborside Event Center parking lot, Exhibition Hall, the public boat ramp and parking lot and city pier.

Flanders, who voted against the WCI plan, said he just is asking for the information leaders should have had months ago.

But Humphrey, a WCI supporter, chastised the councilman, accusing him in a Monday memorandum of trying to "circumvent the decision of a majority of the city council" and "manipulate the process."

In his letter, the mayor asked the council to postpone a decision until he is present.

Flanders denied the mayor's accusations, saying he is not trying to break off negotiations with WCI in favor of his top pick, the second-ranked Antaramian Development Corporation. He wants Duany's input to aid the city in its talks with WCI, he said. "That information is extremely valuable. It's something this council should have.

"Let's go forward with WCI. I'm not about to change the ranking process," he said. "It's a part of the (request process) that we never fulfilled.

"This is genuinely the most useful information we can have. Let's use this information to the best we can," Flanders said.

WCI spokesman Ken Plonski said his company is continuing to revamp its proposal. WCI officials are not releasing what changes have been made so far because it is an ongoing process, he said.

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050119/NEWS0106/501190467/1008

smiley

January 19th, 2005, 03:26 PM

For a little rerun of some pics - notice how not urban these projects are. (there are a couple more I could not get pictures for in this short time period. I'll work on it.

Oasis:
http://www.investinwaterfront.com/images/OASIS_000.JPG

Riva del Lago
http://www.investinwaterfront.com/images/rdl.JPG

The Vue - I like this best, methinks
http://www.investinwaterfront.com/images/TheVueRenderingcopy.jpg

Alta Mar
http://www.investinwaterfront.com/images/August3.jpg

Jasonhouse

January 19th, 2005, 06:11 PM

Of the ones I've seen, I definitely liked the siting of the Vue the best.

MIAballinboi

January 21st, 2005, 03:36 AM

in this months ocean drive they got ads for jasmine bay, now i really dont know where this is, 2 19 story towers it says its "a mile west of US 41 on williams road in Estero"
now where the heck is this, it says its the west coast of florida

when this happens u know florida is BOOMING, 2 19 story towers in some city u never heard of on the coast, only in florida lool

Jasonhouse

January 21st, 2005, 08:21 AM

Estero is south of Ft Myers, towards Naples. (maybe like 1/3 the way there?)

I used to go there very frequently for the first years I lived in Florida, as my mom's best friend lived there. It was quite sparse back then, even along the beach in places.

renner01

January 21st, 2005, 10:43 PM

LOOKS LIKE THE VUE AND THE SAILING SCHOOL WILL BE STARTING LATE 2004
Bid Date: Est. Start Date:
Third Quarter 2005 Fourth Quarter 2005

Description:
New construction and site work for a new residential complex in Fort Meyers. Working plans are calling for a 27-story building to house 189 one-, two-, and three-bedroom condominiums above six floors of parking.

Construction is expected to commence late 2005. Interested parties should direct inquiries to the design/ builder.

Bid Date: Est. Start Date:
Third Quarter 2005 Fourth Quarter 2005

Description:
New construction and site work for a new mixed-use facility in Fort Myers. Working plans are calling for a five-story, 50,000-square-foot building to house one floor of parking, classrooms, administrative offices and storage for a sailing school. The project will also include 3,000 square feet of retail space.

Construction is expected to commence late 2005. Interested parties should direct inquiries to the design/ builder.

City officials take closer look at Vue

Hearing on controversial condo project set for Wednesday
By ALISON KEPNER
akepner@news-press.com
Published by news-press.com on September 27, 2004

IF YOU GO
• What: Fort Myers City Council's hearing on The Vue
• When: 5:15 p.m. Wednesday
• Where: Council chambers, 2200 Second St.
DELIVERING YOUR WORLD
The News-Press – Subscribe
Daily email newsletter – Signup
Printer friendly version
Email this article

A controversial waterfront condominium project that includes a new home for the Edison Sailing School and a land swap with a swath of Centennial Park will come before Fort Myers leaders Wednesday.

Supporters and objectors are expected to fill city council chambers as officials consider The Vue, Throgmartin Co.'s proposed $100 million West First Street project. The first public hearing is at 5:15 p.m. Wednesday. The date for the final hearing will be set then.

The project already has the preliminary support of three council members — Tammy Hall, Mike Flanders and Randy Henderson. Ann Knight is undecided. Veronica Shoemaker could not be reached for comment.

Under the deal, Throgmartin Co. would pay nearly $1.4 million for one acre of riverfront property, where it plans a 27-story residential tower and a five-story office building. The office's first floor would be a 7,500-square foot office and storage facility for the school.

But to have room for the tower, Throgmartin needs a section of the park. In exchange for 16,712 square feet of park, the city would receive 18,804 square feet of the current school parking lot, where Throgmartin plans a public plaza.

FEARING A LOST VIEW

In July, the Fort Myers Planning Board unanimously rejected the tower. Members said it is massive for the space and may block the public's view of the Caloosahatchee River.

Those are the same reasons resident Warren Wright started an online petition against it. He has about 385 names so far.

Wright says the high-rise will cast a shadow over the park.

"Nothing that significant should have such an imposing presence on that green space," Wright said.

"I love the park. I want to protect what's here in Fort Myers ... what's special."

Despite the planning board's vote, the developer took the case to the city council, which considers the board's decision but is not bound by it.

THE PUBLIC'S DEAL

In August, Flanders asked Throgmartin to come back with specifics about included public amenities. An urban plaza and fountain were planned, but Flanders also wanted an interactive children's fountain. And he asked Throgmartin to consider removing ground units to create a wider public area by the river.

The plan company President Ron Throgmartin will bring to the council Wednesday includes millions he is spending to make the considerations — $4.6 million lost on two townhomes scrapped from the plans to widen the riverfront area, $1.3 million for the sailing center, $118,000 for the interactive fountain and $235,000 for new park bathrooms.

The company also is paying for a public river walk, landscaping, relocation and upgrade of park playground equipment and construction of a larger storage facility for the Southwest Florida Museum of History. Plans also now include a waterfront restaurant or shop on the tower's ground floor.

Flanders said he is pleased with the changes. "It looks like some pretty exciting amenities for the park."

Process questioned

Resident Charles Bigelow, a former Lee County commissioner who has joined Wright's fight, believes Flanders and other city officials are too close to the deal. How can leaders who have been involved in negotiating be impartial judges at the hearing, he asks.

"You don't shape the applicant's case," Bigelow said. "If they made the deal, how ... are they going to change their minds?

"The hearing has to be a hearing. It can't be a sham," he said.

Henderson acknowledged Bigelow raises some points, and city leaders are reviewing their policy regarding ex-parte communications in quasi-judicial proceedings.

"We do not have a perfect system in the city of Fort Myers," Henderson said. "I am not naive enough to think that everything we do is perfect."

But, the councilman said, there is no corruption or wrongdoing here. He questions the motivation of Bigelow and Wright, who did not come forward until recently despite the publicity of the project since December.

"I think there are some politics going on here," he said.

Bigelow also opposes the proposed sale price, saying if the city sells its land at lower than its appraised value, leaders will be making the same mistake that city officials made 30 years ago. In the 1973 Gundersen v. City of Fort Myers decision, a judge voided the attempted sale and rezoning of the land Harborside Event Center now sits on partly because the price was too low.

MOTIVATIONS DEBATED

City leaders feel the price and deal are fair. They say the developer is offering the public a good deal.

The two units cut from the plans were reserved — one by Ron Throgmartin's father and the other by a family friend.

"It hurt," Throgmartin said. "Trust me, I did not want to do it."

So why would the developer be willing to make this and other sacrifices?

"We're committed to this community," he said. "We want to be proud of this project."

But Bigelow says elected leaders are being duped if they believe they are the winners in this deal. The plazas and beautification to the front and side of the building enhance The Vue. The public may have access to the facilities, but the paved areas take away from the public's green space, he said.

"This is the cleverest deal I have ever seen," Bigelow said, adding Throgmartin takes amenities the developer already planned and "convinces the city it's the best thing ever."

The company also is one of three vying for an even bigger project — the city's downtown waterfront redevelopment. Fort Myers leaders will choose that developer next month. Throgmartin acknowledged that is a consideration, too.

"We are in hopes the city and council will recognize that we are a credible company with the proper motives," he said.

That is something sailing school executive director Steve Olive said he learned firsthand.

Olive was skeptical of Throgmartin at first. "I called him the carpetbagger," he said.

Now he is organizing supporters to pack city hall.

"They have accommodated us at their expense," he said. "Everything they said they would do they have done."

'SMART' DEVELOPMENT

Wright said he, too, wants to save the sailing school, but not at the expense of the park.

"I'm not against high-rise development," he said. "You just have to be smart about it."

Wright would like to see the city buy Throgmartin's land and extend the park. If that is not possible, he would like to see a cluster of smaller buildings replace the planned tower.

Whether The Vue is approved or not, Throgmartin Co. will build something on its land, company executives said. The area is zoned for a 20-story building.

"This developer is looking for 27 stories," Flanders said. "To me, the issue is not the height of it. To me, the issue is 'Are we getting some nice amenities?'"

Back to Growth/Development

Dale

January 22nd, 2005, 05:26 AM

Late 2005 ?! Seems like this project is taking an inordinately long time.

Jasonhouse

January 22nd, 2005, 09:24 PM

Ft Myers has plenty of time. :)

MIAballinboi

January 22nd, 2005, 09:40 PM

woow the oasis
http://www.buymiaminow.com/media_view.asp?id=805

renner01

January 25th, 2005, 01:08 PM

all of the fuss over an eagle

January 22, 2005
Section: Bonita Extra
Page: 1A, 2A

Signature sets second eagle meeting
Developer wants to build condo tower near birds' nest
Andrea Stetson
Freelance

By Andrea Stetson
Special to the News-Press

Cocohatchee Bay's developers will try once again to tell neighbors about its plans to build a condominium 35 feet away from a bald eagle's nest near Wiggins Pass.

This second meeting on Wednesday comes after the county determined the developer did not inform all its neighbors about a December town hall meeting on this plan.

County rules state that everyone living within 500 feet of the planned development had to be mailed information about the meeting. But residents in several neighboring communities were not informed. So it's round two as the developer sets out to make sure everyone knows about its plans.

Signature Properties, the developers of the 600 acres just north of Wiggins Pass, want to amend their eagle management plan. Signature officials say the amendment is simply a formality to make their plan the same as the federal government's.

Earlier this year the Army Corps of Engineers gave Signature an incidental take permit allowing them to build adjacent to the eagles' nest. Next, it will be up to Collier County commissioners to decide whether to abide by that federal plan or go with their own policy.

Signature's experts agree that the eagles probably won't remain in their nest once construction of one of its condos closest to the nest gets under way.

But they say they plan to build an artificial tree on their property in hopes the eagles will move there.

Signature's plans include 590 units in five buildings that range from 15 stories to 20 stories. The company would begin with a building farthest from the eagles and work their way closer to the birds with each building.

Don Corace, developer of the property, said the second meeting will be the same as the one in December. He will have no new information for the audience.

He only wants to make sure everyone in his neighborhood gets a chance to listen to his plans and voice any concerns.

"The county gave us the wrong list when they gave it out," Corace said about not sending letters to all his neighbors. "We want to make sure everyone has the opportunity to attend the meeting. We want it done right."

Corace said his company will take all comments into consideration before making his presentations to commissioners.

"We look forward to people's comments," he said. "There were some concerns about the eagle. We take everything into consideration."

Doug Fee, president of the North Bay Civic Association, was the first to tell the county that not enough people were notified about the first meeting, prompting this new town hall.

"There were several communities that when I analyzed the list these people were not sent letters," Fee said.

"I believe that is a very valid, vital notice procedure. Now you've got an opportunity to know what's going to happen with this rezone. It's a second chance for those who may not have known. Now they can go and listen to it."

Lisa Koehler, Collier County public information coordinator, said the second meeting will allow the county and the developer to make sure no one was left out of hearing about this project.

"I think we suggested it and everyone in agreement," Koehler said.

Koehler said town hall meetings are very important for the community and for commissioners.

"The commissioners were very concerned about the public being brought in very early on," she said.

"They were concerned that for many people the first time they heard about it was at a commission meeting or a planning meeting, and their feeling was by then it was a done deal. This works well. Developers work with the neighborhood and if there are concerns they can handle them up front. It's a win-win situation."

But it might not be win-win in this case. During the last town hall meeting in December an angry crowd was upset that the developer planned to ask the county to allow it to build so close to the eagles' nest and most likely chase the eagle away.

"How can you come before the commission and ask them to build near a nest at all?" Rebecca Noles of North Naples questioned during the last hearing. "There are eagles sitting on eggs in that nest."

-Andrea Stetson is a Bonita Springs-based free-lance writer. Contact her at agstetson@msn.com or leave a message at 992-1345.
http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=doc&p_docid=107D45A04C0FC967&p_docnum=1&p_theme=gannett&s_site=news-press&p_product=FMNB

renner01

January 30th, 2005, 10:52 PM

Work finds home in condos

Cypress Club units available for offices
By DICK HOGAN
dhogan@news-press.com
Published by news-press.com on January 23, 2005

The Cypress Club, one of the condominiums being built in downtown Fort Myes, offers 14 units where people can live and work in the same place. Renderings special to news-press.com

It's part of the big-city lifestyle: the opportunity to live and work in the same place, close by your customers. The Cypress Club, one of the waterfront condominiums being built in downtown Fort Myers, is offering 14 units designed to do just that.

Brad Cozza, a real estate agent with Keller Williams World Class Realtors, expects to do that when he moves into the unit he has reserved when Cypress Club opens in the summer of 2007.

"This is going to be where I'm putting my real estate office," said Cozza, who already is doing a lot of work downtown although his office is not there now. "It's right in the center of where I want to be."

The units are set up on the first and second floors so someone could both live and work there, and that was Cozza's original idea. But, he said, "To tell you the truth, I needed more space" to bring in his eight-person team in Keller Williams.

He also is buying a separate Cypress Club unit to live in, Cozza said.

Brian Fenster, a principal in NewLeaf — which is developing the project in partnership with BAP Development — said the first seven of the 918-square-foot units in Phase 1 are already reserved for prices from the $300,000s to the $400,000s. Another seven will be sold in the second phase, which is a mirror image of Phase 1.

"When we first started working on the Cypress Club, we wanted it to be something that not only the city of Fort Myers would appreciate but that Duany would appreciate," Fenster said, referring to Andres Duany, the Miami architect hired by the city to do a redevelopment plan for downtown. Duany is a proponent of the new urbanism movement, which stresses the importance of creating communities where people can live, work and play within walking distance.

The living/working units will help accomplish that, Fenster said. "This enlivens the street, puts some activity and life out there, and it's less than a 10-minute walk from First and Hendry streets," the heart of downtown, he said.

Dominik Goertz, a longtime downtown Fort Myers developer, said three of his projects — Patio de Leon, the Earnhardt Building and the second phase of Heritage Square — offer people a chance to lease commercial space and an apartment in the same building.

"It's a huge time saving," he said. "If you live where you work and only have to walk, you don't spend that amount of money for going around."

Chester Christie, who with his daughter, Heather Christie, also has reserved one of the Cypress Club units, said they'll probably lease them out to someone when the building opens and doesn't expect to have any trouble finding a tenant. "Certainly for a professional this would be ideal. Something like that would be extremely convenient."

The Christies moved here last year from Chicago, and Chester Christie said, "We're very familiar with high-rise living and we have a real good feeling about the way downtown is being developed."

The car doesn't have to be a part of someone's lifestyle, he said. "It's not unusual for people in Chicago not to have automobiles. They get around by taxicab and public transportation and everything is there and convenient."

http://vh10018.v1.moc.gbahn.net/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20050123&Category=RE&ArtNo=501230358&Ref=H1&Profile=1076&MaxW=200&Border=0
http://vh10018.v1.moc.gbahn.net/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20050123&Category=RE&ArtNo=501230358&Ref=H2&Profile=1076&MaxW=200&Border=0

renner01

February 7th, 2005, 12:41 PM

City wants to double Harborside
Hotel, shops part of plan to draw conventions
Laura Ruane
Staff

lruane@news-press.com
Fort Myers city leaders are making plans to more than double the size of Harborside Event Center in order to attract thousands of people from across the country to conventions, trade shows and concerts.

The new venue would include:

A second building of about 60,000 square feet.

A nearby upscale hotel, built by a private company.

Retail shops within walking distance.

A bigger center would get the attention of about 75 percent of the touring convention business. Currently, only 15 percent can use the center because of its size.

The vastly expanded center is a dream of city leaders and Rose Rundle, event center general manager. They already have architectural renderings, and have invested about $10,000 pursuing the dream. Rundle isn't waiting for the expansion to be built: Today, she is asking the Tourist Development Council for help in marketing a bigger Harborside to meetings planners.

It could all come together in five years or less, Mayor Jim Humphrey said. The city has yet to estimate cost of expansion or determine how it would be funded.

"I'm very optimistic it will occur," Humphrey said, adding: "We must first ensure that our downtown area is redeveloped."

That redevelopment must include "some class-A hotel space," said Councilman Randy Henderson. It's one reason why he favored WCI Communities Inc. to handle the makeover of a 5.6-acre, city-owned site on the south side of the Caloosahatchee River. The WCI plan includes retail shops, condos and offices - and a hotel, Henderson said.

Harborside opened in 1991. "In its heyday, we were doing a lot of conventions," Henderson said. That was

before the 400-room hotel two blocks away slipped into decline. The Amtel-owned Ramada "has been in turmoil for the past five years," scaring off many business guests, according to Henderson and others.

A convention center can be a powerful stimulus for business. According to the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau, leisure travelers to Lee County in 2004 spent, on average, $84.62 per day.

People who came here for meetings spent $111.44 per day, on average.

However, WCI's redevelopment plan has drawn flak from some council members who said the company would build too close to the river, and make structures too high - obstructing public views.

The company is tweaking its plans - and negotiating with the city to buy the land, said Ken Plonski, WCI spokesman. The riverfront redevelopment and Harborside expansion "kind of complement one another," Plonski said.

Harborside's expansion also depends on securing property. City leaders want to put a second Harborside building where the downtown post office stands. The postal service leases the building from a private owner but has an option for its purchase. Ultimately, Humphrey hopes to acquire that space for the city, reserving room nearby for a smaller postal outlet.

With a second building of about 60,000 square feet and some reconfiguring at the original Harborside, usable space could zoom from 42,000 to 100,000 square feet.

The original Harborside building would cater to fancier social and business events. The new structure would have a more basic interior, with additional storage and a loading dock.

"It's going to be more for trade shows, concerts and conventions," Rundle said.

AT A GLANCE

Name: Harborside Event Center

Owner: City of Fort Myers

Opened: 1991

Size now: 42,000 square feet of meeting space

Size of planned expansion: 60,000 square feet

Number of events

2003 153

2004 239

2005 270 (projected) SOURCE: Harborside Event Center

GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE
http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=doc&p_docid=1081446ACFC4448B&p_docnum=1&p_theme=gannett&s_site=news-press&p_product=FMNB

Dale

February 7th, 2005, 08:03 PM

Well, I guess this answers my question about the much-ballyhood renovation of the Ramada by Gates-McVey. I guess it's dead.

renner01

February 8th, 2005, 11:27 AM

What a crappy article they don't even mention the condominium up for approval
Protesters rally against river condos

Fort Myers feel, Duany plan being ignored, they say
By ALLISON KEPNER
akepner@news-press.com
Published by news-press.com on February 8, 2005

• Pamela Nollar, 38, and son Jack Nollar, 7, protest development plans proposed for Fort Myers at City Hall on Monday. New proposals, conflicting with previous designs proposed by Andres Duany, allow for several high rises along the waterfront. STEPHEN HAYFORD/The News-Press

Holding signs reading "Save our city" and "We want to see the river," about 20 people gathered outside Fort Myers City Hall on Monday to protest the high-rise condominiums being approved on the waterfront.

