Estero
Development Report
Volume 2, Number 3
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 July 2002
August Opportunities for Citizen
Participation
In Protecting Estero's Quality of Life
|
Date |
Time |
Event |
Location |
|
Monday, August 5th |
1:30 p.m. |
Board of County Commissioners Discussion of County Proposal for Funding Expanded Roadway Landscaping. |
Commission Chambers, 2120 Main Street, 2nd Floor, Ft. Myers |
|
Tuesday, August 6th |
6:30 p.m. |
Estero Community Planning Panel Meeting & County Parks and Recreation Discussion of Estero Community Park Master Plan |
South County Regional Library, Three Oaks Blvd just north of Corkscrew |
|
Monday, August 12th |
6:00 p.m. |
Estero Community Planning Panel Meeting |
South County Regional Library, Three Oaks Blvd just north of Corkscrew |
|
Wednesday, August 14th |
9 a.m. |
Grand Opening of the George Horne Fire Station |
US 41 and County Road just north of Corkscrew Road |
|
Tuesday, August 20th |
9 a.m. |
Continued Hearing -- Miromar Design Center Rezoning |
Hearing Examiner's Hearing Room, 1500 Monroe St., 2nd Floor, Ft. Myers |
County Financial Assistance for Estero's Priority
Needs--- The County's response to
Estero's efforts to increase county funding for roadway landscaping projects in
Estero has resulted in County Manager Don Stillwell proposing the development
of a countywide matching grant program for roadway landscaping that would
provide an opportunity for Estero to compete and benefit. At the July 10th
meeting of the Board he committed to presenting a proposal to the Board of
County Commissioners at their August 5th Management and Planning
meeting.
After the meeting ECCO suggested
that the County meet with Estero's community organizations and developers to
ensure that the County proposal is workable in Estero. The County agreed and a
productive meeting was held on Wednesday, July 24th focusing
primarily on how attractive roadway landscape designs can be created with minimum
future landscape maintenance costs and what new techniques might be developed to
facilitate private sector matching for enhanced landscape maintenance.
The staff report recommends
an increase of $2 million in roadway landscaping funds for the coming fiscal
year. In addition the report indicates a willingness by the County to consider
using some of these funds for "intensification of core level installation
…perhaps more trees or taller trees or even some strategic shrubs where mowing
is already a problem…", a matching program for enhanced roadway
landscaping and "yet to be defined options". The staff report
recommends that all of these options be considered and deliberated by the
Roadway Landscape Advisory Committee with their recommendations then being
considered by the BOCC in time for budget approval late in September.
Key Excerpts from the Report
follow:
" Increase in core level of landscaping-- Staff recommends that $2 million in ad valorem funds be added in FY 02/03 as a one-time budget increase to the Roadway Landscape CIP Project #6024-65. Staff also suggests that the Roadway Landscape Advisory Committee be asked to recommend options on ways to use the added funds to increase the core level of landscaping, including consideration of the County fully funding the installation costs for enhanced levels with a private commitment to fund the added maintenance costs."
"Current policy in regards to landscaping major roads (arterials and collectors) calls for the County to install and maintain a “core” level of landscaping, defined by the LeeScape Master Plan as canopy trees (shade, palm and accent/flowering trees) with irrigation. The plan, adopted and approved by the BOCC, allows for a more intensive tier of landscaping known as an “enhanced” level, defined as the addition of shrubs, groundcovers and possibly enhanced turf to the core level. Under the current program, the enhanced level would be achieved by private citizens or groups partnering with the County on installation and maintenance costs."
"The use of additional funds to increase the core level of landscaping could be accomplished in a number of ways. The Master Plan identifies 18 road segments as the highest priority, and as noted, the available funding only allows the County to pursue about 2 segments a year. Additional funding could allow more high priority road segments to be done at the core level. Another option could be an intensification of the core level installation. For budgeting purposes, the Master Plan assumes 19 trees per 600 linear feet for core level median landscaping; perhaps more trees or taller trees or even some strategic shrubs where mowing is already a problem could be considered. As a third option, the Master Plan suggests that the County can use the Roadway Landscape funds to provide up to 20% of the core level installation costs toward the enhanced level installation costs, at the request of private parties, with the rest of the installation costs and the additional maintenance costs to be covered by the private parties. The policy could be revised, with the additional funds paying 100% of the installation costs for enhanced level landscaping on County roads where private entities agree to cover the added maintenance costs. This option would be generally consistent with the wishes of the Estero community. These and other yet-to-be-defined options may require changes to the Master Plan recommendations, and should be deliberated and considered by the Roadway Landscape Advisory Committee, with the Committee’s recommendations brought back to the Board for formal approval."
The
staff recommendations, if supplemented appropriately by the Roadway Landscape
Advisory Committee and adopted by the BOCC, would be a significant indication
that the County wants to help Estero achieve its community goals as identified
by our community plan.
Estero's
community organizations and developers will watch with interest the response of
the BOCC to the staff recommendations on August 5th. Thereafter they
plan to meet and decide how best to proceed should the Roadway Landscape
Advisory Committee be directed to debate and refine the proposal in order to insure
that Estero can compete effectively for these funds.
The Estero roadways that will
be "core" landscaped soon and are the best targets for immediate
funding of upgraded or intensified landscaping are:
·
Corkscrew Road from US
41 to I-75 -- installation of
"core" landscaping is scheduled to begin in August or
September,
·
Three Oaks Parkway from
Williams Road to Corkscrew Road -- landscape design for this one-mile segment
is scheduled to be completed in August. Contract document preparation, bidding,
contractor selection and negotiation will be completed by year end with
"core" installation to begin early in 2003,
·
US 41 from Bonita
Springs to Corkscrew Road -- The contractor selection process is underway and
construction of the road is expected to start in September or October. Funding
for landscape design has been approved and the contract between the State and
the County is being reviewed. "Core" landscape installation is
expected to be installed in the spring-summer of 2005.
