Estero Development Report
Volume 3, Number 6
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
This Report will soon be
available on the Estero Chamber of Commerce Website www.esterochamber.org and the Estero
Fire District site at www.esterofire.org.
November
Opportunities for Citizen Participation
In Protecting
Estero's Quality of Life
|
Date |
Time |
Event |
Location |
|
Tuesday,
November 4th |
|
Roadway
Landscape Advisory Committee Meeting |
|
|
Wednesday,
November 5th |
|
Hearing
Examiner Hearing of Cascades at Estero Rezoning |
|
|
Thursday,
November 6th |
|
Estero
Bonita Republican Club discussion of |
Pelican
Landing Clubhouse (
behind the Pelican Landing Shopping Center) |
|
Friday,
November 7th |
|
Smart
Growth Symposium |
FGCU,
Student Union Ballroom |
|
Monday,
November 10th |
|
|
The
Estero Country Club at The Vines |
|
Monday,
November 10th |
|
Estero
Community Planning Panel Meeting -- Longwood Villas Amendment; |
Marsh
Landing Clubhouse |
|
Tuesday,
November 11th |
|
Estero
Fire Rescue District Board Meeting |
Estero
United |
|
Wednesday,
November 12th |
|
Estero
Design Review Committee review of: Tires Plus; Galloway Ford; |
The
|
|
Thursday,
November 13th |
|
Estero
Real Estate Review (Admission Fee Required) |
Hyatt
Coconut Point Hotel & Resort |
|
Friday,
November 14th |
|
ECCO
Council of Community Leaders Meeting |
Marsh
Landing Clubhouse |
|
Thursday,
November 20th |
|
Water
Quality Training Session (Admission
Fee Required) |
|
|
Thursday,
November 20th |
|
Estero
Chamber Business After Hours, speaker Tom Schneider, The Simon Property Group |
Hyatt
Coconut Point Resort and Spa |
|
Monday,
December 1st |
|
|
|
|
Monday,
December 8th |
|
Estero
Community Planning Panel -- |
Marsh
Landing Clubhouse |
Index
|
Page |
Subject |
|
1 |
Calendar |
|
2 |
Development Projects
Progress Report |
|
7 |
Community Organization
Growth Related Activities |
|
8 |
Roadway Improvements |
|
9 |
Recent Estero Growth
Statistics |
Development Project Progress Report
During the last several years
we have reported on literally hundreds of development projects in Estero. In
the past most of them have been at the zoning stage. As reported last month
about 80% of all of our commercial corridors and a very high percentage of our
residential land have now been zoned.
The next stage of the
development process for each parcel of land is the Development Order (D.O.)
stage. That's where our Estero Design Review Committee (EDRC) gets involved in
reviewing the design and appearance of the site plan, architecture, signage and
landscaping. A good example of that was last month's report on the EDRC's
review of the Wal-Mart superstore proposal. The County's Community Development
department must approve each DO and the related building permit before
construction can commence.
Thus in the future more and
more of the community meetings required of developers in Estero will be in
conjunction with the EDRC. If you want to see what Estero is going to look
like in a few years, and to influence that look, you should attend the monthly
meeting of the EDRC at the clubhouse at The Vines on the second Wednesday each
month.
In this report we discuss
some of the projects that made progress at one of the three stages of
development this month.
Developments Seeking Zoning
Wal-Mart -- As reported
last month Wal-Mart presented a revised development plan to the EDRC on
September 10th and received numerous suggestions for improvement from
the committee and the public. In response to those suggestions during October
Wal-Mart transmitted another revised plan to the EDRC. These changes will be
discussed by the EDRC at their meeting on Wednesday, November 12th
starting at
The EDRC's comments and
suggestions at this meeting will be used by the Estero Council of Community
Leaders Wal-Mart committee as they prepare for discussions with Wal-Mart later
in the rezoning process.
Bella
Terra -- The residential project now call
Bella Terra was formerly zoned as the Habitat. The original zoning would have
permitted construction of about 2,350 housing units on over 1,000 acres along
the south side of Corkscrew Road about one mile east of Wildcat Run.
The primary changes in the proposed zoning
eliminates the golf course; allocates more land to open space and reduces the
number of residential units by 400, with more emphasis on single family or duplex
homes and less on multi-family units.