Demonstrators said they are frustrated by elected leaders' OK of buildings up to 32 stories high and fear the public is losing its access to the Caloosahatchee River. The protesters want officials to follow the downtown plan designed by famed Miami architect Andres Duany more closely. He suggested an 18-story cap.

"I was born in Fort Myers, and I just don't want the river that made it what it is covered up by cement and high-rises," said Edison Park resident Shirley Reaves, 69. "They aren't listening to the Planning Board and they aren't listening to Duany."

The protest was organized by Caloosahatchee River Watch, which promotes the protection of the river. Many of the demonstrators Monday said they are not affiliated with the group but share its concerns.

Cape Coral resident Julia Davis, 45, is a member of the Fort Myers Community Drum Circle. She worries about development's effect on Centennial Park, where her group meets.

"When we drum, we have a view of the river," Davis said. "We would lose our heartbeat (without it)."

Mayor Jim Humphrey briefly joined the group Monday. He is concerned about the heights the council is approving, too, he said. "I want to see them follow (Duany's) plan."

But protesting outside city hall may not be the most effective solution, he said.

"I agree that they need to start taking a stand. They need to be at the public hearings," Humphrey said.

Several of the protesters took his advice and stayed for Monday's council meeting, during which they urged the leaders to delay approving any more projects until after a promised town hall meeting with Duany.

City staffers still are working to schedule the workshop with Duany, who wants municipal leaders to more closely follow his downtown plan or take his name off it. Duany made the demand in late December when he called a city official with several concerns.

The council seemed to support protesters' request for a delay in approving any more projects.

"The public is too unhappy right now in order for us to not respond to them," Councilwoman Frankie Jennings said.

The protesters hope city leaders heard their message. They love Fort Myers and just want to protect it from developers, they said.

"It has a heart," said Tim Stevenson, 55. "It has a flavor, and we'll lose it."

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050208/NEWS01/502080453/1075

Jasonhouse

February 8th, 2005, 08:19 PM

That's crazy about the eagle thing. You would think they would just find a way to move them or something.

Landier

February 11th, 2005, 12:01 AM

The area known as Fort Myers is actually made up of a couple government agencies, mainly City of Fort Myers, Lee County, and City of Cape Coral across the river. Until recently the City of Fort Myers was left alone by developers looking to create large retirement communities, but now as recently been “rediscovered” by developers and there’s a rush to build luxury high-rise condominiums along the river. The river the city sits on is only approximately 12 miles by water to the open gulf. Unfortunately the City of Fort Myers is the smallest, and hardest to deal with government agency.

Having the metro area recently pass 500,000 official residents, with many additional illegal residents, full-time residents who claim residence in a different part of the country, and “snow birds” who live in Fort Myers in the winter; the population swells to 800,000+ in the winter.

The growth in the area is staggering, and the developers are building as fast as possible. Bottlenecks are government that is unprepared for this massive growth, and long-term residents who have lived a long time in a small city and are suddenly caught in a “boom town”, from which most of them were trying to stay away when they first moved to the city (however they are a very small part of the population).

The best way I’ve been able to gauge the growth in the area is by looking at the total trips through the regional airport which have been increasing by a staging 20% a year (even with 3 hurricanes to impact the area in the last year) http://www.flylcpa.com/pdfs/stats/Total%20Passengers.pdf The airport itself is a bottleneck for growth, but a new almost completed modern airport will be complete this spring.

As mentioned before there is the Red Sox spring training, but there is also the Twins spring training complex (and a minor league baseball team that plays out of the same stadium), a minor league hockey team, and starting this year one of the expansion teams of the new NBA minor league system.

Some have wondered why Fort Myers has missed the national scene; it’s mostly because it’s still a “will be soon” city. Just wait a couple years when there will be 15+ newly completed 20-35 story high-rises along the river (and of course the slew of new bigger and better project proposals that will follow)

There’s too much money at stake now, all the old people trying to protect paradise are being forced out.

As far as maximum height, I do not believe that 32 stories is a cap, however it’s more of an engineering cost related issue, one of those magical thresholds when building high-rises, such as 22, 27, 32, etc. To go above this they will have to make additions in the ways of pumps, pressure reducers, structural aspects, elevators, and of course availability of equipment for building construction, all of which can raise cost a lot more than the additional units that would be gained. For now it’s more likely a monetary magical height limit.

There are also many high-rises outside of downtown Fort Myers, most of which had previously been limited to the 12-story range, but now under construction there are multiple in the 20+ range.

Don’t even get me started on eagle crap – it’s the fastest way to kill your development. :ohno:

Dale

February 11th, 2005, 12:16 AM

Landier -

Welcome ! Good to have some eyes on the ground in Ft. Myers !

Tell me, whatever happened to the much-ballyhood renovation of the Ramada by Gates-McVey, the project that was sais to kindle the whole downtown explosion in the first place ? Did it go bottoms-up ?

Dale

February 11th, 2005, 12:21 AM

Oh, and I read somewhere that The Vue breaks ground late 2005. What's taking it so long ?

Landier

February 11th, 2005, 12:43 AM

I haven't heard much about the renovation of the Ramada, only that they were proposing it, but haven't heard much since then.

I think the catalyst for the whole downtown explosion rests mostly on the completion of the Beau Rivage, that and the relatively cheap price the waterfront property in downtown Fort Myers was going for. In addition, it’s pretty rare in the area to have high-rise sites with existing amenities around, most people will complain that they’re lackluster, but throw-in this type of development and they will progress as well.

One main reason for the delay in breaking ground on The Vue could be construction phasing problems. Everyone here in the industry is maxed with work; there just isn’t enough manpower, equipment, and supplies to go around. There has also been a regional concrete shortage, so the developer, if he was smart, probably got all this phasing and material issues out of the way and spoken-for so that when construction does start there aren’t any costly holdups.

Landier

February 11th, 2005, 12:51 AM

I should also be able to pickup some construction photos of Riva Del Lago (Outside of Downtown Fort Myers) and High Point Place, which was completing their foundation when I last drove by a week or 2 ago. Also under construction outside of downtown is Mastique East (19 stories), and the just completed Mastique West (Also 19 stories)

Dale

February 11th, 2005, 03:50 AM

Thanks, Landier. Don't be shy around here !

POLA

February 11th, 2005, 04:44 AM

[QUOTE=smiley]Duany, the annoying, strikes again:
http://vh10018.v1.moc.gbahn.net/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20041128&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=411280497&Ref=AR&Profile=1008&MaxW=400&MaxH=400&title=1
The Beau Rivage towers over the Dean Park neighborhood in downtown Fort Myers. ANDREW WEST/news-press.com

http://vh10018.v1.moc.gbahn.net/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20041128&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=411280497&Ref=V3&Profile=1008&MaxW=400&MaxH=400&title=1

http://vh10018.v1.moc.gbahn.net/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20041128&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=411280497&Ref=H2&Profile=1008&MaxW=400&MaxH=400&title=1
The Beau Rivage at the east end of First Street is a new condominium reshaping the skyline of downtown Fort Myers. CLINT KRAUSE/news-press.com

Is the really a picture of fort myers!? Whats going on there! I grew up in this town and when I lived there it had a pop. of 30,000 and I'm only 24! I havent been to FM in maybe five years, and while it surprised me then how much it grew it still seemed like the dump I had left. So all this new stuff is exciting to hear as I'm in LA (it was because of living in a shitty small town that I became so interested in skyscrapers and big cities) and I have no more friends and family back there. Pictures! Does anyone have some pictures of DTFM? I used to skate down there when it was a ghost town and it was the closest I could get to being in a big city in my mind. I used to dream of it growing but this is great. So yeah, to all you in FM congrats! And take some pics.

Dale

February 11th, 2005, 05:25 AM

^ And now there are probably more high-rises going up in FM than in LA, tee-hee ! :wink2:

Landier

February 11th, 2005, 03:21 PM

Well, that really is a picture of Fort Myers, although it's been inverted, those highrises should really be looking the other direction if you were facing in that direction. Also, they really aren't that close together, it's just the angle of the photo.

Some areas are still a dump, but with this amount of development it's quickly improving. You must remember though, the only finished new building in the downtown is The Beau Rivage, everything else is either still pre-construction or just breaking ground so there isin't much to take photos of there yet. However I think I'll try to get some "before" skyline pictures so in about 2 years from now we can all gasp at them side by side ;)

Landier

February 11th, 2005, 03:40 PM

http://img225.exs.cx/img225/2228/heli088rx.jpg
http://img19.exs.cx/img19/3514/heli108rq.jpg

I took these pictures from a Heicopter, this is what most of Fort Myers is like. Most of the development had been taking place outside of downtown Fort Myers in the unincorporated part of Lee County. Most of the County west of I-75 looks much like this now, when just a few years ago it was all forest and cow fields

A breakdown of approximate development in the last 3 years:
2002: $1.5 billion in construction (they were talking about it as an anomoly at the time)
2003: $2.2 billoin in construction
2004: $3.2 billion in construction

Anyone else see where this is going!?

Landier

February 11th, 2005, 03:49 PM

The town of Fort Myers Beach is it's own Monster, still in the same vicinity as downtown Fort Myers (about 15 miles away) It is primarily controlled by the old-timers who are completly against development. There is still some development in the area, but not nearly what there could be! It will still be quite some time before we see some real highrises built on Fort Myers Beach :(

Here's some photos of what is there now (although don't expect too much to change any time soon) A development here and there maxed out at about 15 stories.

http://img225.exs.cx/img225/4465/heli127pt.jpg

http://img225.exs.cx/img225/3746/heli133vn.jpg

http://img225.exs.cx/img225/4568/heli197wm.jpg

That last one is my favorite photo of Fort Myers Beach, and the largest building in the center is the Beach's most recient "large" development - just completed.

Landier

February 11th, 2005, 03:54 PM

This is the only shot I have of Downtown Fort Myers right now, I'll try to pickup some more (from the ground) soon.

http://img169.exs.cx/img169/5071/heli400je.jpg

smiley

February 11th, 2005, 04:23 PM

That last shot is really interesting. The place loosk a lot different than jsut a few years ago - though I have no idea what the street is like. - I think it will be sort of WPB looking and maybe a bit in feel though the demographics are different - since most or all of the big stuff will be condos and there is a sort of old town area.

smiley

February 11th, 2005, 04:27 PM

Imagine what Sarasota could be like with the head start it already has if they would lift the height resitrictions

renner01

February 11th, 2005, 06:36 PM

BAP-Newleaf has started construction at 2589 First St. in Fort Myers on the sales center for The Cypress Club. BOJ Construction, a Massachusetts-based company, is doing the construction. The center is scheduled to be complete and open to the public the first week of November. The temporary sales center will remain open at 2235 First St., Suite 103, in downtown Fort Myers until the new center is available.

The sales center will feature an outdoor deck to showcase the views of the Caloosahatchee River with a contemporary look that mirrors the style of the buildings. There will be kitchen and bath vignettes, a scale model and screens projecting the lifestyle and the community. The center's furnishings are by Robb & Stucky.

Brian Fenster, principal of BAP-Newleaf, said this will communicate the quality and style of The Cypress Club. The community will be on the Caloosahatchee River, and will house 292 residences. Prices range from the low $300,000s to more than $2 million.

There will also be a waterfront park and promenade, accessible to residents of The Cypress Club, the public and residents of the Dean Park neighborhood. For more information, call 334-3472.
http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041003/BUSINESS/410030355/1075

Dale

February 11th, 2005, 06:37 PM

How tall will the sales center be ?! j/k

renner01

February 11th, 2005, 06:46 PM

hey atleast they started something right? Now lets get oasis going!

Dale

February 11th, 2005, 06:54 PM

I thought I heard that, in addition to Highpoint Place, St. Tropez (27 st.) was also u/c, and maybe even its sister tower.

POLA

February 11th, 2005, 07:38 PM

thanks all for the pics! DTFM is banging. I guess now is the time to get into realestate there. Thanks again!

Landier

February 13th, 2005, 12:27 AM

Downtown Fort Myers' talles Commercial Building to date :(

Although the Federal Court House may be taller, but you get the idea...

Commercial towers behind the new Residential towers need some work :)

http://img158.exs.cx/img158/8439/p21000018vl.jpg

High Point Place construction photos as of today (2/12/05)

http://img158.exs.cx/img158/9334/p21000020db.jpg

http://img158.exs.cx/img158/2313/p21000042sl.jpg

The old 80's style condos next door to High Point Place (they look sorta like commieblocks!!)

http://img158.exs.cx/img158/5922/p21000066di.jpg

A new higher resolution shot of that same view that was floating around

http://img158.exs.cx/img158/9709/p21000075ln.jpg

Beau Rivage shots

http://img158.exs.cx/img158/4936/p21000088fg.jpg

http://img158.exs.cx/img158/8868/p21000104ae.jpg

http://img158.exs.cx/img158/650/p21000111yq.jpg

Construction next door to Beau Rivage

http://img158.exs.cx/img158/8958/p21000129dt.jpg

Someone want to loan me $6.5 million so I can buy this?!?!?!

http://img221.exs.cx/img221/7798/p21000145bn.jpg

Oh, this is the view from that lot (from the ground), just in case you were ready to pull out your wallet:

http://img221.exs.cx/img221/923/p21000161je.jpg

MIAballinboi

February 13th, 2005, 03:38 AM

AWESOME!!

great pics man, represent ft myers, thats gonna be like west palm in a while.

great florida city. great bridges in that last pic!

Lakelander

February 13th, 2005, 04:41 AM

Great update & pics. This thread is going to get pretty cool with a Fort Myers forumer on here.

renner01

February 18th, 2005, 06:37 PM

http://standard.newspaperads.com/ads/scrippsmbn/dd/ad/2944067/img1804030.jpg
Builder named

Kraft Construction Co. Inc. has been named the builder for Jasmine Bay, a new high-rise community at West Bay Club in Estero that is being developed as a collaboration of West Bay Club Development Corp. and Indian Hill Partners Inc. The firm is responsible for providing general contracting and construction management services for Jasmine Bay. At its completion, Jasmine Bay will consist of two 19-story high-rises, each containing more than 100 residences each. The floor plan collection is base-priced from the $400s and will range from 1,745 to 4,260 square feet of living space. Jasmine Bay at West Bay Club is one mile west of U.S. 41 on Williams Road in Estero. The sales center is at 22050 U.S. 41 S. on the corner of U.S. 41 and Williams Road.
_____________________________________
West Bay Announces Plans For Jasmine Bay

Read More About West Bay Club

West Bay Club
Estero, Florida
ESTERO, Fla. (Nov. 24, 2004)- West Bay Club a collaboration of West Bay Club Development Corporation and Indian Hill Partners Incorporated has announced plans for Jasmine Bay, a high-rise community consisting of two 19-story high-rises, each containing over 100 residences of chic Gulf Coast charm.

Jasmine Bay will provide an array of typical floor plans ranging in size from approximately 1,745 to 2,325 square feet of living space, in addition to five penthouse designs ranging in size from approximately 3,155 to 4,260 square feet of living space. The floor plan collection is base priced from the $400s and includes expansive great rooms, radiant terraces, and exquisite features.

Amenities will feature a Porte´ Cochere entry, with each building containing two one-bedroom guest suites, a shared resort-style pool with spa, fitness and workout rooms, card rooms, a large club room with a kitchen and bar, a resident manager, and security desk.
Jasmine Bay residents will also have the opportunity to enjoy the magnitude of amenities offered to those living within West Bay Club. The River Park located on the Estero Bay includes a day boat launch, canoe and kayak racks, fishing pier, lighted basketball court, children¹s playground, all-purpose sports field, organic butterfly and hummingbird garden and a 1.5 mile, 12-station Vita course.

The expansive Bay House contains a grill and bar and a spacious card and reading room with an enclosed verandah. Features include a fitness center with the latest workout equipment, massage rooms and personal training room, six lighted Har-Tru tennis courts, Junior Olympic-sized swimming pool, children¹s pool, poolside cabana, and a covered spa.

The Golf House, scheduled for completion in Spring 2005, is dramatically situated so that it overlooks holes one, nine and eighteen. The Golf House will feature a spacious restaurant and bar, a separate more intimate dining room for special occasions, a verandah, men¹s and women¹s lounges, locker rooms, and steam showers and pro shop. It will also feature a short walk to the 19th hole, The Niblick; here you will enjoy great post-round camaraderie.

The private Beach House, located on Little Hickory Island has a Key West flair and includes, beach chairs, umbrellas, cabanas, hammocks, two tiki huts, and an 85-seat restaurant and bar.

Jasmine Bay at West Bay Club is located one mile west of U.S. 41 on Williams Road in Estero. The sales and information center is located at 22050 Tamiami Trail South, on the corner of U.S. 41 and Williams Road. For more information call (239) 948-9009.

Bid Date: Est. Start Date:
March 2005 April 2005

Description:
New construction and site work for a residential complex in Estero. Working plans are calling for two 19-story towers to house 200 condominiums ranging from 1,745 to 4,260 square feet, a fitness center, swimming pool, and a game room.

Construction is expected to commence in April 2005. Interested parties should direct inquiries to the builder.

Landier

February 23rd, 2005, 05:16 PM

Riva Del Lago Construction Pictures (Outside of Downtown Fort Myers)

http://img117.exs.cx/img117/2602/p21800068tx.jpg

http://img117.exs.cx/img117/6962/p21800070jr.jpg

smiley

February 24th, 2005, 07:22 PM

Workshop to focus on downtown

High-rises, general plan up for discussion

By ALISON KEPNER
AKEPNER@NEWS-PRESS.COM
Published by news-press.com on February 23, 2005
Those concerned about high-rise development along Fort Myers' waterfront will have a chance to talk to elected leaders in a workshop next week.

At the request of concerned residents, the city council Tuesday scheduled the meeting for 5:15 p.m. on Thursday, March 3. Elected leaders and city staff will use the workshop to review the city's downtown plan and its relation to approved and proposed projects.

The meeting, however, will not be used to dissect any particular project. The best time for that, leaders said, is at the public hearings for the developments.

"Let's just talk about the issues of the plan and not the specifics of any of the projects," Councilman Mike Flanders said.

Miami architect Andres Duany, who designed the city's plan in 2001, will not be there, but city officials said Tuesday his office has confirmed he will attend a later meeting. He does not want to return to Fort Myers until the city completes a virtual reality program showing what downtown will look like once the projects are complete.

Duany, who has harshly criticized the way city leaders have carried out his plan, said he wants to use the tool to show the public how his plan will look but stressed he is not coming back to change his vision, said Downtown Redevelopment Agency Director Don Paight.

Paight has identified four firms that can create the virtual reality program. He does not have an estimated cost.

It's unclear when the town hall meeting will be held. Flanders expects it may not be until summer because of the time needed to create the program and find a date that fits Duany's schedule.

Meanwhile, council members will move forward considering four developments already approved by the planning board. The council voted to advertise the projects for March public hearings.

Set for 5:15 p.m. on Tuesday, March 8:

• Riviera San Tropez, 2745 First St. The 27-story condominium project includes 346 residences in two towers, riverfront lofts and two liner buildings.

• Hotel Monaco, 2543 First St. The 27-story mixed-use development includes 300 hotel rooms and 70 condominium units.

Set for 5:15 p.m. on Thursday, March 10:

• Sullivan-Florida Group's West First Street project. It includes two 25-story towers with 392 residences and 64 hotel rooms.

• First River Condominiums, 2220 West First St., now home to Holiday Inn. The project proposes three 32-story towers with 450 units and commercial space.

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050223/NEWS0106/502230463/1008/NEWS0106

smiley

March 3rd, 2005, 04:45 PM

Hurry up and pass teh bill - anyone who drives teis road knows how much it sucks -

House panel OKs $72M for I-75

Funds part of $284 billion national highway bill

By LARRY WHEELER
THE NEWS-PRESS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Published by news-press.com on March 3, 2005

DELIVERING YOUR WORLD
The News-Press – Subscribe
Daily email newsletter – Signup
Printer friendly version
Email this article

WASHINGTON — Efforts to hasten the expansion of Interstate 75 in Lee and Collier counties took a step forward Wednesday.

