Estero Development Report
Volume 2, Number 12 Edited by ECCO--the Estero Concerned Citizens Organization For further information, to provide information or to add names to our mailing list, Email Don Eslick at doneslick@worldnet.att.net or call him at 949-4050 Estero Development Activities during April 2003 May Opportunities for Citizen Participation In Protecting Estero's Quality of Life
Community Planning ActivitiesThe May Estero Community Planning Panel MeetingThe meeting of the ECPP scheduled for May 12th will consider a zoning application for the Tucker Property, a 10 acre orange grove site on the northwest corner of Three Oaks and Williams Road, from agriculture to Commercial Planned Development. Representatives of the Wal-Mart Corporation may also present a proposal for construction of a 208,000 Wal-Mart superstore on the northeast corner of US 41 and Koreshan Boulevard. This presentation has been discussed but the date had not been confirmed when this EDR went to press. Estero Community Park Public HearingThe public hearing on Estero's 65 acre community park, originally scheduled for May 7th, has been postponed until June 18th. The County Parks and Recreation Department and its architects will once again discuss with the community the design of the 37,000 square foot community building but in much more detail than before as well as other elements that will be included in the park. The Department continues to work with the School Board regarding joint development of an adjacent 10 acre parcel. Big Box Design StandardsAs reported last month the McHarris Planning and Design Company, a nationally recognized "big box" building design standards firm, has been developing a comprehensive set of "big box" standards for the Estero community. The ECPP has now received these standards and are beginning to discuss them in negotiations with developers seeking zoning with "big box" applications. The proposed standards contain a number of concepts not frequently observed in most existing big box building sites. The following section briefly describes some of them: A Liner building refers to an additional building located along a big box type structure to mask blank and unadorned walls. Liner buildings:
The purpose of Liner Buildings is to conceal any blank walls/facades of a big box structure while creating scale and architectural character. Green Space Square means an outdoor public tract, fronted on a minimum of two sides by buildings. An interior street may be located between the square and the building frontage. Green Space Squares:
Parking Pods means a discrete parking lot with no more than two ingress / egress points, limited to a maximum of 70 parking spaces, and surrounded by a landscape buffer with a minimum depth of five feet. Big Box Project parking lots:
The purpose of these requirements is to create attractive parking areas that can provide convenient and safe multi-modal movement of vehicular, public transportation, bicycles and pedestrian traffic. Implementation of these standards will add to our existing provisions for reducing the massing effect of big buildings while breaking up the sea of asphalt that typically surrounds these facilities with green space squares, modular parking surrounded by landscaping and effective pedestrian walkways connecting the adjacent businesses. Estero's Main Street Beginning to Take ShapeLee County and the Estero Community Planning Panel have been working together to plan Estero and to manage its growth for nearly three years. Only now will the results of that effort begin to be reflected in the commercial corridors of the community. The Community Plan became effective about one year ago and the first changes in uniquely Estero development standards (in the County Land Development Code) became law late last summer (in the County Land Development Code). The BOCC needs to adopt Land Development Code changes covering signage and another overlay district for US 41 before Estero can develop like people have told us they want the area to develop, but the framework for impacting all future commercial developments is now in operation. You should begin to see the difference as new commercial projects come out of the ground during the next year or so. In our opinion the place to look is Corkscrew Road. It contains some of the hottest commercial property in southwest Florida, if not the country. Last year the BOCC created an overlay district on Corkscrew Road called the Main Street Overlay District. The purpose of the district is defined in the County Land Development Code as follows: "This overlay district will transition from mostly vacant land to a fully developed mixed-use district over the next decade. The purpose of the overlay district is to encourage and direct development in the district toward the achievement and maintenance of a unified and pleasing aesthetic / visual quality in landscaping, architecture, lighting and signage. The design of buildings and the development of sites within the district must be regulated and approved in accordance with the provisions of this Subdivision. The district will be developed as Estero's Main Street, a corridor of architecturally appealing and attractively landscaped retail, office, residential and institutional developments that cater to the needs of the community. All uses established within the district are to be compatible with surrounding uses and interrelated with the other properties in the district through an integrated pedestrian walkway and greenway system. Where applicable, joint or centralized parking is encouraged to reduce hard landscaping surfaces within the district." In addition to the requirements stated above the overlay has three major features: 1. All the buildings west of I-75 will be located up close to the road with most of the parking behind the buildings, 2. All of the properties are subject to an extensive set of appearance standards that must be enforced by the county with the help of the Estero Design Review Committee, 3. The design of each new building must be compatible with those around it.Since these requirements have become law the owners of eight Main Street properties have begun the zoning process. The eight properties, organized by location, are: North Side of Street --West to East
South Side of Street -- West to East·
All of these developers have made one or more presentations at community meetings organized by the developer and the Estero Community Planning Panel (ECPP) and made changes in their zoning request in response to community suggestions. In some cases ECPP members have testified before the Hearing Examiner assigned to a project and before the BOCC when they approve the final zoning conditions for a project. These meetings have benefited the residents of Estero by:
The six projects located between Three Oaks Parkway and US 41 contain a majority of the front footage on Corkscrew in that area, while the two properties east of Three Oaks contain about 40 percent of the frontage in that area. Undoubtedly, these projects will set the standard for the development of Estero's Main Street west of I-75. Although detailed plans and uses are not usually available when a property is zoned, several of the developers have agreed to zoning conditions that will make compliance with the overlay district design standards much easier to satisfy, thus enhancing the effectiveness of the Estero Design Review Committee. All of the developers of large "Main Street" projects have shown us "pretty pictures" of buildings close to the road with attractive Mediterranean designs and other features consistent with the overlay's design guidelines. There are no guarantees that the projects will be a "pretty as the pictures" but the prospects look very promising. Many of these plans will take years to implement, but the sudden surge in Main Street zoning activity indicates that several projects are likely to begin construction this year and next. The first project to begin construction is Corkscrew Palms I. This project will eventually contain ten one, two and three story office and retail buildings. Three attractive single story buildings are now under construction up close to Corkscrew Road. It looks like this project will enhance the eastern side of the principal Estero Community Park entrance. Construction of the park will get under way later this year. Across Estero Palms Boulevard, the road leading to the park, will be Estero Palms II, a development by McGarvey Construction, the developer of the very attractive Riverside Commerce Park, just north of the Imperial River on the west side of US 41 in Bonita Springs. If this project is completed with the same quality it will complete a beautiful park entrance. Estero's Growth Accelerates in First QuarterFor the third consecutive month housing units permitted in Estero were greater than last year. Consequently, Estero housing units permitted during the first quarter 2003 exceeded the first quarter of 2002 by 240 units, or 82%. Continuing the trend that started in February, multi-family units again exceeded single family homes by a ratio of 2 to 1. New residential communities led the way in March in both housing categories: The Cascades led all communities with 13 single family permits while The Gardens of Estero led in multi-family units permitted with 48 units. The Gardens of Estero also obtained permits for 74 units in February, thus producing a tow-month total of 122 units. Breckenridge also added 40 permitted multi-family units to the March total. During March the building value of housing units permitted in Estero represented 24% of the total for all of unincorporated Lee County. Including commercial units permitted Estero produced 22% of the total building value for unincorporated Lee County. During March Estero's permitted housing building value exceed that of Bonita Springs by almost 3 times (284%). On an overall basis the total building value of permits issued for Estero projects during March was 2.45 times the comparable Bonita Springs total. Development Projects in ProcessThe Galleria CPDDuring March Chuck Basinait of the Henderson/Franklin law firm and developer representatives presented plans to the ECPP and the Estero community for The Galleria, formerly known as Kristin Woods, a 25-acre tract on the northeast corner of Sandy Lane and Corkscrew Road. Basinait noted that the Kristin Woods plan for the site proposed a 150-unit assisted living facility. This facility has been deleted in favor of 95,000 square-feet of retail space and 150,000 square-feet of office space. Project development is planned to begin in 2004. Basinait said that the development is being designed to comply with the provisions of the new Corkscrew "Main Street" Overlay of the Lee County Land Development Code and presented artist renderings to demonstrate this compliance. The renderings depicted two attractive Mediterranean-style buildings up close to Corkscrew Road with most of the parking located behind the buildings. They would appear to nicely compliment the buildings now being constructed across the street as part of the Corkscrew Palms I project. He provided a List of Proposed Uses for the development noting that most of the commercial uses were not contained in the existing Kristin Woods zoning. Greg Toth, an ECPP member, questioned the proposed warehousing or manufacturing uses. Basinait responded that the developer is willing to reconsider the List of Uses and will keep the Panel informed. Basinait has presented several other projects to the ECPP and worked cooperatively with the panel to accommodate most community concerns. Longwood VillasOn April 2nd the public hearing for Longwood Villas project was concluded. This 28 acre property is located one mile north of the intersection of Three Oaks Parkway and Corkscrew Road. If approved the property would be rezoned from agriculture (AG‑2) to residential planned development (RPD) to permit a maximum of 166 residential dwelling units either as a single‑family/zero lot line development or as a multiple‑family/townhouse development. This property is immediately south of the Gardens of Estero multi-family housing project and immediately north of the property recently acquired by the Lee County District in order to construct two or three schools. It is immediately west of the Villages of Country Creek. Access to all the housing units will be through one entrance on Three Oaks Boulevard. This development supports the Estero Community Plan policy of discouraging retail uses along Three Oaks Parkway by developing the property for residential uses. Also, the proposed development provides for a mix of dwelling unit types and will be developed at the maximum of 6 dwelling units per acre for the Urban Community land use category as is intended to provide higher densities in close proximity to Florida Gulf Coast University between Three Oaks Parkway and Interstate 75 (I-75). Estero PalmsOn April 7th the BOCC rezoned approximately 5 acres of land from Agricultural to Single‑Family Residential on property located 660 feet west of the Block Lane -- River Ranch Road intersection. Block Lane is 0.38 miles south of the River Ranch Road -- Corkscrew Road Intersection. Estero Palms is located between the church now under construction on the west side of River Ranch Road and Estero High School and just west of 5 acres that was previously zoned as part of the Estero Palms project. The entire Estero Palms project will consist of 32 single family homes organized around two cul-de-sacs. The property is accessed from Block Lane which the developer will be required to improve to the property as a requirement of obtaining a development order. Sewer will need to be extended to the property as the proposed residential density is greater than allowed by septic system. Park Circle Commercial Planned DevelopmentOn April 30th the developers of this project presented their case for rezoning 1.47 acres located on the north side of Corkscrew Road approximately ½ mile east of Sandy Lane from Multiple‑Family to Commercial Planned Development. Lee County zoning staff recommended that the following uses not be approved due to the close proximity of a mobile home park just north of the site: Animals: Clinic or Kennel; ATM; Consumption on Premises; Drive Through Facility; Pet Services; Pet Shop; Restaurant: Groups 1, 2 and 3; and Variety Store. The property will be entered from Corkscrew Road by widening to 40 feet an existing road just east of the property and paving it up to the entrance to the property. The Hearing Examiners report will evaluate each of these objections and make recommendations to the BOCC for their approval or rejection.