The added open space will help the developer satisfy
environmental limitations imposed by this property which is immediately
adjacent to the Density Reduction Groundwater Recharge (DRGR) area. The
developers are also seeking permission to dig retention lakes to a depth of 30
feet rather they 20 feet. The land extracted from these lakes will provide them
the fill they will need for the site. Blasting is being used to build 23 lakes.
The existing zoning permits 100,000 square feet of
retail space and 20,000 square feet of office space. The developers plan a 45
foot clock tower as the project identifier near the entrance off of
Site preparation in now underway with the first
model homes expected to be opened early next year.
North Point -- The developers of this project, Estero's
second largest commercial development, are closely related to the developers of
The development combines 9 parcels of land with 6
owners into a unified project that uses many Estero Plan and Main Street
Overlay principals and is designed to compliment the
The centerpiece of the project is a large 15 acre
lake that will be viewed from both principal entrances. The four lane
The developers hope to obtain zoning approval for
the project by next summer and to begin construction in about 3 years.
The former developer made a
strong effort to zone the property in accordance with the Corkscrew Road
Overlay which requires, among many other things, all buildings fronting on
Corkscrew to be up close to the road with the parking in the rear. In addition the
zoning contains an extensive set of Design Guidelines that will ensure that all
the purchasers of outlot parcels will use compatible architecture and
landscaping. The former developer participated extensively with the ECPP in the
development of "big box standards" that, when adopted by the BOCC,
will apply to all big box developments within Estero.
Developments
at Design Review
Estero
Park Commons -- The Estero Design Review Committee (EDRC) recently reviewed the design
for Estero Park Commons, a 102,250 square foot commercial project on the west
side of the entrance to the upcoming Estero Community Park, Corkscrew Palms
Boulevard. The entrance is on the south side of
This
Mediterranean office project with up to 28,000 square feet of neighborhood
retail is being developed by the McGarvey Corporation, developer of the
attractive
The
EDRC generally approved the appearance of the project but made the following
suggestions for improvement:
1.
The existing oaks and sabal palms need to be preserved/relocated per the
approved zoning resolution,
2.
The plan should allow greater pedestrian access into and throughout the site.
There needs to be access to or from
3.
Use larger-than-code-minimum trees along the property access drive, and
4.
Create naturalistic “clumps” on the berm along
Approved
Developments Making Progress
Coconut
Point -- This
Project was formerly known as the "Simon Suncoast Mall". It is
Estero's largest mixed use project potentially consisting of 1.9 million square
feet of retail space, 300,000 square feet of office space, 600 hotel rooms, 200
assisted living units and 1000 housing units located along the east side of US
41 from the Bonita Springs northern border to Williams Road, over 2 miles to
the north.
Oakbrook
Properties, the developer of this 483 acre mixed use project, and their major
partner, the Simon Property Group, have been making considerable progress in
the year since the property was zoned. Throughout the year they have been negotiating
a Development Agreement with the County that would specify when and how the
road impact fees paid by the developers will be used.
Oakbrook
has agreed to sell a significant amount of additional land to Simon. As a
result the Simon Property Group will own a large area extending north from
During
November the developers will begin to publicize the designs that will be used
on some of the properties that are further along in the planning process.
The
Simon Property Group will make two presentations regarding their project during
November:
·
On November 13th they will make a presentation to the Estero
Real Estate Review sponsored by Stephanie Miller Select Real Estate and FGCU,
and
·
On November 20th Tom Schneider, Simon's Senior VP of Development
will address the Estero Chamber of Commerce' Business After Hours.
It
should not be too much longer before the developers will be ready to disclose
some of their future retail tenants.
Oakbrook
Properties has been focusing most its attention on developing the area north of
the Simon property and extending up to
The Cascades -- According to press
reports since sales efforts began 16 months ago The Cascades has sold 300 of
603 housing units planned for the community. The Cascades is located on the
south side of
Vilagio
-- According
to press reports 94 housing units have been sold in the five months since the Mediterranean
style project's sales office opened in late May. Villagio is a 514 unit
multi-family housing development located along the east
side
of
Colonial
Oaks --
According to recent press reports Colonial Homes, developer of Colonial Oaks,
sold 90 of the 99 homes planned for the development in 14 months. Colonial Oaks
is located on the west side of Three Oaks between
Koreshan
36 Partnership -- This partnership recently
paid $5 million for the commercially zoned 36 acre site on the northwest corner
of
Lee
School District Site Acquisition -- Last month we reported that Lee County School District's plan to acquire a 76 acre
site for several schools on the east side of Three Oaks Parkway just east of
the Villages of Country Creek community was in jeopardy due to a legal dispute
between the property owner and his former real estate broker. Fortunately the
problem has been resolved and the District has now closed on the purchase of the
property. The
Community Organization Growth Related
Activities
Estero Civic Association
-- Each month during "the
season" the Estero Civic Association hosts prominent Local, County and
State speakers in order to inform Estero residents about important Estero issues
and to address resident's questions and concerns. The meetings are listed in
the EDR calendar, are publicized in the press and all Estero residents are
invited to attend.