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved a six-year, $284 billion highway and mass transit bill that has $72 million for I-75.

Rep. Connie Mack IV, R-Fort Myers, said the legislation is "great news" for Southwest Florida but warned this is just the first step in a long process.

"There are no guarantees that the full House and Senate will support the entire $72 million," Mack said.

Mack, a transportation committee member, helped get committee Chairman Don Young, R-Alaska, to take part in a Fort Myers transportation forum in February.

The legislation now goes to the full House for a vote. The Senate also must pass similar legislation before representatives from the two chambers meet to work out differences.

It could be months before a version of the bill is ready for a final vote and, if approved, President Bush's signature.

Last year, no highway bill passed.

If approved, the funds would be earmarked for the Florida Department of Transportation to use on the widening project already in the planning stages.

In 2008, FDOT plans to begin construction to widen 26 miles of I-75 from Golden Gate Parkway in Collier County to the Daniels Parkway interchange in Lee County.

The project cost is estimated to be at least $200 million and could take up to 2 1/2 years to complete.

The infusion of federal funds could speed up initial bridge overpass and interchange work.

Some stretches of I-75 in Lee County have seen traffic counts far in excess of what the road can reasonably handle.

For instance, the most heavily traveled stretch — between Daniels Parkway and Alico Road — carried 78,000 vehicles per day in 2003. That is more than double the 31,000 average daily vehicle count that drove the same four lanes in 1991.

The $72 million for I-75 in the current highway bill is a 500 percent increase over the $48 million authorized by the House in last year's failed transportation bill.

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050303/NEWS0106/503030466/1008

smiley

March 3rd, 2005, 04:47 PM

We shall see - those new developments, while tall, won't do much for walking traffic in downtown, as far as I can tell. . .They are not built as urban projects and the old folks will just get in their Town Cars and LExi and go driving. . .

Downtown strives for right mix

Scores of stores closing, opening

By ALISON KEPNER
AKEPNER@NEWS-PRESS.COM
Published by news-press.com on March 3, 2005

TOWN HALL MEETING
Downtown business owners, city residents and others concerned about Fort Myers' redevelopment will have a chance to talk to elected leaders at 5:15 p.m. today during a town hall meeting at Harborside Event Center, 1375 Monroe St.
Don Paight, Downtown Redevelopment Agency director, will open the meeting with a review of the city's downtown plan, designed by Miami architect Andres Duany. A question and answer period and public input session will follow.

DELIVERING YOUR WORLD
The News-Press – Subscribe
Daily email newsletter – Signup
Printer friendly version
Email this article

Ginger Sushi and Tapas. Euphora. Varian's. Ladies Workout Express. Antonio's Pizza & Brew.

Soon Silver & Stones and Shaz will join the list of downtown businesses that closed their doors in Fort Myers.

Empty storefronts such as these line the streets of downtown Fort Myers, but officials say the condition of the commercial heart of the city isn't as critical as it appears. They know some businesses are failing and others are struggling but say new restaurants and stores already are lined up to take their places.

"You're going to have turnover until you have the right mix," said Tammy Bennett, Downtown Management Corp.'s Main Street manager. "Sometimes change is good."

She cites a list of businesses that recently opened — Thai Silk on Lee Street and Broadway's Everything Old is New Again and Just Picture It.

Others are coming soon, including a package and shipping store at the corner of Broadway and Main Street. Clothing and jewelry shops are set to take over this spring when Shaz closes and Silver & Stones moves to Cypress Square on McGregor Boulevard in south Fort Myers.

A new upscale lounge, EnVie, on Main Street and Downtown House of Pizza at the Antonio's site also will open soon.

The changes are natural, Bennett said. "Any downtown that's going through revitalization is going to have turnover."

But can these new ventures survive where their predecessors failed?

Michael Sullivan thinks so.

He and his partners invested half a million dollars renovating the former Cyrus Nightclub. EnVie, set to open Friday, March 11, will feature live jazz music and an extensive wine list.

Sullivan hopes to attract the 30- and 40-something business crowd to keep — and bring — them downtown after work.

"There's nothing that really caters to that," he said.

Ventures such as his are what give Bennett hope. But for some small- business owners, struggles remain.

Some complain downtown rent is too high, foot traffic too low. Elected leaders promise golden days ahead after the city's redevelopment brings high-rises filled with new downtown residents, but businesses need to survive until then.

"Of course it will be good at that point," said Ron Killion, who owns Frog and the Fly on Broadway. "If I can last that long, I don't know."

But Killion has survived for six years. Cheryl Admire has made it, too. Her store, Bountiful Baskets, has succeeded downtown for 10 years. Both shop owners believe in downtown — its present character and future promise.

"The reason I love the downtown area is it's better than (U.S.) 41 or a location that only has drive-by traffic," Admire said.

Downtown "people walk by on their lunch break," she said. "Even at this time, this is a great place to be as opposed to a location that has drive-by traffic."

Bennett is not worried about the closings. She sees progress and an improving retail and restaurant district.

"Look at it (compared to) five years ago," she said.

Most business owners agree the key to a strong downtown is local residents. Tourists and winter residents help, but Fort Myers folks need to spend their dollars in their hometown, too.

"The local people are not coming downtown," Killion said.

City leaders are trying to encourage such shoppers. In December, they did away with most parking meters to create a two-hour free parking area known as the ZIP (Zip In Parking) zone. Admire thinks it's working.

"That was one of our big screams, about the parking meters," she said.

Downtown veterans Killion and Admire have advice for future downtown ventures. Part of staying afloat is practicing good business. That means keeping regular hours and staying open late during special events, Killion said.

Even if businesses do not get a lot of customers during the events "at least the exposure is there," he said.

Admire suggests including a service-based component to the business, too. Her shop takes phone orders and does a lot of corporate business.

"You've got to have some service that you offer," she said. "For retail, it's so hard for just direct retail."

Admire is proud to be a downtown business owner. "We're one of the pioneers," she said, adding she knows others have not shared her success.

"They've come and they've gone, and it's sad to say," she said. "You have friends come and go."

Sullivan said he realizes his club is opening before the city's revitalization is complete.

"We're probably about two years ahead," he said, adding while he acknowledges the risk, he thinks a niche for EnVie already exists.

Sullivan wants to be part of downtown's rebirth.

"I'm excited to be on the ground level," he said.
http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050303/NEWS0106/503030501/1008

renner01

March 5th, 2005, 12:28 PM

WWW.MONACORESORTANDSPA.COM

They had a big insert in miami newspaper on Friday.

The Mad Hatter!!

March 5th, 2005, 01:34 PM

i like the monaco project,when i saw it yesterday in the foldout it looked pretty nice except the spire is about 50ft to big.

smiley

March 7th, 2005, 03:36 PM

Here is a picture from their website:
http://www.monacoresortandspa.com/images/bldg.jpg

MIAballinboi

March 8th, 2005, 01:02 AM

great pic, is that an antenna on top of it or is that behind the building

Jasonhouse

March 8th, 2005, 02:50 AM

Great update & pics. This thread is going to get pretty cool with a Fort Myers forumer on here.

Hells yeah!

Hello to our new FTM forumer! It used to be one of the very few FL cities without a warm body here to keep us up to speed...yay!

smiley

March 9th, 2005, 03:49 PM

Fort Myers council OKs 2 high-rises

Towers to be built along river

By ALISON KEPNER
AKEPNER@NEWS-PRESS.COM
Published by news-press.com on March 9, 2005

IF YOU GO
• What: Public hearings on Legacy Harbour and First River Condominiums
• When: 5:15 p.m. Thursday
• Where: Council chambers, 2200 Second St. in Fort Myers

DELIVERING YOUR WORLD
The News-Press – Subscribe
Daily email newsletter – Signup
Printer friendly version
Email this article

Two 27-story high-rises will join Fort Myers' booming waterfront development, and both will offer public riverwalks.

City council members Tuesday approved Riviera St. Tropez and Hotel Monaco. Together, the projects will bring 416 condominium and 300 hotel units to First Street.

Elected leaders will consider two more projects — Sullivan-Florida Group's 25-story Legacy Harbour and the 32-story First River Condominiums by Fort Myers Development, LLC. — at public hearings Thursday.

Residents at Tuesday's meeting urged the council to require Homes for America, the developer of both St. Tropez and Hotel Monaco, to provide public riverwalks. Although submitted plans called for such access at the hotel, the St. Tropez proposal did not provide it.

Homes for America President Robert Kohn agreed to the request Tuesday but asked city leaders in turn to seek the same concession from future developments and current property owners so they can create a continuous riverwalk.

With the concession, the council approved St. Tropez 4-0. Councilwoman Ann Knight was absent.

It will be built on 4.7 acres at 2754 First St. and include two towers with 150 residences in 25 stories above two stories of parking. Sixteen more units, 30 lofts and commercial space will shield a parking garage.

Some residents were pleased with the additional riverwalk but still questioned the height.

"I am not against growth or progress. I am against the height of these projects," Ward 4 resident Pamela Lambert said.

She countered comments by Councilman Mike Flanders at a neighborhood meeting that once buildings reach a certain height one must count on fingers to tell the difference in stories.

"You don't have to count fingers when you see an eight-story building

and a 32-story building," Lambert said. "It's no longer balanced."

But others came to the hearings to support the projects.

About two dozen Beau Rivage residents and Homes for America employees wore blue T-shirts reading "Growth for Progress."

Dean Park resident Brad Newton, who lives across the street from the St. Tropez site, told the council the height does not bother him. "Once you get over 15 stories — 15, 30 I don't see the difference," he said.

Height and density also were issues when the council considered Hotel Monaco, a 27-story tower with 300 hotel-condominium units and 70 residences at 2543 First St. Plans include a half-acre neighborhood park at the east side of the property on a strip of Florida Department of Transportation land with a riverwalk to the rear of the hotel.

The project passed 3-1 with Flanders dissenting. Although the project did not need bonus density because most of its units are classified as hotel rooms, the councilman questioned language that allows the rooms to be rented for four months.

"That's a seasonal living condition in my book. That's not a hotel," he said.

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050309/NEWS0106/503090498/1008

smiley

March 25th, 2005, 03:31 PM

First River condos get council approval

By ALISON KEPNER
AKEPNER@NEWS-PRESS.COM
Published by news-press.com on March 25, 2005

DELIVERING YOUR WORLD
The News-Press – Subscribe
Daily email newsletter – Signup
Printer friendly version
Email this article

Another high-rise will join Fort Myers' booming riverfront, but it will come with 30 fewer condominium homes than proposed.

The Fort Myers City Council on Thursday unanimously approved First River Condominiums, 2220 W. First St., with 420 of the 450 homes requested. The 5.32-acre site includes 2,920 square feet of commercial space on two parcels of land across Altamont Avenue.

How the unit number change will affect the height of the project's three 32-story towers remains unclear. With about five homes per floor, developer Fort Myers Development, LLC could trim two stories per building. The council also recommended buildings with altering heights with the center tower the highest and reduced stories for the eastern and western buildings.

Councilman Mike Flanders wanted to lower the height and number of homes more, but his motion to approve only 375 homes failed to garner a second. Councilwomen Ann Knight and Veronica Shoemaker then motioned to approve 450. Ultimately, they compromised on 420 homes.

Although some council members disliked the height of the towers, all praised the project for its public amenities, including a riverwalk and viewing area with gazebo at the end of Altamont. The developer also worked closely with Andres Duany's firm to conform the project to Duany's downtown redevelopment plan.

"They did a beautiful job of giving an asset to the public," Knight said. "They are giving the public the most access of any of the projects."

The reduction in homes will keep the city from going over a state housing limit along the Caloosahatchee River — at least for now.

The city is restricted to 2,777 homes within the Coastal High Hazard Zone, a low-lying area in danger of flooding during hurricanes and tropical storms. The city's zone runs along the Caloosahatchee River between the Edison & Ford Winter Estates and Billy's Creek. It does not include most of the area along Edwards Drive between the U.S. 41 and Edison bridges.

With First River's approval, the city has four units left under the cap. Had the council approved the requested 450 units, First River would have pushed Fort Myers 26 homes over the limit.

City staff members are working with the state Department of Community Affairs to change the zone's boundaries to allow more homes downtown. Even with the proposed change, however, the city would have been 26 units short. To permit future development over the cap, lobbyists are asking state legislators to increase the city's density if public safety measures are taken.

But some residents who attended Thursday's meeting think the city is allowing too much too soon. Judy Alves told leaders that developers' vision for Fort Myers is to make money.

"Every decision this council has made so far has benefited and fed into the vision of the developers," she said. "My plea is for all of you to slow down."

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050325/NEWS0106/503250468/1008

MIAballinboi

April 8th, 2005, 03:51 AM

I think you should sticky a thread for southwest florida, ft-myers, naples,

theres alot of interesting stuff going on in these cities and theyre boom towns, plus now that were getting new forumers from these areas, it might be best.
thnx
anyways heres an update

from southeast.construction.com

Construction Underway at New Fort Myers Condo Community

Pine Ridge Real Estate and JWR Construction, both of Deerfield Beach, broke ground in mid-January at one of Fort Myers' newest private condominium communities. The development will feature multi-story buildings clustered around a central lake and private clubhouse, pool and landscaped beach. The 116-unit gated community is scheduled for completion in spring 2007.

MIAballinboi

April 9th, 2005, 04:23 AM

a great source, the city of fort myers site
http://www.cityftmyers.com/departments/dra/highrise.aspx

ALTA MAR
Project: 7 story / 131 condo units
Developer: Tarragon Realty Investments
Location:* 2825 Palm Beach, Fort Myers
Phone: 239.461.0002
Web Address: www.marinaliving.net

BEAU RIVAGE
Project: 22 story / 124 condo units Developer: Homes for America
Location: 2797 First Street, Fort Myers Phone: 239.337.2328
Web Address: www.thebeaurivage.com

CYPRESS CLUB
Project: 32 story / 292 condo units
Developer: New Leaf—BAP
Location: 2589 First Street, Fort Myers Phone: 239.334.3472
Web Address: www.thecypressclub.com

HIGH POINT PLACE
Project: 32 story / 273 condo units
Developer: Cameratta Properties
Location: 2026 Clifford Street, Fort Myers Phone: 239.334.4164
Web Address: www.highpointplace.com

MONACO
Project: 25 story / 70 condo / 300 hotel
Developer: Homes for America
Location: 2543 First Street, Fort Myers
Phone: 239.337.2328
Web Address: www.MonacoResortandSpa.com

OASIS
Project: 32 story / 1079 condo units
Developer: The Related Group
Location: 2961 Frierson Street, Fort Myers
Phone: 239.334.2345
Web Address: www.OasisCondo.com

ST. RAPHAEL
Project: 27 story / 150 condo units
Developer: Homes for America
Location: 2745 First Street, Fort Myers
Phone: 239.337.2328
Web Address: www.sttropez.apartmentsvr.com

ST. TROPEZ
Project: 27 story / 150 condo units
Developer: Homes for America
Location: 2745 First Street, Fort Myers
Phone: 239.337.2328
Web Address: www.sttropez.apartmentsvr.com

THE VUE
Project: 27 story / 180 condo units
Developer: Throgmartin
Location: 1300 Hendry Street, Fort Myers
Phone: 239.337.7200
Web Address: www.theVue.info

nice set of towers to redefine the skyline!

MIAballinboi

April 9th, 2005, 04:29 AM

wow ft myers is booming, on skyscrapers.com it has like 30 buildings over 20 stories that are u/c or approved or planned,

all the tall towers are being built or about to be u/c now.

high point and oasis each have like 5 buildings over 30 stories each,

cant wait to see the skyline with all these built, its the next ft. laud!

SDK4

April 9th, 2005, 06:18 AM

Ft. Myers is on fire!!! Is there any end to its development?

Jasonhouse

April 9th, 2005, 06:54 AM

ballinboi.... This thread was stickied for a while, then it went dead for a while, so I unstuck it. Now that it's active again, stickied it is.

MIAballinboi

April 9th, 2005, 04:21 PM

^good move, thnx,

Landier

April 10th, 2005, 01:53 AM

All the new construction (besides those that I took pictures of before) is currently in the prepping land or pouring foundation stage. I'll post some updates once they go vertical

The first tower of Riva Del Lago is now topped out, and then 2nd should follow in a matter of a couple weeks.

I can also tell you that I'm in the industry here in Fort Myers, and these are just the beginning, there are many more plans behind closed doors! (I know that's a tease, but that's all I can say for now)

MIAballinboi

April 10th, 2005, 03:24 PM

good news landier, cant wait for the pics

smiley

April 19th, 2005, 04:54 PM

Great demand leads to Marina South II

Developers move up construction for second high-rise condominium

By PETE SKIBA
PSKIBA@NEWS-PRESS.COM
Published by news-press.com on April 19, 2005
A Cape Coral high-rise sold out so quickly that developers have pushed up plans for a sister building by about 18 months.

The Marina South at Cape Harbour began construction and demand was so great that plans now call for Marina South II.

Cape Coral residents could see other projects started earlier than expected because of the demand for housing in a city that is growing at 10,000 a year and a new zoning plan that is becoming attractive for developers.

The condominiums are part of a zoning plan, which allows various types of buildings in the same housing development, including homes, shops and offices, said Cliff Reppenger, vice president of Avalon Engineering, which is the engineer on the project. This type of zoning is called compound use.

The buildings will vary in height from one or two stories to four condominiums in one building on up to the Marina South's 15-story structure and 110 homes. The area promises to be both boat- and pedestrian-accessible.

At first, the developers were concerned about the acceptance of the concept, but are no longer.

"We are the first compound-use project in the city of Cape Coral," Reppenger said. "The acceptance has just been wonderful."

The acceptance and sales drove the companies to rev up their plans.

"Because the market is so good we decided to start the second building within four months of the first one's sales," developer Will Stout said. "We had enough interest when we sold the other condominiums."

Housing demand pushed Stout's company to change its plans from 2003. Back then, the Marina condominiums were planned to begin in 2008.

Both 15-story buildings will be built in the city's southwest section near the intersection of Chiquita Boulevard and El Dorado Parkway West.

Plans call for the first four floors to house parking and the other 11 floors to house 110 condominiums.

The homes could cost more than an estimated $300,000 to $500,000 depending on size and views, said John Jacobsen, chief executive officer for Intergraphic, a marketing firm.

The condominiums are planned in the 1,200- to 1,800-square-foot range. One side of the buildings would have a marina view and the other side would have a view of the Gulf of Mexico.

The development will include shops and a hotel to be open to the public.

One of its public properties, the restaurant Rumrunners, has opened and has been well received.

Marina View, a 58-unit, six- story condominium building, was finished last year and residents began moving in during December.

The Cape Harbour development with the waterfront condominiums, a boathouse and other amenities stretches along about 150 acres. The marina area has a public boardwalk for strolling.

"The first seven people who came into the marina asked where the boathouse was," Stout said. "The boathouse looks so good they didn't know they were next to it."

The development also contains single-family homes and Stout's company, Realmark Group, has offices there.

Twenty-four coach homes were sold out easily at prices ranging from $290,000 to $340,000 in 2003 when they were offered for sale. The company broke its own record by selling $40 million worth of homes and condominiums on March 19 of that year.

The coach homes are a lakefront condominium project adjacent to the marina. Each coach home is in a four-unit complex.

Shops are planned to be built alongside the condominiums. They will be open to the public. The marina area already welcomes visitors.

Plans also call for a more than 100-room hotel to be built near the waterfront site.

"The hotel will be done in-house," Stout said. "If boutique means well done then that is what it will be."

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050419/NEWS0106/504190342/1008

SDK4

April 20th, 2005, 04:45 AM

What a city!!!!

