Estero Development Report

Volume 5, Number 11
Issued March 2006

Edited by ECCL--the Estero Council of Community Leaders

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

Index

“Arts in Estero”

Persons interested in encouraging the development of the arts in our community are invited to attend…

“Arts in Estero”
Estero Ballroom and Foyer
Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort
Saturday, April 8th
9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Admission and Parking is Free

Ft. Myers and Naples have a wide variety of arts venues, both of which are accessible by the residents of Estero and south Lee County because of our location midway between the two cities. In recent years our central location has attracted an increasing number of arts venues in and around Estero.

Recent additions include:

• Germain Arena, home to many, large national touring performers,
• The Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort with the region’s largest resort convention center, and
• Florida Gulf Coast University with its theater, art and music programs, its Black Box Theater and Alico Arena.
  

Currently under construction are:

• The Miromar International Design Center, a regional center for top level interior design professionals,
• The Coconut Point Town Center will house a 17 screen Muvico Theater and will likely host smaller musical events in some of their public spaces, and
• The Estero Community Park with its outdoor stage and central lawn capable of seating 4 to 5,000 people for concerts and other events.

During 2005 two more exciting Estero arts possibilities emerged. They are:

• The developer of Estero on the River has offered Gulfshore Playhouse the land necessary to construct a 550 seat professional regional theater along with a 150 seat Studio Theater. Estero on the River is an 85 acre development located on the north side of Corkscrew Road between Sandy Lane and US 41.
• The Southwest Florida Symphony has been actively exploring a three concert outdoor concert series in the Spring of 2007 on the stage of the Estero Community Park.

Progress During 2005

Both new initiatives made significant progress during 2005. Gulfshore Playhouse sponsored several successful events featuring notable Broadway performers. They have hired a consultant to work with the Lee and Collier County schools to develop joint performing arts programs for Southwest Florida school-children.

In addition, they have commissioned the Cleveland architectural firm of Westlake Reed Leskosky to create a classically-designed theater influenced by the theaters of antiquity still found in Italy, France and Argentina. That design will be presented to Gulfshore Playhouse supporters attending their Spring Gala featuring a concert by Tony Award winning Anna Maria Alberghetti at Quail West Country Club on Friday, April 7th. For information about Gulfshore Playhouse and for tickets to this event see their website at http://www.gulfshoreplayhouse.org/index.htm.

During 2005 representatives of the Southwest Florida Symphony toured the Estero Community Park and met with County Parks and Recreation officials to determine if the amphitheater and the Central Lawn would serve their needs for an outdoor concert series, and found it most appropriate. The Symphony’s staff is knowledgeable about and has had experience with outdoor concert series in other parts of the United States. Thus, during 2005 they explored how the concerts could be arranged, ticketed and financed with several prospective sponsors. Finally, tentative dates have been selected for the Spring 2007 season.

Where Do We Go From Here

During the last five years Estero’s “in-season” population has grown by 23,000 people. Every month about 400 new people have been moving to Estero. Many of these new residents, whether permanent or seasonal, are not familiar with the arts organizations and venues that have also recently emerged in our rapidly growing community.

Thus, the Estero Council of Community Leaders Arts Encouragement Committee is presenting “Arts in Estero” sponsored by Colonial Bank on Saturday morning April 8th and invites all the residents of South Lee County to attend.

The combination exhibit and stage event will take place in the Estero ballroom and foyer of the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort in Estero from 9 am to 1 pm. Admission and self-parking are free.

“Arts in Estero” is an entertaining way for South Lee County residents to learn about our diverse array of arts organizations. It’s almost like a fair with colorful exhibits of art and music in the foyer and wonderful show in the ballroom.

Residents of Estero and surrounding communities are invited to tour the exhibits and view stage presentations by skilled amateur and professional performers representing the groups participating in the event: The Estero Art League, Gulfshore Playhouse, Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra, Spirit of The Gulf Women’s Chorus, Southwest Florida Symphony, Florida Gulf Coast University, Friends of The South County Regional Library, The Estero Historical Society and the new Lee County Community Park in Estero.