Road Improvement ProgressUS 41 Six Laningfrom Corkscrew Road to San Carlos BoulevardFDOT has selected Inwood Consulting Engineers to design this last segment of US 41 to be widened between Ft. Myers and Naples. As reviewed last month the road design for this segment is expected to be completed early in 2005. However the long range budget for the next phase -- the right-of-way acquisition phase--does not provide funding for this phase until July 2006, 18 months later. Funding for widening this road is not in the state's existing 5 year plan which ends in 2008. Thus under current plans this segment of US41 will not be completed before 2010, five years after all the other segments have been completed. In order to accelerate this schedule ECCO, the Estero Chamber of Commerce, the Estero Fire Rescue District and many Estero residential communities wrote Dick Walsh, the Chairman of the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) and many MPO members asking them to amend their work program so that right of way acquisition can begin as soon as the alignment of the road has been finalized by the design. At the April 18th MPO meeting Lee County Commissioners Albion and Judah took up our cause. As a result the MPO voted to ask Congressman Porter Goss to try to get a high priority project authorization for six-laning this roadway segment included in the act reauthorizing the Federal-Aid Highway Programs this year. We will soon have copies of the MPO letter to Congressman Goss that we can adapt for each of use by all Estero citizens and organizations. In another favorable development, press reports indicate that Duncan Associates, the county's road impact fee consultants, have recommended a 40% increase in county road impact fees. In addition their draft report also recommends that, for the first time, the county should impose road impact fees to pay for work performed on state roads as well -- like US 41. If this proposal is adopted by the BOCC the total road impact fees would increase by 76 percent. It has been three years since these fees have been increased. Should these increases be adopted by the BOCC some of the additional funds could be allocated so as to accelerate the widening this segment of US 41. Three Oaks ParkwayDuring April progress on timely construction of the Three Oaks segment from Alico to Corkscrew Road is threatened by a dispute between Lee DOT and a San Carlos Park community group over the county's proposed alignment of the road and the noise and safety impacts that the alignment would have on the community. The community group has identified a preferred alignment and is now trying to determine if the owner would sell the property to the county and a prospective user at a reasonable price. ECCO will monitor the situation and assist the parties where possible in order to avoid the lengthy delays a law suit could cause. During April ECCO had its first meeting with the Army Corp of Engineers (COE) Regulatory Division, the agency that manages the roadway permitting process for the Federal Government. The meeting with representatives of the Jacksonville District office offered ECCO an opportunity to directly express the high priority Estero places upon expeditious approval of roadway projects, like Three Oaks Parkway, that are needed for the increasing traffic caused by our dramatic growth and that expected in 2005 when the Coconut Point Town Center opens. Several procedural changes were suggested by the Corp leaders that ECCO will transmit to key Lee County DOT personnel. Improved communication with local Corp administrators is also expected to result from the meeting. Since ECCO encouraged the county to fund a Corp reviewer position that would specialize in county public project applications, the local Corp office has filled two reviewer positions that had long been vacant. This office is currently seeking to fill one Biologist/Environmental Engineer position and one Environmental Protection Specialist. If you know of anyone who has the technical training for one of these positions and would like to relocate to southwest Florida please have them contact Harry "Skip" Bergman, the Team Leader of the Fort Myers Regulatory Office to see if they are still accepting applications. Bergman's phone number is: 239-334-1975, extension 30.
Roadway Median |
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Name |
Email Address |
Phone Number |
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Hon. John Albion |
335-2225 |
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Hon. Andy Coy |
335-2226 |
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Hon. Bob Janes |
335-2224 |
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Hon. Ray Judah |
335-2223 |
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Hon. Doug St. Cerny |
335-2227 |
Later that day the RLAC will have their first look at the landscape design of this road segment and will make suggestions for improving it. These suggestions will, no doubt, be influenced by the action of the RLAC regarding Corkscrew Road and its "intensified core" design.
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