Jasonhouse

May 28th, 2005, 10:08 AM

So, we don't have anyone down there to give updates and pics? :(

SDK4

May 29th, 2005, 01:47 AM

What's been happening with the buildings along the waterfront that were being protested against?

leglace

May 29th, 2005, 07:59 AM

Unincorporated Lee county is gettings some 4-story condos in 06' from Pulte homes. While this product isn't going to light up the skyline, it is going to be a very popular project. There will be about 12-15 40 unit condos ranging between 1200 to 1800 sq. ft. Not permitted just yet, but will be within the next month.

Landier

June 6th, 2005, 07:26 PM

There's 100s of those around being permitted and/or under construction - nothing new.

Landier

June 6th, 2005, 07:29 PM

I went by downtown last week, still only the one set of towers under construction, although there should be some others breaking ground soon.

High Point Place is rising, but very slowly, I'll have to take some picture updates next time I take a trip downtown.

Landier

June 6th, 2005, 07:33 PM

Centennial Park to feel The Vue's effects

By BY ALISON KEPNER
AKEPNER@NEWS-PRESS.COM
Published by news-press.com on June 2, 2005

Centennial Park visitors soon will notice changes to the Fort Myers riverfront park as a developer begins construction on a neighboring 27-story high rise and public amenities.

Throgmartin Company executives will celebrate The Vue's ceremonial groundbreaking at 10 a.m. today. The work's actual start, however, has been delayed as the developer awaits South Florida Water Management District permits.

When it begins, parkgoers will be affected. Most noticeable change will be a construction fence that will cut off a small section of the 10-acre community park. Construction of bathrooms and playground equipment and razing of the current bathrooms and playground also are in the first phase. The entire project will take two years.

Throgmartin leaders hope residents will see the work affecting Centennial as a minor hassle worth a better park.

"It's just a temporary inconvenience," said Kerry Steeno, vice president of development and construction. "All we're doing is going over 50 feet from the existing fence.

"When we're finished, (the park) will be more than 2,000 feet larger," he said, noting total public access will increase even more thanks to the privately-owned areas the developer will open.

But Fort Myers Councilman Warren Wright, who became involved in city politics when he started a campaign against The Vue, said he continues to worry about residents losing access. And he is worried about how the tower, which he said will cast a shadow, will affect the park.

During his spring campaign for his Ward 1 seat, Wright learned many residents share his fears, he said. "I think people are starting to really catch on that 'Wow, we're really going to lose something special.' "

The project, which incorporates a new home for the nonprofit Edison Sailing Center, requires a land swap with a section of Centennial Park. Throgmartin paid nearly $1.4 million for one acre of riverfront property, where it will build a residential tower and office building. The first floor will be a 7,500-square foot office and storage facility for the sailing school.

To have room for the offices, the company needed part of the park, where a paved access road is now. In exchange for this 16,712 square feet of park, the city received 18,804 square feet of the current sailing school parking lot, where the developer will build a public plaza.

Throgmartin also is paying for a list of other public amenities including: a riverwalk, a city maintenance and storage building, new park bathrooms, upgraded playground equipment and an interactive children's fountain. Those features added to the $1.3 million sailing school site will cost the developer more than $3 million.

Landier

June 10th, 2005, 05:24 PM

High Point Place construction photos:

http://img148.echo.cx/img148/5825/p60700158kx.jpg

http://img148.echo.cx/img148/4170/p60700149tv.jpg

leglace

June 11th, 2005, 03:55 AM

SDK4

June 11th, 2005, 04:33 AM

How long has High Point been under construction?

Landier

June 11th, 2005, 06:18 AM

I think they went to construction in January, but they took a long time on all the foundation stuctures. We'll see how long now that they're going vertical.

Some of the other tower developments are ready to go, but to date they only have cleared pads.

Jasonhouse

June 11th, 2005, 07:28 AM

thanks for the pics. i love Ft Myers. Its no longer that Place for old people. You can't buy a 2,000 sq. ft house these days for under $250,000 down there. Lucky if you buy one $300,000.

I think Ft Myers will develop parallel to Naples and at some point spill into one another with Miromar in between. Possibly major cities by 2015.

Not that soon, unless your definition of 'major' is quite low. But in time, yes that area will go apeshit with development on a much larger scale. In 30 or so years, that should be basically the size that Tampa/St Pete is now IMO.

leglace

June 11th, 2005, 05:20 PM

In Florida terms, a mjor city is above 150,000 people. Yes, i know Ft Myers and Naples is very far from that. Mostly because the size of their cities. But it could be considered legit metro area by then.

Yes I think they can become somewhat what Ft. Lauderdale was 15 yrs ago. I think the escalating housing prices and rising taxes will drive off retirees. That would be both unfortunate though prove to be beneficial for the cities.

Look at what Cape Coral was 10 yrs ago, and look at it today. Regardless of their crooked building dept, they are growing exponentially.

As far as nightlife and things to do, I'm sure they can create a Bay Walk, or to be original, call it "Shore Walk".

SDK4

June 12th, 2005, 05:27 AM

Once Charlotte County and North Port fill in, the area from Pasco county through Tampa, Sarasota and Ft. Myers to Naples will be one giant megacity. Although my thinking is that it will take the actual cities of Sarasota and Ft. Myers a long time to reach the 150,000 pop. mark because of the growth of suburbs east of the interstate.

Landier

June 13th, 2005, 01:17 AM

The Fort Myers metro area is now over 500,000 people growing at an insane clip - the downtown has been basically abandoned until about a year and a half ago. Just wait, it will happen fast.

SDK4

June 27th, 2005, 03:07 PM

Has any one in Ft. Myers heard any new news on the I-75 toll expressway? The commisioners here in Sarasota are "weighing" their options on whether to join the authority.

jim09091

June 28th, 2005, 06:09 AM

I live part time (nope, not retired... only in my 20's) in Bonita Beach (just south of Fort Myers and north of Naples). We have just purchased a unit in the Cypress Club (32 story set of towers on the Caloosahatchee) and a unit in the Rapallo (Estero - by the new Coconut Mall).

I have pictures of the Fort Myers downtown area from the river (by boat) and they can be found at: http://community.webshots.com/album/338726267HGXqOZ

You can see pictures of The Beau Rivage and the Marriott (which used to be the tallest building). This place is slated to change a lot.

In the past few days, there have been numerous news reports that WCI communities (a major builder here in this part of FL) has reduced the height of their proposed buildings to better stick with the Duany (Andres Duany, planner for places such as Stuart, West Palm Beach, 5th Avenue area of Naples, Miami's South Beach, etc) plan. An article from the local news site can be found here: http://www.nbc-2.com/articles/readarticle.asp?articleid=3716&z=3&p=

Andres Duany's site (which is the company he and his wife Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk co-founded can be found at: http://www.dpz.com

When I come across more information and pictures, I will be glad to post. These are interesting times in this area.

Jasonhouse

June 28th, 2005, 06:14 AM

^Am I the only one who thinks Duany is a total assclown? Yeah, make an urban setting "vibrant" by seriously crimping supply and building only high end anywhere near town, thus ensuring that the workforce serving the rich and retired, have to live 30 miles away in exurbs so that they can afford to put food on the table. :ohno:

btw, he's actively behind the fouling up of Dt Sarasota presently underway.

SDK4

June 28th, 2005, 06:19 AM

Tell me about it. The "Duany Effect" has gripped this town and will not let go. And the stupid thing is, most of the inhabitants here are going along with his plan.

jim09091

June 28th, 2005, 06:30 AM

Has any one in Ft. Myers heard any new news on the I-75 toll expressway? The commisioners here in Sarasota are "weighing" their options on whether to join the authority.

I can't say I've heard anything recently since the bill was signed by Bush. Nothing from SWFTI, FDOT, or the counties either.

jim09091

June 28th, 2005, 06:32 AM

Tell me about it. The "Duany Effect" has gripped this town and will not let go. And the stupid thing is, most of the inhabitants here are going along with his plan.

No kidding.

He has threatened to take his name off of the Fort Myers plan a few times if things don't end up his way. Fine by me.

Dale

June 28th, 2005, 06:39 AM

Nooo ! Keep him down there. We're afraid if you run him off he'll come to Orlando.

Jasonhouse

June 28th, 2005, 06:42 AM

^He's already got his sights set on St Pete Beach, from what I hear.

Dale

June 28th, 2005, 06:48 AM

Well, what am I saying. Seems like all of our high-rises are designed by the same firm - Baker Barrios.

Jasonhouse

June 28th, 2005, 06:53 AM

Ask and you shall receive...;)

Duany is apparently designing a ~9400 acre master planned community for Orlando...muahahahaa
http://www.dpz.com/project.aspx?type=2&Project_Number=8925&Project_Name=Avalon+Park

SDK4

June 28th, 2005, 02:20 PM

Just wait, DT Orlando and the theme parks are next.

Landier

June 29th, 2005, 04:58 AM

I'm looking at a unit on the 25th floor of the Cypress Club right now as well, trying to make my decision.... big step... and I'm in my 20s as well... It's gonna be a happenin' place.

MisterFreddy

July 1st, 2005, 05:55 AM

Landier

July 14th, 2005, 12:42 AM

High-rise project hits roadblock

By Betty Parker
bparker@news-press.com
Published by news-press.com on July 13, 2005

A proposed land swap that was a key element of plans for The Vue condominium project in Fort Myers has been rejected by state and federal officials, who want more information on the project.

City officials also had hoped that a payment of $380,000 for part of the riverfront land at Centennial Park could ease the exchange process.

But that deal also was rejected because the government has a process for such land exchanges that does not include cash payments.

City officials said Tuesday they are working on providing the state Department of Environmental Protection and the National Park Service with the extra environmental and land use information requested.

The longest part of the process could be the 30-day period set aside for public review and comment, said Elly McKuen, Fort Myers planning manager.

Gathering other information could take less time, she said.

"We believe we will have approval to proceed in about 45 days," said Kerry Steeno, vice president with Throgmartin Co., which is building the 27-story high-rise at Centennial Park.

"We're optimistic."

The project also incorporates a new home for the Edison Sailing Center, a boating program for young people.

But Fort Myers Councilman Warren Wright, who has opposed the controversial project, said he thinks the detailed environmental data requested will take much longer.

The National Park Service, in a four-page single-spaced memo outlining needed information, included factors such as precise and exact drawing and boundaries of the properties involved; the impact of the conversion on the remaining parkland; an environmental assessment of the land involved; and standards used in appraising the involved parcels.

Beyond time needed for that, Wright said, "there's no deadline for DEP to issue those permits once they get the information."

Throgmartin had a ceremonial groundbreaking for the project almost a month ago, even though permits and approval of the land swap still were pending.

Fort Myers Mayor Jim Humphrey, who had hoped a possible solution might be to pay the federal government $380,000 held in escrow for the needed land, declined to comment on the situation.

He referred instead to a response he sent DEP, July 5, saying "It is the city's intention to move forward with the proposed conversion for Centennial Park."

He and city staff "look forward to working" with DEP and other agencies on the project, Humphrey wrote.

He referred further questions to McKuen.

At particular issue was the exchange of two parcels of property, each about a half-acre large.

McKuen said the city owned one parcel of about 16,700 square feet in Centennial Park — which the developer wanted — and offered to exchange that with the developer for another nearby parcel of about 18,000 square feet.

But because the city's Centennial Park land was partially paid for by a federal park service grant in the early 1980s, the city needed park service approval for the swap.

The grant money involved was about $380,000, so city officials had thought they could gain control by repaying the money, McKuen said.

But the grant was for public park space, which means a detailed process must be followed before giving up the land for private use, agency officials said.

While the city's original request for approval of the swap "contains a lot of detailed criteria," said the letter from the National Park Service, "much of the required information that we need was not provided."

That agency's officials also said they'd work with the city on developing its new request.

"Any time you work with the federal government, it can be very time-consuming," McKuen said.

Steeno said they "definitely" expect to move ahead with their project as it's planned, if a little late.

"We're trying to do everything everybody has asked," he said. "Some things just take longer."

Landier

July 14th, 2005, 12:44 AM

Nothing is easy around here, they make the process 10 times as hard as it needs to be, and 20 times the paperwork... but I guess that's job security for me :cool: :yes: m))

Landier

July 25th, 2005, 11:07 PM

Riverfront high-rises may cap at 25 stories

Fort Myers City Council proposes code changes

By ALISON KEPNER
AKEPNER@NEWS-PRESS.COM
Published by news-press.com on July 24, 2005

High-rise development along Fort Myers' riverfront could be limited to 25 stories if elected leaders adopt proposed changes to the city's code.

By comparison, that would mean developers couldn't build towers higher than the downtown Ramada, also 25 stories.

If approved, the new limit would not affect projects already approved by the council, which include projects as high as 32 stories.

City Council members seemed supportive of a cap this week but held off on deciding until Sept. 6 so planning board members can review the proposal and offer a recommendation at their Aug. 10 meeting.

Several planning board members and residents as well as Andres Duany, the renowned urban planner who designed the city's 2001 downtown redevelopment plan, have criticized Fort Myers leaders for approving buildings higher than Duany's recommended 18-story cap. Their complaints include concerns taller buildings would bring in too many people and block river views downtown.

Jim Tanner, who has lived downtown for six years, hopes the proposed limit passes.

"Smaller is better," he said. "I sure wouldn't exceed 25."

Otherwise, "the city is going to lose its charm," Tanner said.

At the council's request, city staff prepared three alternatives to the density and height limits for the area.

Current code for most of the waterfront allows 50 homes per acre with opportunity to double the density if the projects meet nine criteria, which range from including public open space to contributing to affordable housing.

The staff's three alternatives suggest reducing the number of allowed units to 30, 35 or 40 homes per acre with the maximum bonus at 50, 60, or 70 homes, respectively.

They also may limit the height of buildings, a move that could further restrict density on small land parcels. Currently, buildings can range from two to 18 stories without bonuses, but no limit exists on how high the buildings can go with bonuses. Staff members recommend an 18-story standard cap and 25-story bonus limit with all three alternatives.

Planning board member Bill Spikowski prefers the middle option of 35 homes per acre with the bonus limit of 60 but acknowledged no magic number exists.

"You can have almost any density done well and done poorly," he said.

The problem with the projects Fort Myers leaders have approved, Spikowski said, is the size of the units and other amenities that go with them. Together, "the building is monstrous," he said.

Although Spikowski still worries 25 stories is too high, he said any limit is better than none.

"I was just happy that the City Council is willing to look at changing those numbers at all," he said.

Council members also will consider changing how they award bonuses. Instead of their evenly weighted nine criteria, they will discuss a planning board recommendation to award bonuses based on seven criteria of differing weights. Two current ones — contribution to hurricane evacuation shelters and including pedestrian connections — would become required of all projects, whether or not developers seek bonuses.

Councilman Mike Flanders hopes to tweak that idea. He wants to make including public open space a requirement to receive any bonus units or stories. The council also will consider making participation in the long-sought Riverwalk required of all waterfront projects. Riverwalk would be a public walk across town along the Caloosahatchee River.

Councilman Warren Wright campaigned for his Ward 1 seat this spring by saying he wanted to follow Duany's plan more closely.

He is pleased council members seem supportive of tougher restrictions.

"I was glad to see they were willing to back down and lower the heights," Wright said.

Landier

July 25th, 2005, 11:10 PM

:wallbash: WTF ARE THEY THINKING!?!?!?!?!

:soapbox: :wtf: :badnews:

MIAballinboi

July 26th, 2005, 04:58 AM

woow, what an article, its so sad its funny,

the part that theyre like "smaller is better" and how the hell can they be supporting this, a city full of nimbys, if this pases.....
:soapbox: :bash: :bash:

smiley

July 26th, 2005, 05:55 AM

They are thinking it is a town full of retirees.

Jasonhouse

July 26th, 2005, 08:56 PM

Well, the attack on Florida's environment never ceases.

Just remember Ft Myers dum-dums... For every housing unit you deny in the urban core, you put another housing unit that further out into the undeveloped countryside.

FloridaFuture

July 26th, 2005, 10:46 PM

"Smaller is better," he said. "I sure wouldn't exceed 25."

Otherwise, "the city is going to lose its charm," Tanner said.

That's all I needed to hear before I knew this was disaster. :bash: :bash:

smiley

August 11th, 2005, 04:39 PM

Twin luxury projects planned along river

Paradise Preserve in both North Fort Myers, Cape

By DON RUANE
DRUANE@NEWS-PRESS.COM
Published by news-press.com on August 11, 2005

Two new luxury developments sharing the name Paradise Preserve will change the face of the riverfront where Cape Coral meets North Fort Myers just north of Four Mile Cove Ecological Preserve.

High-rises, some as tall as 26 stories, will rise along the river, but the project planned for Cape Coral already is drawing mixed reviews. Some city officials are impressed, but residents are wary of plans to scoop out canals so homes will have access to the Caloosahatchee River and concerned about the traffic impact on Four Mile Cove Parkway.

The projects are physically separated by water and private homes in Cape Coral.

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050811/NEWS0101/508110336/1008/NEWS0106

SDK4

August 12th, 2005, 05:54 AM

They might as well get this project in because once the anti building folks get Duany to come back in, kiss your buildings goodbye.

Landier

August 15th, 2005, 01:45 AM

My firm is designing one of the two Paradise Preserve projects, the one inside Cape Coral, it will still be a while before we go to construction on that phase. The other phase in North Fort Myers started permitting much earlier and they are going to construction in a matter of days.

As far as Duany, his plan was only for downtown Fort Myers, which is across the river and isin't even controlled by the same permitting bodies as North Fort Myers (Lee County) and The City of Cape Coral.

This was one of the projects I had eluded to earlier, but couldn't release ;)

SDK4

August 15th, 2005, 04:50 AM

Even if North Fort Myers gets away with out any restrictions, it will cause Fort Myers to have no downtown core for itself. All the buildings will be spread out over the DT area, N. Fort Myers, Cape Coral, and the beaches with no central area were they all should be. :)

Landier

August 15th, 2005, 09:34 PM

I agree, downtown Fort Myers is the place the density and core should be, however the problem is the government for downtown Fort Myers (as opposed to Cape Coral, Bonita Springs, Unincorporated Lee County) is the poorest and least organized in the area.

The first thing that needs to happen with the downtown area is the comprehensive plan needs to be altered with the state to add more units - they have already reached the cap of units with the buildings under construction, and half the current buildings proposed downtown will not be able to go to construction until this unit cap is raised.

With the increase of units in the downtown, the commercial buildings will begin to follow, there are a few that are currently proposed, although nothing major - 4-6 story office complexes (but better than the 1-2 story construction that occupies most of the city currently)

And dont even get me started on the 25-floor cap on building height - it's the stupidest idea they ever came up with. I believe that even if it gets passed it will be reverted in only a few years due to all the current construction that is going to 32 stories that will be completed by that time and give some perspective - that and they will be looking for new growth by that time.

I think I could write about this all day - but back to work I guess...

Oh yeah, check this out from CNN, average increase in median home values in the last year... Cape Coral / Fort Myers #2... Also Florida dominates the top of the list... http://money.cnn.com/pf/features/lists/nar_2q05/

SDK4

August 16th, 2005, 03:54 AM

You guys are lucky to get 25 stories in Ft. Myers. Here in Sarasota, its 18 stories and only on a small patch of bayfront land that will never get more than one building. Everywhere else in DT, 10 stories or lower. Its like they want to increase our urban sprawl, I don't get it.

Landier

August 16th, 2005, 04:48 AM

Well, don't forget, older cities all started in the under-10 story range, then used up their land, and then started on redevelopment. Don't get me wrong, I like to see from nothing to 40-story towers, it's just not so common historically - we might just have to go about it the old way.....

SDK4

August 17th, 2005, 05:02 AM

I understand, but it just makes no sense to restrict growth. I know we can't have 40 story towers in Sarasota ( at least not right now). But keeping growth down discourages people from moving to a city and once again, jacks up suburban home prices.