Estero has a century old tradition in the arts and we believe that the best is yet to come. With the new Estero Community Park opening with performance facilities and a huge amphitheater that’s perfect for outdoor concerts, to the exciting prospect of a new regional, professional performing arts theater, Gulfshore Playhouse, to increased emphasis on the arts at FGCU plus a growing base of incredible local talent you get the idea that Estero is going to be a very active community in all the arts. It’s a very exciting prospect.

Stage presentations will range from popular, classical and jazz music performances to short skits and talks.

Representing Gulf Shore Playhouse are former New York singer Leslie Ahlvers and 16-year old Alexandra Tocco, 2006 winner of the Young Artist Award at the Broadway Palm Theater and winner of the Solo Debut competition at Las Vegas’ Access Broadway Grand National Championships.

Friends of the South County Regional Library, Inc. presents young Estero piano virtuoso Crawford Wiley, 17, who recently appeared on National Public Radio’s “From The Top,” a network broadcast featuring outstanding young musicians nationwide.

The library’s “Reader’s Theater” will be represented by South County Regional Library staff members Andrea Carter and Sally Bissell, performing short skits.

The Gulf Shore Symphony presents Scott Layman, big band and jazz trombonist, currently the orchestra’s Principal Trombonist. In counterpoint, Stacy Gossman from the orchestra will perform a classical bassoon solo.

Current Florida State Champion women’s chorus Spirit of The Gulf will be represented by “Voices”, a 12 member acappella group singing popular music.

Mimi Straub, President of The Estero Historical Society, will make a brief presentation about the works of Estero artist Douglas Arthur Teed, son of Koreshan founder Cyrus Teed.

The Estero Art League will raffle original artwork at its exhibit and participate in the ballroom program with a unique door prize available to persons who register at the group’s exhibit. Celeste Borah, noted New York graphic artist and art director now living in Estero, will create a charcoal portrait of the winner during the course of the program. The finished portrait will be on display at the program’s conclusion.

During the program the audience will be given an intermission or two to stretch and revisit the exhibits. The main purpose of “Art in Estero” is to help South Lee County residents and visitors to become familiar with and support our cultural opportunities. “Art in Estero” will be an exciting event. Please plan to attend.

Estero Community Website

To learn more about Estero and its growth management efforts
view the new website of:

Estero Community Planning Panel (ECPP);
Estero Civic Association (ECA);
Estero Design Review Committee (EDRC), and
Estero Council of Community Leaders (ECCL)

www.esterofl.org

The site is still in formation.…
Your suggestions for improvement are most welcome.

US 41 Public Information Meeting

On Tuesday, April 4th FDOT will hold a Public Information Meeting between 5 and 7
p. m. at the South County Regional Library on their plans to six-lane US 41 between Corkscrew Road and San Carlos Park.

We are informed that the meeting is just that…affected residents may come and view display boards depicting the design and can discuss the plans with FDOT and County staff that will be present at the meeting. Unlike comparable Lee County meetings there will, however, not be any forms or any other procedure to facilitate public comment or criticism of the design and their impact on property adjacent to the roadway or on the community.

In spite of these deficiencies the Estero Council of Community Leaders (ECCL) would urge communities and businesses along the route and others who use this segment frequently to attend the meeting so that you can identify traffic problems that it fails to solve or will create for those traveling the road.

If there are significant problems with the design ECCL will organize a meeting soon after the Public Information Meeting to consolidate the concerns and arrange a meeting with FDOT to discuss their solution.

Background

About two years ago FDOT arranged a very informative, useful and well attended meeting with the FDOT’s consultant and staff that were developing the design. Residents and business people along the route made many useful comments at that meeting. We were told that our questions would be answered, that our comments would be taken into consideration and that there would be another such meeting. In spite of repeated efforts to obtain those answers and schedule that meeting there was no response. As a result the community does not know what to expect in the design that will be presented on April 4th. It may be great…it may have significant problems.