On October 13th
the Association heard presentations by County Comm. Ray Judah and Mary Gibbs,
the director of the County's Community Development Department. As she has done
for several years, Mary Gibbs reviewed the Estero area development projects
that the county has reviewed during the last year and those that are now
pending.
Comm.
The tower would be located
just south of this Estero community and would be visible from many of the homes
in the community. The engineering firm representing the residents and the
community testified that extensive berming had been install along the border of
the community next to the proposed tower location in order to obscure a Bonita
Springs Utilities water tank that is adjacent to the tower site.
Community residents would
have preferred that the applicants find another location for the tower and were
supported by two
This result could not have
been possible but for the excellent organization of the
Roadway Improvements
Representatives of the
Pelican Landing Board of Directors, about 90% of which is in
During October Commissioner
Ray Judah appeared before several forums in Estero and
Late in October Cella and
Associates, the County's Sandy Lane Alignment Study consultants,
requested an opportunity to present their preliminary findings and
alignments to the Estero Community Planning Panel at their December 8th
meeting at 6 p.m. in the Marsh Landing
Clubhouse. This will be a very important meeting for the Estero community,
especially the residents of The Brooks, Pelican Landing and all surrounding
communities. Please plan to attend and advise your friends and neighbors about
this important opportunity for you to reduce traffic congestion in your
community.
The County plans three public
meetings, one of which is likely to be in conjunction with a Bonita Springs
City Council meeting, also in early December. After these meetings the
alignment will be amended and discussed at a public workshop. Finally, the
proposed alignment will go to both the City Council and BOCC for approval.
Widening US 41 from
Corkscrew Road to San Carlos Park -- Last month we reported that Regional FDOT officials
approved submitting an application for right-of-way funding of this segment
from the State Infrastructure Bank (SIB) which was recently funded by the
Florida Legislature for the next two fiscal years. If the application is
approved, right-of-way acquisition for this segment of US 41 could be started
in the fall or winter of 2004, 18 to 21 months earlier than the present funding
schedule permits. Regional FDOT filed the application in late September. The final
decision of State FDOT is expected in mid-November.
If
the project is not approved the Estero community will work with Commissioner
Judah, county staff and Estero's development community to seek county approval
of a low-interest loan to the state with the interest to be paid by the private
sector.
Increased
Road Impact Fees -- On October 28th the BOCC voted to increase road impact fees
by 22%, reflecting the increase in road costs over the last three years, when
the rates were last adjusted. County staff had asked the BOCC to consider a 44%
increase that would have added the ability for the county to help finance state
road construction costs should the state not be able to build these roads in a
timely manner. The county has the responsibility for ensuring that the road
network, both county and state, is adequate to support each development they
approve for construction. The Estero Council of Community Leaders testified in
support of the higher rate in the hope that it would increase the flow of
highway funds necessary to accelerate our three critical road projects:
·
·
US 41 (see above), and
·
Recent Estero
Growth Statistics
In
the month of September, 125 additional housing units were permitted in Estero
with a total building value of almost $20.5 million. In addition, about $3
million of commercial building value was permitted during the month.
During
the first nine months of 2003, 1,255 housing units were permitted in Estero
with a total building value (exclusive of land) of $190.6 million. The
following table shows the pattern for the first 9 months during last
four years:
|
Year |
Number of Units Permitted |
Building Value of
Permitted Units |
|
2000 |
1,710 |
$235,690,871 |
|
2001 |
1,748 |
266,468,382 |
|
2002 |
1,124 |
190,366,447 |
|
2003 |
1,255 |
193,968,479 |
The
table shows the decline caused by the tragedy of
The
building value of residential units in Estero continues to make a major
contribution to the