Landier

August 22nd, 2005, 04:32 PM

http://cmsimg.news-press.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20050818&Category=BUSINESS&ArtNo=508180330&Ref=AR&Profile=1075&MaxW=400&MaxH=400&Q=80&title=1

First River now One West

Condo/retail project to be available for sales in fall

By Dick Hogan
dhogan@news-press.com
Published by news-press.com on August 18, 2005

The First River condominium where the old Holiday Inn SunSpree Resort operated in downtown Fort Myers has been renamed One West and will be available for sales this fall.

Project manager Dawn Geyser said she's operating out of the lobby of the Holiday Inn, which was closed in May although "we're still keeping the grounds irrigated because my intentions are to keep the grounds pretty" until the hotel's knocked down later this year in preparation for One West.

One West was approved by the Fort Myers City Council in March. It will feature 15,000 square feet of retail space and a yacht club with 49 slips available for purchase by owners of the 420 units planned in three towers that will be 33, 30 and 30 stories, she said.

For years the Holiday Inn has been the hotel of choice for Boston Red Sox fans who could stay there during spring training and walk to City of Palms Park.

"We always hate to lose a nice property like that, especially right near the ballpark," said Todd Stephenson, coordinator of Florida activities for the Red Sox.

Fort Myers Downtown Redevelopment Agency Director Don Paight said the hotel will be missed as one of the city's few remaining venues where tourists or business travelers could stay downtown. "It does pretty much put us out of rooms for downtown. You've got the Ramada but unfortunately, because of some of the conditions over there, that's not really marketed as a convention hotel."

That, he said, leaves downtown with only the Winyah Hotel & Suites, which is still operating but will eventually make way for another condo project.

The future should be brighter for hotels, he said, as the city negotiates with WCI Communities to redevelop the Exhibition Hall in a project that would include a hotel. That, in addition to the Monaco Hotel under construction on the east side of downtown, "would help us get back in the hotel business."

Geyser said she hopes to have a sales center this fall on the vacant lot next to the hotel and expects to start selling units. She doesn't expect to take reservations: "I'm going to go straight to contract."

Meanwhile, she said, "I have a very long list" of potential buyers. "I've been doing it since February."

One West is being developed by Fort Myers Development LLC, a partnership of BSR Property and Read Property Group.

bigboyz2004

August 24th, 2005, 02:13 AM

With all these projects underway, the Ft. Myers area is looking hot, hot, hot!

Dale

September 28th, 2005, 05:34 AM

www.firststreetvillage.com

Jasonhouse

September 28th, 2005, 07:06 AM

^^http://www.firststreetvillage.com/images/over_12.jpg

Not a bad looking urban development... Awefully colorful though. Kinda over the top... Hopefully that's just the rendering.

TampaMike

September 28th, 2005, 10:19 PM

Awesome place.I see the shops in the front and all surrounded by the homes.What is the asking price?

Jasonhouse

September 29th, 2005, 04:35 AM

^probably a million-gazillion-fafillian dollars. :lol:

SDK4

September 30th, 2005, 04:43 AM

Its better than those subdivisions with 1000 + replica homes that look exactly alike.

Dale

September 30th, 2005, 04:47 AM

^probably a million-gazillion-fafillian dollars. :lol:

Jason -

Now, come on. You have to admit 'fafillian' sounds a little gay, don't you ? ;)

Jasonhouse

September 30th, 2005, 07:02 AM

Don't tell Ludacris that...

Dale

September 30th, 2005, 05:35 PM

^ Word.

SDK4

October 1st, 2005, 04:41 AM

Why not throw in a googleplex? :)

smiley

October 5th, 2005, 04:33 AM

http://cmsimg.news-press.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20051002&Category=NEWS0106&ArtNo=510020500&Ref=AR&Profile=1008&MaxW=400&MaxH=400&Q=80&title=1
The Beau Rivage condo tower, right, looms next to the Alta Mar condos construction site along the Caloosahatchee River in Fort Myers in May. File photo by TODD STUBING/news-press.com
http://cmsimg.news-press.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20051002&Category=NEWS0106&ArtNo=510020500&Ref=H1&Profile=1008&MaxW=400&MaxH=400&Q=80&title=1

Condo sales trigger doubts

Pre-construction sales force some to take a heavy loss

By Dick Hogan
dhogan@news-press.com
Published by news-press.com on October 2, 2005

A year after Fort Myers' first downtown condominium tower opened, two of its units have sold for less than the initial buyer paid.

In one instance, county records indicate, the buyer lost $46,000. In the other, the price dropped almost $34,000.

Taken together, the two sales have raised the question of whether they may be a harbinger of a softening market.

Real estate brokers and developers are split.

Fort Myers-based real estate broker Ed Bonkowski said many of those who have already bought will live to regret it as prices inevitably fall.

"I always found it hard to believe you could speculate on a $500,000 condo and expect to make money," said Bonkowski, who works in the downtown area. "To carry a loan on a half-million-dollar property is an easy 10 percent a year, or $50,000. So in two years the price has to go up $100,000 to break even. That's not going to happen."

Craig Teich, who sold the two high-rise units for less than he paid, said he wouldn't hesitate to recommend investing long term in new condominiums.

"The bigger question is what happens five years down the road," he said. "There's too many strong drivers for real estate: the influx of baby boomers, buyers from Latin America, and prices are lower compared to California."

Teich is president of Fort Lauderdale-based Dwellphi Development LLC and Dwellphi & Beau Rivage Partners.

Each of his companies bought a unit in the 124-unit Beau Rivage condo tower that opened in October 2004 on First Street just west of Billy's Creek.

Dwellphi & Beau Rivage paid $579,000 for unit 1406 and sold it for $533,000 on May 16, according to Lee County Property Appraiser's records.

Dwellphi Development bought unit 606 for $528,700 and sold it for $495,000 on June 9, records indicate.

At the same time, other condos are being snapped up at similar downtown projects for pre-construction prices 50 percent higher per square foot than what's being paid at Beau Rivage.

At least a dozen high-rise towers planned for the Caloosahatchee riverfront in downtown Fort Myers will add nearly 3,600 condos over the next five years.

In predicting a downturn in prices, Bonkowski points to the 1980s boom in the Florida condominium market that led to a crash in prices in the early '90s.

Ultimately, the federal government set up the Resolution Trust Corp. to sell thousands of properties owned by failed savings and loan associations that had loaned more money than the properties turned out to be worth.

In Lee County, the agency ended up with the River's Edge condominium project, which became Gulf Harbour in south Fort Myers. It also handled Sheraton Harbor Place, which became the Ramada Inn & Suites at Amtel Marina in downtown Fort Myers.

Teich acknowledged being caught in at least a temporary glut of units but said his losses weren't as bad as they seem because the Beau Rivage developer, Homes for America Holdings, offered sales incentives.

Beau Rivage units have recovered since the earlier sales, said Teich.

Dwellphi & Beau Rivage paid $620,000 for penthouse unit 2202 and sold it on Aug. 3 for $775,000, he said.

Real estate broker and investor Jean Sanders holds out hope.

"It'll be OK," said Sanders, who lives in a Beau Rivage unit she bought for $325,000.

Sanders expects condo prices to go even higher.

Beau Rivage units for sale now range from $424,000 to $1.475 million.

A lot of investors are willing to pay more for a spectacular view, she said.

"I'm the perfect example. I'm a boomer who moved to town, who had money, who isn't going to settle for not a water view.

"Naples prices are outlandish. I'd say all my clients are from out of town. They come in and see Naples and Sarasota prices: $400 to $600 a foot for non-waterfront."

The Beau Rivage owners who sold for less than they paid lost their nerve too soon, Sanders said.

"I tell my clients, 'You don't want to be in a position of selling when this building is through," she said. "Get out before or be willing to hold on."

For example, High Point Place on West First Street requires a 10 percent deposit when the buyer signs up and another 10 percent when the builder, Cameratta Properties, gets approval from the city to start construction, said director of marketing Cheryl Yano.

She doesn't see any sign of softness in the market.

"There's been no fallback at all," Yano said. "Every single unit has gone forward."

High Point is sold out and scheduled to open the first of two towers next fall.

Not everyone is comfortable with the idea there will be enough demand to justify the prices being paid.

"It's not a game I'd want to play at those numbers," said John McIlwain, at the nonprofit Washington-based Urban Land Institute that studies property and urban planning issues.

Others take a middle view.

"You have to be in the select few high rises that are going to have the highest demand," said Brad Cozza, a real estate agent with Keller Williams World Class Realtors in Fort Myers. "I think the design makes a good project and the amenities."

He's buying an office condo in Cypress Club on First Street.

He also noted there's a cap on the number of downtown units allowed in the city's Coastal High Hazard Zone.

Because of state hurricane evacuation rules only 2,777 condo units are allowed, he said, and that makes them more likely to increase in value.

"In downtown, people are paying $400 to $450 a square foot," Cozz said, "and you could see those units potentially double."

On Monday, Fort Myers city leaders will hold a public hearing on a proposal to reduce the cap to 2,352 and change the downtown zone boundary.

PRE-CONSTRUCTION

As prices spiral up, some investors are becoming cautious about the pre-construction craze.

"I think resales are the way to go," said Debbie Rogan, who moved to Fort Myers a year ago from Ohio with her husband Rocky, a commercial developer.

"I'm just starting to get my feet wet," she said.

Rogan has bought pre-construction at Paseo, a gated community under construction in south Fort Myers, but said she's grown wary of the often frenzied atmosphere of pre-sale investing.

Buyers often have to wait in line for a chance to buy and developers are putting restrictions on resales. Sometimes, buyers are required to turn any profit made within a year over to the builder.

Rogan's real estate agent, Denny Grimes of VIP Realty in Fort Myers, said he's concerned about the amount of property bought pre-construction.

"It's like buying on a credit card — you don't get the bill for 18 months," Grimes said. "They're doing it on a whim, hoping they'll make a hundred thousand dollars."

It's not a foregone conclusion that prices will go down, but he said he expects a day of reckoning when a lot of property is dumped on top of what developers are trying to sell pre-construction.

"If they can't mark them up, they may have to mark them down because they don't want to carry them," Grimes said. "Our market has not seen the test yet. The test will be when this market is delivered. That will test our market's mettle."

9
Number of high-rise condominium towers in various stages of development in downtown Fort Myers

3,592
Number of condo units under development in downtown
Fort Myers

$300
Approximate per-square-foot price of recent sales of Beau Rivage condominiums

$400-500
Pre-construction per-square-foot prices for other waterfront condo projects in downtown Fort Myers

$400-600
Range of per-square-foot prices for existing non-waterfront Naples condominiums

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051002/NEWS0106/510020500/1008

SDK4

October 5th, 2005, 05:39 AM

For a city of Ft. Myer's size, all of those new buildings at once? I'm not so sure about that? The market may stay stable, but they need to be careful otherwise there will be a glut of available condos.

Dale

October 5th, 2005, 05:45 AM

The article has that too-typical glass-half-empty feel to it. And there are not a 'dozen' towers planned. There are over two-dozen.

Are there no requirements of journalists anymore ?

Landier

October 10th, 2005, 10:24 PM

Dont forget, the metro area is now 550,000+ full-time population, 3,592 condo units is not a big number (0.6%), even if they were only selling to full-time residents - but of course a large number of these will end up in the hands of 2nd home owners and also be used as vacation rentals.

FloridaCondoGuy

October 19th, 2005, 01:40 PM

Although this guys web site is not completed, I found it while I was searching online the other day, it has a lot of great info on it. I called him ,and he seemed to have some real good knowledge of the downtown.

www.flhighrises.com/index3.htm

source26

October 21st, 2005, 08:01 AM

From Israeli website:
BSR sells Florida lot for $75m

The company is expected to earn a $6 million capital gain on the deal.

Guy Yamin 20 Oct 05 15:20

BSR Projects (TASE: BSRP) and a group of investors have sold the 22-dunam (5.5-acre) One West lot in Fort Myers, Florida to Throgmartin Company for $75 million. The building is zoned for luxury residential construction. Throgmartin has a number of other projects in the area.
BSR Projects and its partners bought the land in January 2004, and this deal was completed in May 2005. BSR Projects invested only $500,000 in the deal with a 3.75% share. Since BSR Projects is also entitled to management and development fees, the company is expected to post $6 million pre-tax capital gain.

Fort Myers is a developing city, with the highest population growth rate in the US. One West, considered the most luxurious project in the city, is one of the last on the seafront.

One West will include 420 luxury units in three 30-storey towers, and commercial and service space. The project is currently in the advanced stage of design, and sales are now beginning.

Kalman Sufrin and Nachshon Kivity, controlling shareholders of BSR Projects parent company BSR Engineering and Development, said that sale followed offers by many developers. The BSR Engineering began operating in the US market in 2003, and is currently involved in managing and building luxury residential and commercial projects at an investment estimated at over $1 billion.

Kivity added that the plan was to double activity in the US over 2-3 years, and enter new areas with growth potential.

FloridaFuture

December 8th, 2005, 02:34 AM

Could anyone in Ft. Myers please give us an update on any under construction towers down ther or proposals. Ft. Myers is growing fast and we don't want to miss anything. :)

FloridaCondoGuy

December 9th, 2005, 04:43 AM

Fort Myers has some new exciting developments on the books. Riverwalk is on to watch, One West, Legacy Harbour, and First Street Village. If anyone needs more info PM me.

Landier

December 13th, 2005, 04:09 PM

This is one of the projects I've been busy working on, but I will also see if I can get around to getting some updates on some of the other projects and construction in the area...

Council gives a boost to high-rise proposal
By Don Ruane
druane@news-press.com
Originally posted on December 13, 2005

A proposal to build high-rise condos overlooking the Caloosahatchee River and Fort Mile Cove Ecological Preserve got a boost Monday from the Cape Coral City Council.

Members voted 5-2 to adopt a comprehensive land-use map amendment. The amendment changes the land use on 10 acres from single-family to multifamily, which will allow the developer of Paradise Preserve to rezone the land for condos. The change would affect 10 acres of land next to the Caloosahatchee River at the east end of Four Mile Cove Parkway.

Council members Dolores Bertolini and Jim Jeffers voted against the ordinance. Councilman Tim Day was absent during the vote to attend the Southwest Florida police academy graduation. He's the school's director.

The next step is to begin working on a development plan that the city council can approve, said Darin Smith, the property owner.

High-rise condominiums will appear over the next few years on each side of the line between Cape Coral and North Fort Myers if Paradise Preserve is built in Cape Coral. Smith also is developing a project called Paradise Preserve in nearby North Fort Myers on the former Lochmoor Country Club property. Three towers are planned for that project. The number hasn't been set for the Cape Coral project.

But while the city council adopted the ordinance, the state's Department of Community Affairs still must find the comprehensive plan amendment is consistent with state law. The DCA recommended against the change in November.

The DCA and the city could wind up in an administrative hearing to work out their differences, said City Attorney Dolores Menendez.

Smith said he believes the DCA will withdraw its objection once officials better understand the project.

The DCA objected to increasing the number of residential units in the coastal high hazard zone, where residents would be exposed to flood threats.

But Smith said he plans to build fewer than 415 units, far fewer than the 800 the state's own regulations allow in the zone.

"This is a great net decrease in density in the coastal high hazard zone," Smith said.

DCA also had concerns about damage to wetlands and risks to manatees.

Mosquito ditches and canals from the 1940s cross the property, Smith said.

"It is no longer a pristine wetland," he said.

The project also will follow Lee County's manatee protection plan, planning consultant William Nolan said.

"The developer has made a pretty good point," Councilman Mickey Rosado said. The project is in his council district. "I understand DCA's concerns. I'm satisfied with this," Rosado said.

But Bertolini disagreed with Smith's optimism about the DCA.

"I don't think you'll get past DCA. I don't think you'll get permits," Bertolini said.

Landier

December 20th, 2005, 04:35 AM

N. Fort Myers high-rise work begins
New condominium project to overlook Caloosahatchee

By Terry Brady
tbrady@news-press.com
Originally posted on December 17, 2005

A new high-end development will start taking shape in North Fort Myers as construction begins on two 13-story condo towers overlooking the Caloosahatchee River.

CR Hancock Bridge LLC broke ground Friday on the North Star Yacht Club. Kemp Deming, CR Hancock Bridge's vice president in development, said the $94 million project is estimated for completion by June 2007.

"We're going up; we're going vertical," he said of the development, which will span 12.5 acres, have 11 floors for residences and two for parking.

But North Star isn't the only high-end development coming to North Fort Myers. Paradise Preserve — developed by Cornerstone Investments and located in the Lochmoor area — will boast a 26-story condo with units ranging from $450,000 to $6 million. Paradise Preserve's estimated completion date is 2010.

The North Star site is off Hancock Bridge Parkway on the Marinatown waterway. It is also accessible by Beau Drive.

Deming said units cost from the high $600,000s to $1.7 million and already have started to sell.

North Fort Myers residents Joe and Linda Milbauer, who live a stroll away from the North Star site in a complex called The Parkway, said they are thrilled about what they think the development might do for their property value.

"The property value is going to go up drastically," said Joe Milbauer, 65. "I think it will give the marina a cleaner appearance."

Deming said the development will "change the face of North Fort Myers" and will "bring first class to the area."

Walter Pierrot, owner of Wally's Waterfront Restaurant in Marinatown, is preparing for the change by upgrading his restaurant.

"The restaurant industry will have to upgrade services to meet the satisfaction of the new clientele moving in who will demand more than a simple meal," he said.

Pierrot said he already has increased his wine list from four wines to 18 and the number of beers on tap from two to 10.

"We're changing from a traditional menu to a more sophisticated menu," he said. "We're becoming more of a seafood and steakhouse restaurant."

Pierrot said the new development will be great for local business and will be "nothing but positive" for the community as long as the roads can handle the extra traffic.

If each of the development's units, which are all three bedrooms — are occupied by at least two people, the development will house 340 people, which could mean just as many cars.

This concerns the Milbauers, who said they feared it might cause extra traffic lights to go up along Hancock Bridge Parkway.

Deming said because the 170-unit development will have two entrances, he doubts the gated community will be the cause of any traffic jams.

To help with traffic issues, the developer plans to widen the Hancock Bridge Parkway turn lane that will be used to enter one of the site's two entrances. The other entrance will be on Beau Drive.

The widening project is part of the $94 million price tag.

"A lot of condos are going in around North Fort Myers," Joe Milbauer said. "It makes you wonder how many they can build."

http://cmsimg.news-press.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Avis=A4&Dato=20051217&Kategori=NEWS0106&Lopenr=512170485&Ref=TS&NewTbl=1&MaxW=300&MaxH=300

Landier

December 20th, 2005, 04:53 AM

Two complexes due along Summerlin Road
Office tower, boutique hotel to be built near intersection with Gladiolus Road

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051219/NEWS0106/512190351/1008

http://www.investinwaterfront.com/images/CyperlinCenter_small_NIGHT.JPG

http://www.investinwaterfront.com/images/CyperlinCentersmall.JPG

SDK4

December 21st, 2005, 07:39 AM

Nice, I like how Ft. Myers is really making a name for itself these days. Its has a good location between Tampa and Miami, and could be a major metro. area one day.

FloridaFuture

December 21st, 2005, 02:50 PM

I like a lot.^^^ Very classy yet different design. Nice addition for Ft. Myers. I just hope the surface parking in the background doesn't come out true.

smiley

December 21st, 2005, 05:17 PM

Ah, the "Glass Box in Asphalt" - classic yet unrefined. . . congratulations.

Jasonhouse

December 21st, 2005, 08:53 PM

^Such panache! It's so Tampa

Thank God for Landier, or we would have no clue what's going on down there.

TampaMike

December 21st, 2005, 10:19 PM

I like a lot.^^^ Very classy yet different design. Nice addition for Ft. Myers. I just hope the surface parking in the background doesn't come out true.
Agree

Landier

December 23rd, 2005, 12:09 AM

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but... all the parking will be surface parking. All 250-300 spaces of it.