The Information Meeting will not deal with the financing or the timing of the 6-laning project. It may or may not deal with the historical nature of the area between Broadway and Corkscrew Road. It must deal with the safety of access to the highway from the adjacent communities, businesses and cross-roads.

We urge you to attend the meeting and identify any problems with the road’s design and send your comments to http://esterofl.org/eccl/contact_eccl.htm along with your name, community or business and contact information.

The Bonita Springs Estero Connection

On March 7th the voters of Bonita Springs elected three new members to their six member City Council, each of them defeating an incumbent member who had served the City since its founding six years ago. With this change five of the seven members of the City Council have served less than two years. Consequently the Estero Council of Community Leaders (ECCL) sent the following letter to the Mayor and all six Council members in the interest of promoting better communication among neighbors and seeking to work together on common problems. Jack Lienesch, an ECCL member from Pelican Landing, has agreed to make the initial contact with the Mayor and each of the Council members to see how a meeting or other forms of communication and coordination can be established.

The letter reads as follows:

“The Estero Council congratulates the winners in this month’s election and wishes them well as they assume their responsibilities to the residents of Bonita Springs. We look forward to a mutually beneficial and cooperative working relationship with Bonita’s entire City Council as both organizations tackle the challenges of growth in Southwest Florida.

Looking forward, Estero’s leadership believes that the extraordinary growth we are experiencing must be managed with the following constituencies in mind: our permanent and “snow-bird” residents, our environment and our economy. Balancing the interests of these constituencies is not a simple task, but one that must be accomplished if we are to maintain and improve the quality of life for all.

The Estero Council of Community Leaders (ECCL) invites you and the other members of the Council to periodically meet with the leaders of Estero's four civic groups (the ECCL, the Estero Civic Association, the Estero Community Planning Panel, and the Estero Design Review Committee) to identify our common problems and discuss how we might work together to solve them. We believe our joint efforts will allow us to more effectively represent better the residents of South Lee County before City, County, Regional and State decision-makers.

We look forward to working with the Bonita City Council in tackling the problems associated with growth, including: transportation, emergency medical care, the DRGR (protecting water supply, wildlife, sheet water flow, etc.), compatibility, parks and more.

We will be contacting you soon to see how we might set up such a meeting.”

Code Enforcement Update

Sam Levy, the Chairman of the Estero Council of Community Leaders’ (ECCL) Code Enforcement Committee, reported at the March 10th meeting of the Council that Lee County Code Enforcement had a deputy out on Saturday, February 25 and he picked up 174 “stick-up” signs in Estero.

He also noted that all newspaper etc. distribution boxes in Estero have been inspected by Lee DOT and they report that these boxes can only be removed if they create a safety issue.

Mr. Levy also reported on the unsightliness and safety of these boxes at the meeting of the Estero Community Planning Panel (ECPP) on March 13th. Levy said that he will continue to investigate this matter for possible resolution without interfering with US Freedom of Press guarantees. The Panel asked Levy to research the statutes of other jurisdictions to see what alternatives might be available to the County to deal with this issue. The ECPP thanked him for his continuing efforts.

January-February Estero
Housing Permits Lowest Since 2000

During January and February Estero's housing development continued but at a much slower pace. A total of 165 housing units were permitted during these two months. This is not too surprising inasmuch as 909 housing units were permitted in Estero during the last four months of 2005.

The following table shows how January and February 2006 compares with the same period during the prior six years:

As the above table shows the 2006 average building value is the highest of this seven year period in spite of the year having the smallest percentage (26.7%) of units that are single family homes.

Year to Date Commercial Building
Value Highest on Record

The value of commercial buildings permitted in Estero during January and February totaled $56.3 million. This total is over 5 times the second highest January-February commercial permit building value, $10.2 million, recorded in 2001. The major projects that contributed to the 2006 total are:

• $43.8 million in the Coconut Point Town Center;
• $4.8 million as part of Phase 5 of the Miromar Outlets Center
• $950 thousand for the Walgreens Drug Store in Paradise Shoppes (northwest corner of US 41 and Williams Road)
• $1.06 million for the Lee County Utilities facility on the south side of Corkscrew Road east of I-75; and
• $1.4 million for the Barkis Car Wash south of the Corkscrew Village Shopping Center on US 41.
  