This building is in unincorporated Lee County, which means that it's not within the city limits of the City of Fort Myers. The height limit in unincorporated areas in the county is 35 feet unless you increase your building setback 1 foot for every 2 feet of additional height. This building sits on a 3.5 acre parcel, and is situated towards the center of the parcel to allow for the height. Then the rest of the parcel is being used for surface parking, water detention, and open space.

This building will be at the center of what is being considered Fort Myers' top business district with banks, financial companies, commercial real estate, some high-end doctor's offices, etc.

I own one of the lots in this area and set to go to construction in about 3-4 months. When built-out there will be 3 buildings between my building and this one - but my building will only be a 15,000 square foot, 2-story (35-feet), Mediterranean style building due to the fact that I only have 1 acre to deal with and I have to build to the unincorporated-county regulations - It's still very nice looking - maybe I'll post a rendering of it sometime. Hopefully being in this top location will springboard my company further and I can build a commercial highrise downtown in a few years ;)

Landier

December 23rd, 2005, 12:11 AM

Good news to you urban building fanatics, due to increased property prices in the downtown area, I'm starting to have clients walk in the door talking about under-building parking, and connected parking structures for office buildings in the downtown area. Ones which can maximize parcels to a much larger degree than is possible in the unincorporated areas. I belive the downtown Fort Myers development is just begining and we could see some rapid changes soon.

Jasonhouse

December 23rd, 2005, 12:12 AM

^Frickin awesome dude!

You're doing block wall I assume?

Landier

December 23rd, 2005, 12:20 AM

Yeah, block wall, precast slab, some steel columns, wood truss, concrete tile roof, impact glass (wouldn't want to have to put the shutters up on this thing) - basically the typical construction of the area. Gotta work my way up, ya know?

Here's a rendering:

http://img458.imageshack.us/img458/7572/speathofficerenderingsmall5nb.jpg

I bet you can't guess where my personal office is gonna be ;)

TampaMike

December 23rd, 2005, 03:10 AM

I call the room with the balcony.

FloridaCondoGuy

December 23rd, 2005, 04:06 AM

Landier is that you Matt?

Landier

December 23rd, 2005, 03:31 PM

Yeah, it's me ;)

Landier

December 23rd, 2005, 09:11 PM

Ok, here's my Christmas present to you guys:

Construction updates...

High Point Place: 2 out of 5 towers way up out of the ground, the other 3 are getting set to go vertical

http://img342.imageshack.us/img342/1569/pc2100066xp.jpg

http://img342.imageshack.us/img342/118/pc2100073ev.jpg

http://img342.imageshack.us/img342/9672/pc2100083ea.jpg

http://img342.imageshack.us/img342/8842/pc2100093wj.jpg

Water side:

http://img342.imageshack.us/img342/3228/pc2100115uu.jpg

Waterfront taking shape, but this is only the start...

http://img342.imageshack.us/img342/6708/pc2100125ff.jpg

Landier

December 23rd, 2005, 09:16 PM

St. Tropez:

2 towers now getting out of the ground and going skyward!

http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/9907/pc2100137br.jpg

http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/8040/pc2100153do.jpg

http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/2585/pc2100145np.jpg

FloridaCondoGuy

December 24th, 2005, 02:17 AM

Nice Pics. It is starting to take shape. I am excited to see the two new developments plans. (OneWest, Legacy Harbour).

Landier (Matt) I will be in touch with you after the new year....

SDK4

December 26th, 2005, 05:34 AM

Cool, its been a while since there's been a Ft. Myers pic update.

Jasonhouse

December 26th, 2005, 06:27 AM

Mother of... Didn't I just say Landier rules?

Thank you for singlehandedly making this thread a better resource for Ft Myers pics than everywhere Google searches, combined. (I'm not joking, there is like nothing of Ft Myers on the web)

Landier

December 28th, 2005, 07:06 PM

Two firms building along corridor
By Don Manley
dmanley@news-press.com
Originally posted on December 24, 2005

Two College Parkway firms will create office space for themselves and others with developments along Summerlin Road, between Cypress Lake and Gladiolus drives.

Representatives of Hurst Financial Group and Speath Engineering are negotiating with prospective tenants to join them in buildings they're erecting just off the roadway's eastern border.

Construction began Dec. 1 and should be completed in June on the 12,000-square-foot Hurst Financial Center, said the project's manager, Robert Brooks of Songy Partners Realty in Fort Myers.

The one-story building will be located about a quarter-mile north of Summerlin's intersection with Gladiolus.

He said two tenants have been lined up to join Hurst in the eight-unit structure and two national companies have also expressed interest.

Paradise Home Title of Boca Raton has reserved space for its first Southwest Florida office, and Magic Nails, a salon and day spa, will place its second Fort Myers-area location there, Brooks said.

The mortgage brokerage's principal owner, Robert Hurst, said he had grown tired of renting space for the 9-year old business.

"I wanted to build a building so my money would go to work for me and so that I could develop a nest egg for my retirement," he said. "The building is in a great location, especially from the islands, Fort Myers Beach, Sanibel and Captiva. When they come into town, they've got to go right past my building."

Speath Engineering is outgrowing its current digs and decided that creating its own home was the way to go, said Randal Mercer of commercial Realtor CB Richard Ellis, Fort Myers-Naples, the project's leasing agent.

The two-story, roughly 11,500-square-foot building will sit just south of the juncture of Summerlin and Cypress Lake.

Ground will be be broken during the first quarter of 2006 and construction is scheduled to take 12 months, he said.

Matthew Speath, office manager for the civil and structural engineering firm, said the location is advantageous for several reasons.

"It's near what we've been doing and this general section of Fort Myers is a high-profile type area," he said. "We believe this whole segment of the area is up and coming. There's a lot of real estate businesses in there and a lot of financial activity, and our firm is becoming one of the top engineering firms in the area, and we'd like to present ourselves in a high-profile-type location."

Mercer said negotiations are under way with a national insurance company and some medical offices may also be located there.

He expressed confidence half the building will be leased by the time the first earth is turned. We've had a lot of interest, a lot of calls," Mercer said.

Hurst said he envisions the area around Summerlin and Gladiolus becoming a commercial hub within five years, especially with the overpass being built over the intersection as part of the Summerlin Road widening project. He said the road project will enhance its attractiveness by easing traffic congestion.

"We're excited about the area," Hurst said. "With the additional infrastructure road system being completed in the Gladiolus-Summerlin area and with high visibility, and with the high-end residential and commercial development in that area, we feel well positioned to be a successful project."

Landier

December 28th, 2005, 07:09 PM

Ok, what I really said was that, "our goal is to become one of the top engineering firms in the area", not "our firm is becoming one of the top engineering firms in the area"

But I guess if it's in print, it must be true!! :)

Landier

December 28th, 2005, 07:17 PM

A little info from the other side of the river...

Skyline rising along river
High-rise projects will give north riverfront new look

By Terry Brady
tbrady@news-press.com
Originally posted on December 24, 2005

Special to news-press.com
This artist's rendering shows the plans for North Star Yacht Club, which will include two 13-story buildings, with 11 residential floors and two for parking. The development's other amenities include 50 wet-slip docks, two tennis courts, an exercise room, steam room, card rooms, two pools, a dog walk area and a nature trail.

North Fort Myers could earn a new reputation as home of the upscale high-rise in a few years.

CR Hancock Bridge LLC broke ground earlier this month on a new high-end development called North Star Yacht Club, which will have two 13-story condo buildings overlooking the Caloosahatchee River. The project is one of several that will bring more high-rises to North Fort Myers.

Kemp Deming, CR Hancock Bridge's vice president of development, said the $94 million project is estimated for completion by June 2007. Prices range from the upper $600,00 to 1.7 million.

"We're going up. We're going vertical," he said of the project, which will span more than 12.5 acres and have 11 floors for residences and two for parking.

The development's amenities also will include two pools, 57 wet-slip docks, a private beach, two tennis courts, a fitness center, catering area, a clubhouse, a card room, a movie theater and cabanas.

North Star isn't the only high-end development under way in North Fort Myers. Plans for Paradise Preserve, developed by Cornerstone Investments and located in the Lochmoor area, include a 26-story condo with units ranging from $450,000 to $6 million. Paradise Preserve's estimated completion date is 2010. Work began on the project this year, and a groundbreaking is scheduled in March.

Tony Persichilli, president of Moody River Estates development company Meritage Homes, said it also was considering getting into the high-rise game.

"There is a possibility we will be putting in a mid-rise," he said.

Persichilli said if Moody River Estates, on Hancock Bridge Parkway with homes ranging from the high $200,000s to more than $1 million, does build up, he doubted the addition would be more than seven stories.

The North Star site is located off Hancock Bridge Parkway on the Marinatown waterway. It also is accessible by Beau Drive.

Deming said units already have started to sell.

North Fort Myers residents Joe and Linda Milbauer, who live a short walk away from the North Star site in a community called The Parkway, said they are thrilled about what they think the development might do for them.

"The property value is going to go up drastically," said Joe Milbauer, 65. "I think it will give the marina a cleaner appearance."

Deming said the development will "change the face of North Fort Myers" and will "bring first class to the area."

Walter Pierrot, owner of Wally's Waterfront Restaurant in Marinatown, is preparing for the change by upgrading his restaurant.

"The restaurant industry will have to upgrade services to meet the satisfaction of the new clientele moving in who will demand more than a simple meal," he said.

Pierrot said he already has increased his wine list from four wines to 18 and the number of beers on tap from two to 10.

"We're changing from a traditional menu to a more sophisticated menu," he said. "We're becoming more of a seafood and steakhouse restaurant."

Pierrot said the new development will be great for local businesses and will be "nothing but positive" for the community, as long as the roads handle the extra traffic.

If each of the development's 170 units, which all will have three bedrooms, are occupied by at least two people, the development will house 340 people, which could mean as many cars.

This concerns the Milbauers, who said they feared it might mean the addition of traffic lights along Hancock Bridge Parkway.

Deming said because the development will have two entrances he doubts the gated community will be the cause of any traffic jams.

To help with traffic issues, the developer plans to widen the Hancock Bridge Parkway turn lane that will be used to access one of the site's two entrances. The other entrance will be located on Beau Drive.

The widening project is part of North Star's $94 million price tag.

The changes are making residents take notice.

"A lot of condos are going in around North Fort Myers," Joe Milbauer said. "It makes you wonder how many they can build."

smiley

December 28th, 2005, 10:30 PM

THis is a rendering of the very generic and boring North Blah Yacht . .

http://cmsimg.news-press.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20051217&Category=NEWS0106&ArtNo=512170485&Ref=AR&Profile=1008&MaxW=400&MaxH=400&Q=80&title=1

This is the URL of a story that is basically the same but a little different:
http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051217/NEWS0106/512170485/1008/NEWS0106

This is me wishing that Ft. Myers would actually build something interesting and urban with the great opportunity they have. . .

Landier

December 29th, 2005, 01:16 AM

The Urban/Modern stuff is on it's way downtown with some of the developments such as One West, the Cypress Club, etc... and smaller developments that are using the downtown's newly adjusted future land use to create more dense development.

Everything outside of downtown Fort Myers will be that generic Mediterranean style due to Architectural review in the unincorporated county.

However, Cape Coral does hold some future promise - they are now just completing their new CRA (Community Redevelopment Area), which has the sole intent of creating an urban community.

Some info:
http://www.capecoral.net/citydept/cra/cra_whatis.cfm

smiley

December 29th, 2005, 04:26 AM

Yes, but the shame is that the big condos, near downtown and along the river on both sides are likely to not contribute at all to the actual urbanness of the city - which, unfortunately, is really lacking - except for a few blocks

Landier

December 29th, 2005, 04:08 PM

Have Faith... Now that the highrises are becoming reality instead of just fancy sketches in the newspaper, there's a push for more commercial within the downtown area. It's starting with small projects now, but that could easily change - It's a snowball effect around here.

SDK4

December 29th, 2005, 05:29 PM

Thats exactly what the next phase of Ft. Myers development should be. Once the current phase of condos and apartment buildings are done, a push should be made to start more commercial focused buildings in the DT core area. If that happens Ft. Myers should have a very powerful draw to its DT area.

Landier

December 29th, 2005, 09:55 PM

Office space development planning is starting now, so minor office buildings should be being constructed in 12 months +/- in addition to the few that are already going to construction, there is a demand for it as a spillover from the demand throught this area. The downside is the fact that since there are so few people living downtown right now (which won't change until the highrises are built), Retail businesses are not doing so well in the downtown area, and since there are almost world-class shopping alternatives nearby, it will either take a huge investement by a developer, or some time to get some people downtown before that segment of development takes off.

Landier

January 4th, 2006, 04:06 PM

Tower planned at Lee Memorial
By Michelle L. Start
mstart@news-press.com
Originally posted on January 04, 2006

Patients at Lee Memorial Hospital will experience more parking, private rooms with updated technology and more surgical suites by the year 2012.

Lee Memorial Health System President Jim Nathan said Tuesday the hospital's Cox and Jewett wings are set to be demolished in the next 30 days to make room for a seven-story tower with 220 additional parking spots.

The tower will house private patient rooms, an emergency room, diagnostic testing, radiology, surgical suites and intensive care units. A heliport pad may also be constructed on top of the tower for trauma flights. The hospital currently has no private rooms, and the heliport pad is on the ground.

"We have a tremendous amount of growth that is going on in our community," Nathan said. "We also have a rapidly aging population."

Officials said installing new technology has been difficult at times with the old facilities. The new tower, which is expected to be complete by 2012, does not add any new beds, but converts all rooms to private. The project is expected to cost an estimated $150 million.

The Cox and Jewett wings opened 50 years ago after the Cox family donated $125,000 and the Jewett family contributed $100,000. Community members raised the rest of the cash needed to construct the wings.

Demolition is expected to cost $650,000.

The wings, which take up 70,000 square feet, are reputed to be haunted, according to registered nurse Dana Darche.

Dave Kistel, vice president of facilities and support services, said a construction fence will be built around the wings during the next week and demolition will take place within the next 30 days.

"Once that is complete, we will add 220 new parking spaces on the site," he said.

The tower will be built in the footprint of the Cox and Jewett wings.

Kistel said officials will consider building empty, extra floors into the tower so it would be easy to expand if growth deems it necessary.

The face of Lee Memorial Hospital has changed drastically in less than a century.

After opening as a 10-bed facility on corner of Grand and Victoria Avenues in 1916, it has grown into a system that includes Cape Coral Hospital and HealthPark Medical Center and includes 1,071 beds.

SDK4

January 4th, 2006, 09:23 PM

2012? Thats a really long time from now. I hope they will put some expansion wiggle room into this building so when its under construction it won't already be called obsolete like many other public projects these days.

Landier

January 16th, 2006, 12:15 AM

Hey, 175,000 square foot office development - that's a step in the right direction...

Office space under way, but more still desired
City wants to lure corporate presence

By Don Ruane
druane@news-press.com
Originally posted on January 15, 2006

Stephen Hayford/news-press.com
New office buildings, similar to this building at 2503 Del Prado Blvd., are under development in Cape Coral.

A new project will double Cape Coral’s supply of quality office space, but the city will need still more to fulfill the mayor’s hope to attract corporate headquarters to the city.

Cape Coral has about 5 percent of Lee County’s prime office space, often called class A, and class B office space, and most of it is occupied, according to Lee County’s Economic Development Office. Even North Fort Myers has more of the office space than the city.

But McGarvey Development of Bonita Springs is building 175,000 square feet of class A space just west of Hancock Bridge Parkway and Pine Island Road. It will more than double the amount of such office space and could lead to 700 new jobs once the space is leased.

Every year enough people move to Cape Coral to generate the need for 990,000 square feet of office space, city economic development director Mike Jackson said. That would provide work space for about 3,300 of the 10,000 new residents who arrive each year, he said. Currently, there is an estimated 3 million square feet of office space in the Cape for 10,000 to 14,000 office workers and approximately 30,000 of that is not in use.

“People who are willing to provide office space will not be disappointed,” Jackson said.

Class A office space is considered the best space. It includes many amenities such as wiring for today’s electronics, spacious hallways and lobbies and other enhancements including landscaping and covered parking.

Mayor Eric Feichthaler wants to attract corporate headquarters for more economic development. That would mean better-paying jobs that are closer to home for residents as well as expanding the city’s commercial tax base. Residential property makes up about 92 percent of the property base used to generate taxes to support the city government.

“We need to work harder to make it easier to get these buildings,” Feichthaler said.

That might even include an office building built by the city, Feichthaler said. But that has to be weighed against other pressing needs such as a new public safety building and expanding City Hall, he said.

Private investment should be encouraged by the city, the mayor said. That means continuing to improve the planning, zoning and building services provided by the city so that developers do not have to spend unnecessary time revising plans. It also means communication between the city and developers so that developers understand the city’s requirements, he said

The city’s economic development office also needs to keep telling investors regionally and nationally what a good place Cape Coral is for their business, he said.

“Economic development is the most critical challenge that we have,” City Councilman Jim Jeffers said. “Diversifying the economy, this is the time we need to do that.”

Jeffers wants the city to have more health care and education services. The health care development he envisions includes research and delivery of care. The education expansion he would like to see includes formal learning opportunities through graduate degree levels and lifelong learning opportunities.

The city should provide incentives for health care and education providers to locate in the city, he said.

PRIME AREAS

There are two areas where class A office space would fit in well, Councilman Tim Day said. The City Centrum, a 270-acre area around the present City Hall, is one. The other is the downtown community redevelopment district along Cape Coral Parkway.

The City Centrum was conceived by city officials for businesses and professional services dealing with government. It is close to City Hall, the U.S. Post Office and Lee County’s government office building. The city also is planning to expand City Hall and add a public safety building in the area. So far, the Centrum is serving as the site for modular office buildings housing some of the city’s building services and classrooms for Barry, Florida Gulf Coast and Nova universities.
“You could put a building there with multiple stories,” said Day, who called the office compound the “city trailer park.”

The city council last year approved new development regulations for the downtown district. Officials want to encourage a mix of uses including offices, residential units, shops and restaurants.

It would be ideal for upwardly mobile people who want to live close to work and the other businesses, Day said. They wouldn’t need a car.
“Why should people have to go to North Fort Myers for office space,” Day asked.

McGarvey Senior Vice President Bill Price said Cape Coral is ripe for more quality office space.

“Why not bring office space closer to the work force,” he asked. The size of the work force is the city’s biggest magnet to attract new businesses, he said. The city has an estimated 149,000 residents.

“Cape Coral as a business destination is changing. We wanted to get a toehold,” Price said.

McGarvey’s 30-acre project is a mix of class A office space and additional space for industrial uses, which could produce another 300 jobs. The project includes seven lakeside buildings in a campus-style setting. An entry plaza with decorative pavers, flower beds and landscaping is planned. There are plans for two three-story office buildings and two two-story office buildings. The first building could be ready by the end of 2007.

“We’re the field of dreams. We will build it and they will come,” Price predicted. That wasn’t always the case.

OFFICE SPACE HISTORY

Office space sprouted around downtown Fort Myers and gradually spread south, reaching down Summerlin Road and toward Bonita Springs.

Cape Coral did not do a good job in the past of enticing that kind of space, Day said. Builders also saw Cape Coral as a lucrative market for building homes instead of offices, Day said.

“The mentality was Fort Myers was the center of our universe. That’s changing,” Feichthaler said.

Cape Coral’s original developers divided the city in thousands of single-family lots, leaving few large parcels for other uses. The difficulty in assembling lots often is cited as an economic development obstacle, but Price said McGarvey didn’t have that problem.

“The majority of the ground was controlled by one owner,” he said.

“The city is anxious to get this sort of development into the city,” Price said.

The city is growing fast and the growth will be sustained by the baby boom generation, he said. Utilities are available and quality of life is good, according to Price.

“It has everything going for it. It’s just a matter of getting something in place,” Price said.

It won’t happen overnight, though, Day said.

“We have the benefit of not being very built out. It’s going to play itself out over time,” Day said.

Landier

January 18th, 2006, 12:09 AM

Cape Coral Condotel at MarinaVillage in Tarpon Point Marina.

http://cmsimg.news-press.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20060117&Category=RE&ArtNo=601170371&Ref=AR&Profile=1008&MaxW=400&MaxH=400&Q=80&title=1

TampaMike

January 18th, 2006, 01:31 AM

I like it a lot. Something great for Ft. Myers. Looks like it has a water front shopping area along the shore and and if I counted right 18 floors. Is it condos, hotel, or mix?

Quegiebo

January 18th, 2006, 01:49 AM

^^ I like it too. Very clean looking. Damn there's a lot of green space in that pic. :applause:

SDK4

January 18th, 2006, 03:56 AM

Thats the way it should be, when you build up and not out you should have lots of open space around a project.

smiley

January 18th, 2006, 04:38 AM

Quegiebo

January 18th, 2006, 10:21 AM

FloridaCondoGuy

January 18th, 2006, 08:36 PM

The project that Landier showed was the new CondoTel in Cape Corals development Tarpon Point. This project launched its sales on Jan. 14th and they had over 100 sales. Prices are from $600K and up. They still have units available.

I have more info if anyone needs it.

SDK4

January 19th, 2006, 04:26 AM

Ain't nothing better than tall condo sprawl. . . like to see an old person walk from one of those scattered ranch houses to the waterfront shopping and back. . . what fine entertainment.

I applaud Ft. Myers going up, but their planning sucks . . .

I for once do agree. One think I do not like about tall buildings is their place on the coastline. Leave the skyscrapers for the cities, not clustering them along our beaches.

Landier

January 19th, 2006, 03:39 PM

The commercial is a decade behind the residential, but that wont last - there's too much of a population base here now and limited vacant land to use. Redevelopment projects are starting (I have 3 or 4 in my office right now) and those can only usually be justified by building many multitudes of intensity higher... We're just starting...

Landier

January 19th, 2006, 03:51 PM

Oh yeah, by the way, the City of Cape Coral hit 150,000 in population within the city limits today. That is approximatly the population in their future land use plan for 2015.... oops ;)

For reference, the 2000 Census was 102,000!! Anyone scared yet?

FloridaCondoGuy

January 20th, 2006, 02:51 PM

Buyers grab 133 Cape hotel condos in first day
By Dick Hogan
Originally posted on January 17, 2006

Buyers reserved $112 million of hotel condominiums in one day at Cape Coral's first such project.

At a drawing Saturday afternoon, 133 people plunked down $25,000 checks to Grosse Pointe Development Co. to buy units in The Resort at MarinaVillage in Tarpon Point Marina. The reservations accounted for three-quarters of the 19-story tower.

One expert said condo hotels are one of the hottest trends in the state and the ones like MarinaVillage without nearby competition may be the best buys.

In a condo hotel, owners typically have the choice of living in their units or letting a management company — SunStream Hotels & Resorts in this case — rent them out and provide a stream of income.

"The one in Cape Coral will probably do well because there's nothing like it" in the city, said Deerfield Beach-based Jack McCabe, a multifamily housing market analyst with McCabe Research & Consulting. "In Fort Lauderdale Beach there's five big ones in a couple miles. To me you're reaching saturation point there."

One MarinaVillage buyer, Bruce Jorgensen, said he's optimistic that prices and demand will continue to go up there.

Jorgensen, 60, is a retired United Airlines pilot who lost most of his pension and $500,000 worth of stock when the company went into bankruptcy reorganization three years ago. He got a real-estate license and said he bought units Saturday for himself and for some of his clients.

"They're in high demand," he said. "The expensive, bigger ones went first."

The units range from $630,000 to almost $1.4 million and are from 1,200 to 2,200 square feet.

Nick Cross, director of sales and marketing for Grosse Pointe, said he expects to get reservations on the rest of the 184 units by May, at which time buyers will each have to put up a total of 10 percent down. Construction is scheduled to begin in July.

Enough buyers are signed on already to satisfy lenders, however, and, "We're not in a hurry to get them sold," Cross said,

He added Grosse Pointe took the plunge because there's a shortage of hotel rooms in Cape Coral: only 394 rooms "and there's nothing on the water."

McCabe said that when condo hotels started to become popular several years ago, they were mostly buildings right on the Atlantic Ocean or the Gulf of Mexico. Now, he said, they're popping up inland in places such as Cape Coral and downtown Fort Myers, where New York-based Homes for America has contracts on 108 of Monaco Resort & Spa's 370 units, which start at about $300,000.

"Our goal is to break ground in May" with 70 percent of the units under contract, said Will Cohill, director of sales and marketing for the builder.

Seventy of Monaco's units are designed for people who actually want to live at least part of the year and the rest would be mainly for use as rentals, he said.

Federal securities law prevents him from making specific representations about Monaco, Cohill said, but it's not uncommon to get a 15 to 25 percent return on condo hotels.

"That's pretty optimistic," McCabe said. "A word of caution: If they buy them because they think they're going to get a great rate of return, or they think their unit is going to be rented most of the time, they're going to be disappointed."

But, he said, condo hotels are proving popular among people who like the level of service associated with a hotel.

Kim Wallace, a 48-year-old businessman from Ontario, said that's the case with him. He owns a house in Cape Coral but also picked up two MarinaVillage units Saturday: one for himself and one for his parents.

He bought the unit for himself with an eye to retirement and a less-demanding lifestyle, Wallace said. "It's a little less work. The thing that's so attractive about Tarpon Point is that the amenities are all there within reach."

FloridaCondoGuy

January 31st, 2006, 12:31 AM

High Point moving quickly
Twin high-rises part of Fort Myers downtown renewal

By Ralph N. Paulk
rpaulk@news-press.com
Originally posted on January 29, 2006

Amanda Inscore/news-press.com
High Point Place, a 32-story condominium, is under construction in downtown Fort Myers. The first phase is expected be completed later this year.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

RELATED NEWS ON THE WEB
Latest headlines by topic:
• Construction
Powered by Topix.net
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DELIVERING YOUR WORLD
Subscribe to The News-Press
Signup for daily email news
Printer friendly version
Email this article
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MORTGAGE RATES HIT RECORD LOWS
Compare fast and free mortgage quotes. Refinance today and save thousands.
www.lowermybills.com

High Point Place, a 32-story condominium, is rising steadily in downtown Fort Myers.

The first phase of the project is expected to be completed later this year. Even as buyers move in, the builders will move forward, hoping to complete the entire project by the fall of 2007.

One by one, the floors have been joined together, giving life to a twin-tower high-rise.

Fort Myers Mayor Jim Humphrey said the high-rise is an integral part of the downtown redevelopment plan that's designed to encourage and inspire downtown living.

Also, a critical aspect of the plan is to revitalize the downtown business community, Humphrey said. The idea, too, is to infuse interest in retail, dining and entertainment along the riverfront.

High Point Place is one of 11 redevelopment projects to receive the blessing of the Fort Myers planning board and city council. The others are: Alta Mar, Legacy Harbour, The Vue, One West, Beau Rivage, Cypress Club, Monaco, Oasis, The Riviera and The Vue.

"We feel good about the progress we're making," Humphrey said. "Our city is changing, and it's changing for the better."

Meanwhile, metal scaffolds are climbing like ivy on the concrete walls of High Point Place. Gigantic cranes, with steel arms hovering above an unfinished roof, have become a part of the Caloosahatchee River landscape.

Although a lot of work remains, buyers have already claimed all of its 273 units. In fact, "for sale" signs disappeared only months after the groundbreaking ceremony last spring.

Despite the sold-out sign on its Web site, high-rise seekers are still hoping previous applicants will renege on their deals.

The developer, Ohio-based Cameratta Properties, said buyers closed their deals with a 20 percent ante — or the minimum of $80,000 for a $400,000 unit and $200,000 for a $1 million condominium.

"The demand is definitely there for condominiums," said Cheryl Yano, spokeswoman for Cameratta Properties. "The price is probably 20 to 25 percent higher, but we still have calls even though we've been sold out for several months."

The contractor has endured few problems. Yano said there have been the inevitable increases in the cost of materials such as concrete and steel.

"The cost to build the high-rise has gone up from the original estimate because of several factors," Yano said. "But the biggest has been the cost of materials."

The contractor, Kraft Construction Company, is among the largest contractors in Southwest Florida. It has maintained an even pace even as it focuses on another major downtown project, First Place Village.

Kraft Construction won't break ground on First Place Village, which will be located between West First Street and McGregor Boulevard, until later this year.

First Place Village is one of the few downtown high-rises not being built on the waterfront. But it's more diverse than most, providing a grocery store, a retail shop, office space and 356 residential units.

So far, the developer has not established an asking price, according to Yano. Some real estate brokers estimate the units are likely to cost in the $750,000 to $1.5 million range

Landier

February 2nd, 2006, 05:41 PM

Townhomes to replace Fort Myers' Page Mobile Village

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060128/NEWS0106/601280493/1008/NEWS0106

Any development that removes mobile home parks is a plus!

FloridaCondoGuy

February 3rd, 2006, 02:43 AM

It will be nice to see those townhomes replace any mobile homes.

I look forward to this new development.
www.firststreetvillage.com

mike0809

February 3rd, 2006, 05:04 PM

I have lived here in Fort Myers since 1989, and have seen so much growth it's almost rediculous. I think every road in this area has been widened, and in the last 10 years, although we are still waiting on the I-75 expansion, which is supposed to be underway in the next few years. I would have to say the most growth has taken place in the last 5 yrs by far. We saw steady growth back in the early 90's through the year 2000, then everything just took off even faster. Our airport became international around 96 and now has just opened a brand new much larger terminal with room for expansion up to around 72 gates. Two new upscale malls (both with over 1 mill sq ft.) are under construction now, which will be much needed to keep up with the growth. As for downtown Fort Myers, it is already starting to look different, as they are now repainting the Sheriton hotel (I think it is Marriot now) a peach looking color and it looks like they're putting in new glass too, like a bluish color. It looks much better already. Anyways, the new highpointplace condominiums are now taller than the previously Sheriton, which "was" the tallest building in downtown. And highpointplace is still rising. I would have to say one of the biggest changes in this area that I've noticed is not just the growth, but the demographics of the people too. I agree, back in the early to mid 90's this place seemed to be occupied by almost all retirees and ederly. But in the last 5 or 6 yrs, it has changed dramatically. There are much more younger professionals here now, in fact the meadian age in swfl is now around 39. And did I mention there are so many kids now that lee county needs to build some 70 new schools in the next 10 yrs just to keep up with the growth. Several new high schools opened up in lee county this last year alone. Needless to say, Fort Myers has definitely changed alot in the past several years, much more to do now, and did I mention the women here are really hot? It is starting to become a protege of the east coast, not only in developement, but the culture is becoming much more diverse too. There are alot of international visitors here and they are not only visiting but also moving here too. I would have to say most of the foreigners moving here are from Germany, the Caribbean, and South American. I work in retail and it seems that about half the people that come into my store either speak German or Spanish. But I guess that's a good thing because it brings diversity to the area. Anyways, to sum it up, I think Fort Myers can definitely support new growth in the downtown area and it's good to finally see downtown changing and growing. I do think swfl will be very similar to the east coast today in about 10 yrs or so, in relation to developement and influence.

Landier

February 7th, 2006, 04:21 PM

mike, nice to have your input, keep it up, this threed is starting to reflect the growth of this area and will soon kick the ass of the others in the Florida forum ;)

Landier

February 7th, 2006, 04:23 PM

12-story downtown hotel proposed
By Pete Skiba
pskiba@news-press.com
Originally posted on February 07, 2006

The nearly completed Hampton Inn, which owners plan to open in a couple of weeks, may have started a downtown hotel-building boom in Cape Coral.

Developers propose a 224-room hotel that would reach for the sky in another part of the downtown area, but within walking distance of the Hampton Inn at 619 S.E. 47th St.

The new hotel would be part of the Piazza di Venezia multimillion-dollar project and would need rezoning to allow it to go to 12 stories. The Piazza di Venezia project is planned to go between Tarpon Court on the west and Coronado Parkway to the south of Cape Coral Parkway in a zone that currently would permit buildings to only six stories.

The owner of a proposed smaller, or boutique, hotel with 73 rooms needs financial help to buy land for parking. That hotel would add another style to the emerging downtown.

Both projects are expected to come up for discussion during the Cape Coral Community Redevelopment Agency's regular board meeting at 5:30 p.m. today.

Redevelopment board members hope hotels in the downtown would bring business and tourists to the city. Other attractive businesses such as bookstores, art galleries and perhaps a live theater might find it worthwhile to locate in the redevelopment area.

The redevelopment area covers Cape Coral's downtown business district. It runs from near Bimini Basin east to the Caloosahatchee River and several blocks on either side of Cape Coral Parkway. It also extends north on Del Prado Boulevard to about Southwest 44th Street.

The hotels would become part of a developing downtown that promises high-rise condominiums, retail offices and parks. The $400 million Piazza di Venezia would occupy 20 acres with almost 2 million square feet of offices, residences, movies, restaurants and possibly a Publix supermarket in addition to the hotel and convention center.

"We have to go to 12 stories at least for this one building," said Jerry D'Angelo, the project architect.

The entire 432-acre redevelopment area could be rezoned under a plan by the the board. Under the plan, the area would be divided into three zones: Core, Gateway and Edge.

The Core and Edge districts would be allowed maximum heights of six stories while the Gateway district would allow 12 stories.

The Piazza di Venezia developers want their project included in the Gateway zone to the west of their project that extends from Lucaya Drive along Cape Coral Parkway to Tarpon Court. The massive project would be in an Edge zone if the zoning were adopted today as written.

Landier

February 7th, 2006, 04:27 PM

I know 12 stories doesn't sound like much, unless of course you consider that the tallest commercial structures are around 3 stories. (and only a couple condo developments which are taller than that)

I know the city of Cape Coral wants to move in stages, so here's the next stage, and in another 2-3 years we'll start to see even the next stage beyond that ;)

I've seen a few potential projects come into my office in the last couple weeks that would make your jaw drop.... :eek2:

I can't wait until I can share them. (I know, I'm such a tease - sorry)

FloridaCondoGuy

March 14th, 2006, 03:58 AM

I heard that The Cypress Club was getting ready to break ground on March 24th. This will be an exciting time for Downtown. Now we need Oasis, Vue, and Monaco to break ground, and we are moving towards an impressive skyline.

www.thecypressclub.com

FloridaCondoGuy

March 15th, 2006, 04:12 AM

Councilman sues to stop condo complex
Suit says variances violate city codes

A Fort Myers city councilman has filed a lawsuit to stall construction of a downtown condominium project.

The complaint, filed in the 20th Circuit Court in Lee County, alleges the Fort Myers Board of Adjustments overstepped its authority in allowing significant density and height changes for developers of the proposed Billy's Creek Condominium.

In addition to the five-member board, the Palm Beach Boulevard property owners — GFS Financial Group and Thomas Gussel — were listed as defendants in the complaint, which was filed last Friday.

Councilman Warren Wright and political activist Charles Bigelow claimed in the complaint that the approved variance deviates substantially enough that it's equivalent to a zoning change, which can be adopted only by the City Council.

"It's disturbing that something this important doesn't have to go to City Council," said Bigelow, a former Lee County commissioner. "The board of adjustment has the final approval, and this is why we're going to court."

Russell Schropp, the board's chairman, declined to comment on the lawsuit.

"I have heard about the suit, but I've been informed no one has been served," said Mayor Jim Humphrey, who questioned why a sitting city councilman would file suit against the city.

Wright, who represents Ward 1, where the property is located, said the owners failed to present the kind of hardship required for the board to approve the variance request. He filed the suit independent of the City Council.

"Our allegation is that there are no hardships," Wright said. "Every constraint is varied as if the law doesn't exist.

"I'm very perplexed why city staff (planners) would get behind such a project so vehemently," Wright said.

Wright said such changes should be reviewed and considered by elected officials. He said the process was trumped by desire to make money.

"The fact is they just want to make more money," Wright said. "That for me, is unacceptable."

Wright and Bigelow oppose the manner in which the changes were made as much as the building changes.

"We believe that the way this thing is being approved is illegal," Bigelow said. "The city planning department seems indifferent to the rules."

The property is designated as a future land use element of the city's Comprehensive Plan for intensive commercial, meaning it can not be converted to residential property.

The board, on the recommendations of city planners, granted a conditional-use approval that allows construction of 130 multi-family developments on 2.3 acres of commercial property.

The condominium plans consist of two 14-story towers, which includes parking and 7,000 square feet of commercial space.

"They went around the city council to drastically change the zoning ordinance and the codes at a time when we're trying to redevelop this area," Wright said.

FloridaCondoGuy

March 25th, 2006, 02:56 AM

Its official, The Cypress Club broke ground today. It is nice to see another project actually get started... :shocked:

Dale

March 25th, 2006, 02:58 AM

Its official, The Cypress Club broke ground today. It is nice to see another project actually get started... :shocked:

Great news ! One of my favorite designs. I've even seen ads for it in Chicago Magazine.

Dale

March 25th, 2006, 05:23 AM

By the way, when does VUE break ground ?

FloridaCondoGuy

March 27th, 2006, 01:46 AM

The Cypress Club on Friday became the latest of the downtown Fort Myers high-rise condominiums to officially kick off its construction.

With two-thirds of the project’s two 32-story towers sold, “We’re getting plenty of buyers; we feel very blessed,” said Willy Bermello, president of Miami-based BAP Development, which is developing Cypress Club with Newleaf LLC of Fort Myers on First Street along the Caloosahatchee River.

Brad Cozza, a real estate agent with Keller Williams World Class Realtors, owns a commercial loft unit in the project and said he’s optimistic about the downtown condominiums being built although prices are getting a little high these days.

Bermello said Cypress Club condos now sell for about $550 a square foot — that would be $550,000 for a 1,000-square-foot unit.

“Those are east coast prices” and not a good deal for an investor who expects to sell for a profit quickly, Cozza said. “The heyday was a year ago when I was putting people in Cypress Club and other downtown condos at $350 to $400 a square foot.”

But even at today’s higher prices, Cozza said, the units will still have appeal for people buying to live there.

Bermello said prices are being driven up by the builder’s increasing costs. “It’s not a lack of buyers willing to move to Florida and invest. When you have to go to New York or Chicago prices to make a project work, that’s when you have an issue.

Like any other developer our profits have been squeezed but we’re still confident.”

Fort Myers Redevelopment Agency Director Don Paight said the Cypress Club construction will be a visible sign of the downtown revival that was started three years ago by Miami architect Andres Duany’s downtown redevelopment plan.

“It’ll end any speculation as to whether these projects will be happening,” he said. “You see the cranes on the horizon and the buildings going up. It’s pretty dramatic.”

Already, he said, five cranes are visible all over the city: two at the High Point development under construction on West First Street; one each at the St. Tropez and Riviera towers on Palm Beach Boulevard near Billy Creek; and one at the Lee County Justice Center addition being built.

Preliminary work is already being done on two other riverfront developments, he said: The Oasis and Monaco Resort & Spa.

Bermello said work will start immediately on both Cypress Club towers. “We’re shooting for 32 months but it could be 36 months” to finish the job.

That’s assuming Mother Nature cooperates, he said. “Any time we have a hurricane, we have to add 45 days. And we’ve had three hurricanes that have hit our projects in the last two years.”

FloridaCondoGuy

March 27th, 2006, 01:52 AM

By the way, when does VUE break ground ?

That is the big question.

The developer has told me that the state and city are still negotiating with the developer in regards to the project infringing onto the state owned Centenial Park. I have heard that this issue could be resolved anyday, but anyday keeps coming and going. I have some doubts, but have my fingers crossed.

I will keep everyone updated.

FloridaCondoGuy

April 6th, 2006, 02:25 PM

High-rise investors offered refund
The Vue in Fort Myers stalls during approval

The developer of the proposed downtown Fort Myers condominium The Vue is offering investors their deposits back as the project remains stalled over issues of design and National Park Service approval.