REMINDER: The building values understate the cost of each residence or commercial building because it excludes the value of the underlying land.

Coconut Crossing Update

On March 8th the Estero Design Review Committee (EDRC) reviewed the design review guidelines prepared for this 46 acre multi-project development at the northwest corner of US 41 and Coconut Road. The Committee members were impressed by them.

The developer agreed with the EDRC that individual users will come to the EDRC when they apply for their development orders. The existing zoning on the site includes 8 retail parcels consisting of 7 outlots ranging in size from 1.27 acres to 2.5 acres and a 13.4 acre parcel surrounded by those out parcels. The final 11.2 acre parcel at the rear of the property has been sold by JED to a housing developer with plans to construct 142 multi-family units in three story buildings.

The developer made the following points regarding the development:

• The site has several pedestrian access ways.
• CVS and the residential portion (Tagomar) are being reviewed concurrently.
• They are being careful about the type of tenants they will accept in the project.
• They will make the Design Review Guidelines part of their zoning through an amendment.

The developer presented two buildings consisting of a CVS drug store and an adjacent retail building. Both were previously presented to the EDRC. The revised designs:

• Added roof elements to break up the roof lines.
• Pedestrian connectivity has been increased as per the earlier EDRC suggestion.
• Had just been received by the developer and they planned to suggest dropping the windows and converting the arches into real arches.

In the opinion of the Committee CVS has added too many architectural features and should refer the design back to the development’s Design Review Guidelines (DRG) committee. The project is easily oriented utilizing towers and a fountain and access ways. The Committee raised a concern as to the color of the CVS store. The developers DRG will have to approve. CVS agreed to return to present to the EDRC again in April.

Background

During the summer of 2005 JED Development purchased the 46 acre site on the northwest corner of US 41 and Coconut Road where Wal-Mart tried unsuccessfully to develop a superstore.

Orion Bank and Community Bank have purchased two of the outlots. CVS has purchased the corner outlot and has plans for a drug store and a second smaller building. JED plans to retain ownership of the large retail parcel.

JED’s traffic engineers indicated that Coconut Road would be widened to six lanes east of the Coconut Road entrance to the property and would taper to two lanes at the west end of the property. This modification would align the west side of Coconut Road with the existing configuration on the east side exiting from The Brooks, thus permitted the signalization to be changed from a three phase system to a two phase system, where vehicles entering the intersection from both the east and west could make left turns at the same time. The western approach to US 41 on Coconut Road would consist of four east bound lanes…two left turn lanes, one through-lane and one through/right turn lane. Vehicles traveling west on Coconut from the intersection would have two lanes, one through lane and another that would turn right into Coconut Crossings.

At present the 60% design of this intersection improvement has been completed. It is expected that County and State approval of these plans will occur soon, after which construction contracting can begin.

Coconut Point Progress Report

Coconut Point consists of much more than the Coconut Point Town Center shopping area. It includes the entire 500 acres along the east side of US 41 between the Sanibel Steakhouse on the south end to Williams Road on the north, including the Rapallo community.

Coconut Point is the brainchild of Oakbrook Properties, a Chicago area land developer, that earlier developed Spanish Wells and other southwest Florida properties. The entire 500 acres were zoned in 2002 and are all subject to an extensive, 87 page, set of appearance standards. Planning for the project divided the development into three planning areas:

• The South Village located between the Bonita Springs city line and Coconut Road,
• The Town Center located between Coconut Road and the Halfway Creek floway, about midway between Coconut and Williams Road, and
• The North Village located between the Halfway Creek floway and Williams Road.

The following summarizes the recent changes in each of these planning areas:

The South Village

On March 10th Ned Dewhirst of Oakbrook Properties updated the ECCL on recent developments affecting the South and North Villages. Recent South Village changes include:

• The infrastructure for the South Village has been under construction for about 8 months. This consists of the Pelican Colony Boulevard extension from US 41 to Via Coconut Point (formerly called Sandy Lane) and the associated utilities/drainage improvements; the perimeter buffering/landscaping; the onsite lakes and the backbone surface water management system.
• Via Coconut Point is under construction from Coconut Road to Pelican Colony Boulevard, with anticipated completion by August 2006, the same date that the Pelican Colony Boulevard extension is expected to be completed.
• McGarvey Development is planning on building a one-stop financial service center on about 10 acres on the east side of US 41 just north of the Sanibel Steakhouse. The Center will consist of two multistory buildings with a total of about 85,000 square feet.
• Centrum-Estero Limited Partnership is proposing to develop 200 Assisted Living units on property located right behind the McGarvey development.
• American Land Ventures LLC is proposing to develop the land along the eastern boundary of the property (immediately west of Spring Run in The Brooks) between Coconut Road and the Bonita Springs border with 224 multi-family units in a series of two story buildings.
• Regency Centers has dropped its plans to develop a 32,500 square feet general retail center on the site on the south side of Coconut Road between Via Coconut Road and the entrance to The Brooks Commerce Center. The property is now under contract to another purchaser.
• Lee Memorial has purchased 22 acres immediately behind the Bonita Community Health Center for use as a future hospital site.
• Finally, there are three small tracts of land just south of the Bonita Community Health Center. Two of them are under contract…one for development as a 25,000 square foot retail center and a second one will become a medical office building.
  

The North Village

Recent North Village changes include:

• The infrastructure for the North Village has been completed. This generally consists of the fire station entrance road and the main entrance to Rapallo; the internal ring road around Rapallo along with associated utilities/drainage; perimeter buffering/landscaping; the majority of onsite lakes and the backbone surface water management system.
• The Halfway Creek wetland flow way restoration has been completed and an ongoing monitoring program has been put in place.
• Via Coconut Point construction, from Coconut Road to Williams Road, is well underway, with anticipated completion in May.
• The Estero Fire Station is open and operating.
• The Community Bank plans to build a bank on the parcel between the Fire Station and US 41.
• The 6.7 acre site on the south side of Williams Road just west of the railroad tracks is under consideration by the U. S. Postal Service for the long promised new, full service Estero Post Office.

The Town Center

During March the Simon Property Group began construction of many new buildings including the Muvico Theater and some of the buildings that will house the Residences of Coconut Point. Several of the large format retailers in the northern Market area are expected to open for business in late April or early May. As this edition goes to press the exterior of most of these large stores are nearly complete, the parking lots have been paved and the landscaping is being installed.

On March 30th the Simon Property Group announced that Ruth Chris Steak House, one of America’s premier restaurants, will be occupying nearly 10,000 square feet on the main street of the Village near Barnes & Noble and three adjacent restaurants.

View an Exciting Video of Simon’s Plans for the Coconut Point Town Center on the web at www.coconutpointretail.com

Recent Rezoning Actions

Fountain Lakes Professional Office Park

On March 13th the ECPP and the community in attendance reviewed plans for a proposed two story 20,000 square-foot office building just south of Fountain Lakes Boulevard on the west side of US 41 south of Williams Road. The structure would replace the current temporary building formerly used as a sales office for Centex Homes. The owners and developers of the property is Realty World, longtime locally-owned realtors servicing the Estero area.

The developers explained that the primary use for the building would be for the Realty World real estate office and related businesses, such as mortgage and title companies. The developers have been working with the Fountain Lakes community to obtain its endorsement of the project and that the project is committed to enhancing the entrance to Fountain Lakes.

A panel member noted the possible use of the building as a real estate training school and questioned the traffic created by such use. The panel asked if any environmentally sensitive lands were located on the site. The developer responded that the issue had not yet been investigated but will be in order to comply with County environmental regulations.

The Panel noted that a 15 foot buffer is planned between the site and the US 41 easement and indicated that a 20 foot wide buffer would be required and would be acceptable for this property. Another panelist suggested that the applicant might want to expand the proposed list of uses for the building for flexibility in the future. The developer assured the Panel that he would keep it advised of his follow-through to its comments.