"This thing has dragged on with The Vue so long that holding these people's 10 percent deposits isn't fair," said Ron Throgmartin, president of Indianapolis-based Throgmartin Company Inc.

"That money has no value to me, I can't use it, I can't access it. They can't use it. And sitting here today; I still can't tell them if this National Park Service approval is going to go through."

The 178-unit, 27-story high-rise, with units starting in the $700,000s, was approved by the City Council in 2004 to be built next to Centennial Park, but park service approval is required because a small part of the project would be built on park land. The land was partially paid for by a park service grant in the early 1980s.

Councilman Warren Wright and local residents have raised questions about the deal, and the park service still has not given its blessing.

Throgmartin sent its customers a letter this week saying that "we will try to accommodate anyone who wishes to cancel and obtain a refund."

So far, Throgmartin said, just about everyone wants the deposit returned, although about 70 percent are still interested in buying if the problem with the park service can be resolved.

It's possible that could happen within 90 days, he said, although he added that Wright and other opponents are trying to scuttle the project by raising issues about how The Vue would affect the park.

Wright said it's fine with him if the high-rise is never built.

"I think this is the perfect time for the council to think about purchasing back the property so we can extend the natural boundaries of the park like (planning consultant Andres Duany) first recommended. It's pretty evident that lot is unbuildable and the city should think about acquiring funds to purchase the property back at a reasonable price, certainly not the $4 million Throgmartin paid."

Throgmartin said, however, that he's not backing down even if the park service ultimately rejects his proposal. If that happens, he'll go back to an earlier design that has two towers instead of one and doesn't require the park land to build.

Another issue raised in the letter to the investors is the work done by The Haskell Co., a Jacksonville-based firm that Throgmartin hired to design and build the project.

"Our frustration and exasperation culminated when we realized that it was not feasible to construct the building that had been designed," the letter states.

Throgmartin said the problem was that Haskell designed The Vue as a "tunnel form building" using poured concrete as opposed to the "post tension" structure design that's generally used in Southwest Florida.

"We couldn't find any structural contractors that would even bid the job," he said. "They said this is so complex and out of step with this marketplace" that they wouldn't even attempt it.

Throgmartin said he has fired Haskell and is now talking to Kraft Construction about taking over the job. Haskell officials couldn't be reached for comment Wednesday.

Wright said he thinks the problems of The Vue call into question the viability of future high-rises planned in downtown Fort Myers. "You've got to wonder, is it all built on air? Is it all a house of cards?"

SDK4

April 12th, 2006, 01:33 PM

I smell a height restriction coming.....

FloridaCondoGuy

April 24th, 2006, 04:53 PM

Hello fans of Fort Myers,
I would like to update everyone on the progress of Downtown Fort Myers,
It seems that the first tower of High Point place is now completed on the exterior, and they are moving fast on the second pahse now, The Vue has now been cancelled, and is suppose to redesign this project, The Cypress Club is moving alon on their ground breaking and moving fast, Riviera and St. Tropez are close to 15 or more stories tall, and should be finished within a year. I heard Oasis broke ground, but I have not seen these towers, so I can not confirm.

As far as the city it seems the road work is moving much faster then I expected. There is all sorts of road blocks, and streets totally under construction. Starbucks is now open, and I see more and more vacant units becoming nonvact, or signs of new tenents/owners moving in.

For all of you nonbelievers, please take some time and inform yourself, and drive around and watch this progress right befor your eys, because like t or not, it is happening...

kazpmk

April 30th, 2006, 02:23 AM

The Cypress Club is moving alon on their ground breaking and moving fast

Has actual foundation work began yet or is it still just site work???

FloridaCondoGuy

April 30th, 2006, 08:22 PM

Looks like only site prep work. Underground stuff. I see people out there everyday though. I will update soon with more info.

If anyone is looking for a good deal downtown PM me, I have a contact at one project that will give me some exclusive discounted units, these are great deals, I just bought one myself.

Landier

May 1st, 2006, 04:57 PM

High Point Place - Construction Update:

http://img395.imageshack.us/img395/9634/p42500113gd.jpg

http://img528.imageshack.us/img528/6554/p42500135fv.jpg

http://img528.imageshack.us/img528/9100/p42500123ds.jpg

TampaMike

May 1st, 2006, 11:07 PM

Is that the 2nd phase to the right of it?

FloridaCondoGuy

May 2nd, 2006, 06:31 AM

yes that is the second phase on the right. It will be one tower, which looks like 3 towers. The first phase as you can see is one tower, but looks like 2.

Landier

May 2nd, 2006, 06:25 PM

This is what is going to construction at the location I was standing to take the pics of the High Point Place construction.

http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/3820/p42500145kv.jpg

http://img354.imageshack.us/img354/6830/p42500152tb.jpg

Gotta love it!

FloridaCondoGuy

May 12th, 2006, 03:16 AM

I have some amazing inside info for anyone wishing to buy a unit in a project downtown. I can't go too far into detail, but I promise you this is AMAZING. If you are interested in an AMAZING opportunity, PM me and I promise you, you will not be disappointed. This is a very limited opportunity..... :eek2:

BandC

May 13th, 2006, 08:46 PM

Does anyone have any info on One West? I have gone to the website and filled out the info form, but I can not find any other info about the place.

Also; anyone here buy at the Cypress Club? I was just wondering what pre-construction on a 2/2 was going for in Tower One.

Thanks for any info

FloridaCondoGuy

May 14th, 2006, 10:49 PM

One west is a project that is SUPPOSE to be released this fall, with this real estate market, who knows. I have seen all of the information on this project, and met with the developers numerous times to see the information on this project. This development looks very nice, and will have some really exciting designs. I know that the units will be larger then what we have seen in other projects downtown. The design has 5 units per floor, one central 2 bedroom, two corner 3 bedroom, and then 2, 2 bedroom plus dens on the rear that wrap around, there is also a two story one bedroom loft on everyother floor with city views only. Prices have not even been discussed yet, and according to the developer plans on being around $500 a sq. ft. average starting, this is certainly not a number to go by though. The project is a modern design, with lots of glass, not as much as The Cypress Club, but still very modern.

FloridaCondoGuy

May 18th, 2006, 11:41 PM

If Anyone wishes to take advantage of the INCREDIBLE opportunity in downtown, please PM me as soon as possible. My sources have told me that this opportunity is almost gone, and will never be offered again. I can not urge anyone any more who is interested in this area, to move on this :runaway: .

smiley

May 19th, 2006, 12:58 AM

I feel some advertising problems coming on.

FloridaCondoGuy

May 19th, 2006, 03:00 AM

not advertising, informing...

TallTampa

May 19th, 2006, 03:24 AM

not advertising, informing...
then why should they contact you?

FloridaCondoGuy

May 19th, 2006, 11:28 PM

Because I have the info..... :)

InternetListers

May 23rd, 2006, 12:44 AM

I am in Fort myers and will happily try to answer most questions about specific projects in the city of Ft Myers.

InternetListers

May 23rd, 2006, 12:58 AM

Here are some updates of some from the top of my head.
Oasis finally underway with an additional land purchase enabling a sixth tower and some additional units. Total units for the oasis project in the 1122 uits range with 5 large towers at 32 stories, 1 smaller tower and 11 or so riverside lofts near the public (LOL? no parking)/semi private boat launch marina.

High point place well underway and about half complete 2 - 32 story towers and other smaller towers.

Monaco doing a little shuffling of dirt.

Cypress club well underway and recently moved their sales office to the Heitman house.

Beau Rivage completed the first and not as nice as it should be in my opinion.

Alta Mar completed smaller than Beau Rivage, but nice looking.

Tons of other projects west of Billy's Creek planned. Buy your real estate now. LOL

Next to the park near Oasis a proposed 30 story tower with 8 floors of underground parking. Proposed height my guess approval at 24 floor range (just a guess). A few other 14 story and 8 story projects planned on river front area along E Riverside Drive.

Billy's Creek would be my guess for best choice to buy for now. Currently hidden and unused with good potential for dredging and restoration.

I would like to hear any info on the Billy's Creek area or the area near the Palm Beach BLVD (State Road 80) exit near I-75 old Marina conversion.

Need pictures of a project and I might be able to help. Thanks

FloridaFuture

May 23rd, 2006, 01:25 AM

Thanks for the update, and welcome. My dad grew up in Ft. Myers and i would love to see pics of what its becoming. :)

InternetListers

May 23rd, 2006, 02:08 AM

Anything in particular. You can go to www.Leepa.org the propery appraiser website and view aerials of the properties.

InternetListers

May 25th, 2006, 03:02 AM

This is copied froma flyer promoting the downtown area:

Those who believed new development
would come to Downtown Fort Myers
never dreamed it would experience
resurgence like this.
In 2002, buzz about a potential trend
toward new development in Downtown
Fort Myers first began.That year, Homes
for America announced its plans for Beau
Rivage, which would be
the first new high-rise
built in Downtown Fort
Myers in 15 years.
Today, Beau Rivage
is complete with 124
residences, as well as its
neighbor Alta Mar,
which offers 131 homes.
Additionally, the historic
Earnhardt and Heritage
Square buildings have been
successfully renovated and
are now filled with retail on
the ground level and homes
and offices above.
And there are more
than a dozen other new
developments shaping the
future skyline of
Downtown Fort Myers.
Six high-rise towers are currently under
construction, and five more high-rises
and one major mixed use development
are slated to begin construction this year.
Others are in the planning stages and
could also begin construction as soon
as next year.
Reaching for the sky
Projects currently under construction
include Cypress Club on First Street,
High Point Place on West First Street,
and St.Tropez and Riviera near Billy’s
Creek.
The most recent project to break
ground is Cypress Club by BAP/Newleaf.
The waterfront community features two
32-story towers with 146 residences and
seven commercial spaces. According to
the developer, the first tower is already
sold out.
Recently granted status as “the tallest
building in Southwest Florida” at 397 feet,
High Point Place features five 32-story
towers with a host of luxury amenities on
the Caloosahatchee River. Developed by
Cameratta Properties, High Point Place
is completely sold out and recently topped
off its first phase. It is scheduled to be the
first new high-rise to be completed on
the west side of Downtown Fort Myers.
Developed by Homes for America,
St.Tropez and Riviera neighbor Beau
Rivage near Billy’s Creek and are currently
sold out, according to the developer.
Construction has progressed to the
10th floor of the 27-story St.Tropez
residential tower, which is being quickly
followed by its sister tower, Riviera.The
St.Tropez/Riviera project also features
20 loft townhouses, and the developer
is planning a mixed use “liner building”
nearby, which will feature eight residential
lofts above two floors of retail and office
space.
Starting in 2006
Projects scheduled to break ground later
this year include Billy’s Creek, Hotel
Indigo, Monaco, Oasis and One West.
Billy’s Creek by Florida Land Homes
LLC is planned to feature 130 high-rise
residences with plans to begin construction
in 2006.
Also under development by Cameratta
Properties, First Street Village is located
across the street from High Point Place
where Edison-Ford Plaza once stood.
Situated on a 12.5-acre site, First Street
Village will include 356 residential units,
38,000 square feet of divisible office
space, and 98,000 square feet of retail
anchored by a Publix supermarket.
The first phase of the project, including
Publix and the attached retail stores,
is slated to be “open for business” by
summer 2007.The balance of the project
is scheduled for completion in summer
2009.
Hotel Indigo is a 62-room hotel to
be located in the heart of the Downtown
historic district, near the Lee County
Courthouse. Connected to the Arcade
Theatre building, the hotel will offer 40
oversized guest rooms, 22 suites, and guest
amenities. It will also offer two lounges,
one overlooking the Banyan tree in front
of the historic Lee County Courthouse.
Homes for America is currently
conducting pre-sales for 70 private
condominium homes in Monaco.The
27-story tower bordering First Street will
also feature a total of 300 hotel rooms
and space for conventions, retail and
amenities.
The Related Group of Florida plans
to break ground on Tower II at Oasis in
May. Oasis is a luxury condominium
community located on 17 waterfront
acres that consists of five 32-story towers
and 1,079 residences.The first two towers
are sold out, and the third tower is now
open for sale. In addition to developing
Oasis,The Related Group is
developing a reputation as a
supporter of the arts in Southwest
Florida.
Another West First Street project,
One West Tower and Yacht
Club by Fort Myers Development
LLC plans to begin construction
in December. It will feature three
waterfront towers and a five-story
multi-use building that includes
retail shops, work-live space and
two-story townhouses with
rooftop gardens.The community
offers a total of 420 homes.
Still on the horizon
Additional new developments
planned for the downtown area
include: Legacy Harbour Marina,
Prima Luce, The Vué, and a yet-tobe-
named mixed use project by WCI.
Legacy Harbour Marina by
Sullivan-Florida Group Inc.has been
approved for development on West First
Street and will include two 25-story towers
on the river, and one five-story building
across the street.When completed, it will
feature 374 homes, 64 hotel rooms and
approximately 33,000 square feet of retail
commercial space.
Naples-based Prima Development
LLC, an affiliate of Nassif Development
LLC, recently announced preliminary
plans to construct Prima Luce, a luxury
waterfront high-rise on First Street. It will
consist of two 22-story towers with three
2,500-square-foot residences per floor.
Two multi-level penthouses will top both
towers.
With approval from the National Park
Service,Throgmartin Company plans to
proceed with The Vué, a luxury high-rise
tower community adjacent to Centennial
Park. Plans for The Vué include a
significant donation of space to the Edison
Sailing Center and the enhancement of
public amenities surrounding the project.
Pending Fort Myers City Council
approval on May 22, WCI plans to
redevelop the waterfront land near
Harborside Event Center, where the
vacant Exhibition Hall building is located,
with a mixed use development including
hotel and retail space.
Downtown offers 2-hour FREE parking on all streets in designated ZIP ZONE,
and parking is FREE at all meters and in the city garage after 5p.m.

InternetListers

May 25th, 2006, 03:06 AM

Went to the city council meeting today on Downtown waterfront projects by WCI. (My opinion only) They are at least one vote short of getting the project passed, but hopefully they will get the other vote they need. I wish them luck. The project is needed in the city to breathe some life in a stale downtown.

FloridaCondoGuy

June 9th, 2006, 03:15 AM

In ever-evolving contract negotiations with the developer of a proposed $200 million downtown project, Fort Myers officials delivered a curve Wednesday that could create further delays or return the project to the drawing board.

City Council members and Mayor Jim Humphrey voted unanimously to forward several revisions to WCI Communities, Inc.

Perhaps the most significant were the mayor's proposal to lease property for a 246-room hotel and a recommendation to eliminate a phase of the project that includes 63 condominium units and 12,400 square feet of retail space.

Another recommendation asks WCI to provide public amenities and spare a harborside boat ramp.

WCI officials did not attend the three-hour session at City Hall and could not be reached for comment.

The exclusion of one phase of the project is likely to heighten the developer's frustrations, said Fort Myers Redevelopment Agency President Don Paight.

Humphrey, however, remains confident the city will reach a compromise to jump-start negotiations that have lingered for 18 months. Previously, the council voted 3-2 to support the project.

"I'm not as frustrated as they are, but I appreciate their frustrations," Humphrey said. "I'm aware that negotiating contracts with the government is a long, laborious and evolving process.

"I'm concerned, but I want to be optimistic. I hope (WCI executives) will see that it was a clear five votes to address the issue of the hotel with a long-term lease."

Humphrey said the vote and the lease proposal send a message the city is willing to view the project as a partnership.

Humphrey said leasing the property along Edwards Drive adjacent to the Harborside Event Center would benefit the developer. It would require only a majority vote of the council.

Selling the property would require at least a 5-1 vote.

Councilman Mike Flanders didn't share Humphrey's optimism.

"I feel like I'm going to be wasting my time working with WCI," Flanders said. "They said two weeks ago they won't move on what they presented."

Flanders opposes the project, mostly because the developer has not addressed some of his concerns — density and height, a waterfront promenade and a music hall.

"I cannot support this project design-wise and contractually. We've got to do the waterfront right — like St. Petersburg, Sarasota and West Palm Beach."

Flanders and Councilman Randy Henderson said they are comfortable pursuing other options, including reopening the bidding process, if WCI rejects the proposed revisions.

WCI had hoped to cement a deal two months ago, but the project has been stalled for several reasons, including a change of government and the Harborside Event Center feasibility study.

Councilman Warren Wright did not attend Wednesday's meeting but forwarded a letter restating his concerns about preserving a harborside boat ramp.

Flanders suggested the boat ramp remain at its current site at least five years. Then, the council will consider relocating it.

Councilwoman Veronica Shoemaker said this is a critical stage in the negotiations.

"I support the project because WCI can do the job," Shoemaker said. "Everyone has their ... agenda as to what needs to be done, but we are at a crossroads."

WCI and the city's contract negotiators are likely to meet again next month.

dg02035

June 15th, 2006, 04:34 PM

I am in Fort myers and will happily try to answer most questions about specific projects in the city of Ft Myers.
What is the current level of sales activity in the proposed or under construction new towers? Do you think a large percentage of those units "under agreement" will actually close?

FloridaCondoGuy

July 19th, 2006, 04:37 AM

Although some view this as a negative, for those of us who know downtown, it is the best thing. I think that there needs to be a developer who is more focused on retail, hotel, public space, and commercial spaces more so then residential development. WCI seemed to focus to much on their residential component, and seemed to forget that they would be the main attraction to the downtown.

Attached is the article in the News Press:

WCI abandons riverfront project
Fort Myers, developer differed on plans

By Betty Parker
Originally posted on July 18, 2006

WCI Communities backed out of a proposed riverfront project in downtown Fort Myers on Monday, leaving council members debating what to do next.

It was time to step aside after two years of negotiating a project that included retail, condo and hotel space, and involving land occupied by the city's aging Exhibition Hall, said Stefan Johansson, WCI vice president.

Council members and WCI couldn't agree how to develop the prized site along the Caloosahatchee River.

WCI wants to "let the city make this a reality without the burden of our relationship," Johansson said.

However, the Bonita Springs-based company would be interested in revisiting the project after the council holds workshops and public hearings to decide exactly what it wants, Johansson said.

Councilman Mike Flanders said Monday he was ready to start negotiations with the firm that came in second —Antaramian Development Corp. — when WCI was listed as first choice back in October 2004.

The city's original request for developers' proposals stated that if negotiations fail with the first choice, the city "shall" negotiate with the second choice.

But Humphrey wants to start a new selection process, and objected strongly to Antaramian.

He said he believes other language in the agreement gives the council the ability to do that, and the "shall" is not necessarily mandatory in this case.

The city has been negotiating with WCI for almost two years on what the new development should look like, and what buildings should go where.

Humphrey said Monday he hopes WCI remains involved with the project.

At the recommendation of City Manager Anthony Shoemaker, the council decided its first step will be to have city staff gather and summarize everything they wanted in the project when working with WCI.

Flanders agreed, but also instructed Shoemaker to call Antaramian to at least see whether the company is still interested in the project.

Humphrey said he wants a "town hall meeting" to discuss consultant Andres Duany's plan for downtown, and how that affects what the council should call for in development agreements for the city-owned waterfront.

Duany, an internationally known city planner based in Miami, was hired by the city in 2001 to develop a master plan for downtown.

The council adopted his proposals, but Humphrey said that since then he's heard many different takes on what Duany really said about the best way to develop downtown.

Humphrey said he did not like Antaramian's original proposal, which called for an 18-story high-rise on the waterfront.

Flanders said Antaramian had the best plan for public spaces, and the 18-story tower in its first proposal was not something that had to be included.

"If we start over, we're going to lose a lot of time, and that's not necessary," Flanders said, adding a start from scratch could add several years to the project.

Humphrey said he thought the meetings and public workshops shouldn't add more than a year to the process.

WCI's project changed significantly over the course of negotiations with the council, and that would be part of the process with Antaramian, Flanders said.

It was the council's calls for changes that frustrated WCI, and company officials said in May they'd reached the limit on changes without having a contract.

Council members wanted the changes made first, feeling that once a contract was signed the city wouldn't have as much control over how the project turned out.