Finally, the Panel asked about an access road extending through the property. A covenant in the purchase contract prohibits such a road; however, the final decision will be made by Lee County. Noethlich indicated that the applicant should plan to return to a future ECPP public meeting when they are in a position to provide more information.

Mayfair Village Planned Residential Development

Also at the March 13th meeting of the ECPP representatives of the developer of a 5.52 acre tract at 8790 East Broadway presented plans for the proposed development of 17 single family homes on this site. The property is a narrow tract south of East Broadway, west of the current two-lane Sandy Lane and east of the Seminole Gulf railroad right of way.

The developer is seeking County approval of two deviations from the present zoning. The first would allow only one access point to the property until the Sandy Lane extension and realignment are completed. That immediate entrance would be on East Broadway. When the realigned Sandy Lane is constructed a second access would be added on the southwest side of the property connecting to the new Sandy Lane.

The second deviation would allow a 15 foot buffer between residential lots and the Sandy Lane right-of-way. The Panel raised no objections to these deviations and complimented the representatives with the thoroughness of the proposal prepared for the ECPP.

EDRC Design Reviews

Mobil Station at Paradise Shops

On March 8th the Estero Design Review Committee reviewed a proposal for a Exxon Mobil On the Run station on a parcel on the west side of US 41 within the Paradise Shops development about 100 yards north of the corner of Williams Road and US 41.

The proposed project would consist of a 4,100 square foot convenience store with car wash and 6 fueling islands with a total of 12 fueling positions. Under the Special Exception already approved by the County, the project is allowed 16 fueling positions, but only 12 fueling stations are being sought. The station and its canopy will have a barrel type roof.

The signage on the building is to be back channel lit. The Panel discussed the proposed monument sign with the developer to ensure that it meets the Code requirements. The Panel made the following points:

• 25% of the sign must be architectural.
• Monument signs must have greater width than height. This one looks almost square.
• A concern was raised that this sign is much larger than their competitors because the base is greater than what the Code allows. A suggestion was made that perhaps the base could be extended out. This sign has a 42” high base and the Code states the height of the base must not exceed 24” above the ground.
• The Committee noted that the applicant can request variance from the County if they so desire.
• The monument sign must include the station’s address. Applicant should review Chapter 30 of the LDC and comply with it.

Applicant agreed to look at improving the sign. He further stated that the sign will have landscaping around it including palms and ground cover. The Committee also made the following suggestions:

• The canopy over the 6 islands should be broken up in some manner, perhaps by adding peaks. As presented the roof line is too long.
• Add designs to the trash enclosure doors, the proposed four adjacent doors is too wide. One proposed solution would be to add a 16 inch column in the middle of the enclosure and then have 2 doors on each side.
• Columns in front either need to be beefed up (Applicant indicated hard to do this as Cashiers must be able to view the fueling stations) or shrink the top medallion areas. These should be proportional and in scale.
•  Add a dormer to the back.
• Lighting under canopy will be recessed into deck, flush-mounted with flat lens lighting.
• Soften the dumpster area with landscaping. (Developer Agreed)

The Committee also expressed a concern about the venting pipes of the underground tanks and their location. Applicant agreed to look at this issue. Applicant agreed to return next month with their changes.

Estero Square

On March 8th the developer of Estero Square, formerly Estero Town Center and Estero Town Commons, returned to discuss this small shopping center project to be located in front of The Vines just south of the existing interior design store.

Since the project was last reviewed by the EDRC the Applicant has changed the front elevations to vary the frontage of this long 315 foot building. The Committee was pleased with this change.

The Committee made the following additional suggestions:

• The parking isles in the front should only have 25% sod. The applicant agreed to add more shrubs to these areas.
• The buffer along Tamiami Trail could vary the height of the palms within the groupings by adding some royal palms to the proposed sabal palms.
• The oaks trees need to be 12-14 feet in height and of the 45 gallon variety.
• More diversity of planting material around the building perimeter.

The applicant agreed the 8 foot masonry wall would be painted the same color as The Vines.