County Approval of Estero Land Development Code
Changes---
At its July 2nd
meeting the ECPP discussed various options for the structure and role of the Community
Appearance Committee (CAC) ranging from the ECPP acting as the CAC to a
completely independent CAC appointed by the ECPP. The predominant view was that
the Planning Panel should continue to meet with developers on zoning requests,
but that the CAC should act independently in the review of Development
Orders. Panel members would be free to
attend CAC meetings as members of the public.
It was suggested the CAC
might consist of 9 members with a minimum of 4 being professionals – landscape
architects and architects, professional planners, engineers, etc. making
certain that a majority of the CAC are Estero residents.
The LDC amendments
approved by the County Commission require only that the developer provide county
development staff with a report of the Estero meeting, but the panel concluded that
the CAC should also file a report with the County staff. It was also suggested that
the developer furnish the CAC and the ECPP with a copy of its report before submitting
it to the county.
Finally the Panel
concluded that a CAC job description should be prepared for the ECPP's approval
and that the job description be used to advertise the positions and to invite
applications and resumes.
Dan DeLisi, the
Panel's planning consultant, reported that he had begun work on additional Land
Development Code (LDC) changes to be submitted for consideration in the
County's Fall Cycle. These changes would include:
·
Higher signage standards
for all of Estero, and
·
An Overlay Zoning
District for US 41.
DeLisi also suggested that during this cycle the ECPP should ask the
County to extend the approved Corkscrew Overlay to include the area surrounding
the proposed Sandy Lane extension south of Corkscrew Road.
At the July 24th meeting of the ECPP Dan DeLisi summarized
the changes included in the Cycle 2--2002 LDC draft proposal to be reviewed and
approved by the Panel for immediate submittal to the County.
The proposed signage requirements were based upon standards recently
developed by County planning staff for use by the City of Bonita Springs on Bonita
Beach Road. The standards require that
signage must provide for safe and easy identification of businesses and other
establishments while enhancing, not detracting from, the aesthetic quality of
the Estero Community. One monument sign along any street that provides access
to a site will be permitted. Signs that
fit within the architectural frame or within the sign band of the storefront
are permitted. If approved by the BOCC the standards will prohibit billboards,
pole or pylon signs, digital signs, electronic signs, balloons or banners and
off-site advertising signs in Estero.
Once these additional LDC changes have been submitted to the County
they will be reviewed by county planning staff and then be subject to hearings
by several county advisory committees before being debated, amended and
(hopefully) approved by the BOCC.
Estero's 2002 Permitted Housing Unit Growth--- Housing construction in Estero continued to rebound in
June. During the month another 191 housing units were permitted in Estero-- the
10th highest month since the beginning of 2000, thirty (30) months
ago. As September 11th recedes into the background housing permits
in Estero are quickly returning to normal. While only 292 housing units were
permitted in the first quarter of the year, units permitted in the second
quarter increased to 498, a 71% increase.
The value of new residential
units permitted in Estero during June exceeded $31,700,000. This is nearly 40% of
the monthly total for unincorporated Lee County. Estero's share of
unincorporated Lee County's total residential building value has risen
throughout the year from 19% January and to 39.8% in June.
Year to date the value of
residential building permits in Estero is more than double that of Bonita
Springs, $130.4 million to $59.6 million. On the other hand Bonita leads Estero
by a wide margin in the building value of commercial development, $40.9 million
to $15.6 million.
Estero Community Park Progress Report--- The ECPP and the county officials responsible for
the design and construction of this 65 acre park have scheduled a presentation
of the alternative park master plans to the community on Tuesday, August 6th
at 6:30 p.m. This is a key meeting inasmuch as the Master Plan will guide the
county throughout the phased construction of the park over the next several
years. At the meeting both the ECPP and the public will have an opportunity to
ask questions and make suggestions regarding the master plan layout and design.
After the meeting the park
planners will make the necessary changes and present the Master Plan to the
BOCC for their final approval seven weeks later on Tuesday, September 24th.
Thereafter detailed design, contracting and construction can begin on the park.
Simon Suncoast (now "Coconut Point") Mall
and Mixed Use Development (on the east side of US 41 from Williams Road to
Coconut Road)---After a long delay the
Hearing Officer's report was released just as this edition went to press. Thus
next month's report will detail the status of this important project and the
outstanding issues still facing the community.
Estero Road Improvement Progress
US 41 Between Old 41 and Corkscrew Road--- The low bidder for this six-laning project is Ajax
Paving. FDOT is in the process of finalizing the contract with Ajax at this
time. Construction is still expected to begin in September or October with
completion expected in mid-2004.
US 41 Between Corkscrew Road and San Carlos Boulevard---
Resurfacing began on this 4-lane segment of US 41 during July. This $1.4 million project is expected to be
completed later this year in November. This segment of US 41 will be widened to
six-lanes several years from now unless accelerated by the Metropolitan
Planning Organization (MPO), but unquestionably will be the last segment
between Naples and Fort Myers to be widened.
Estero Median Roadway Landscaping and
Lighting Update--
US 41 Between Old 41 and Corkscrew Road--- FDOT has accelerated $60,000 to the present fiscal
year (2002-03) so that the landscape plan for the Estero portion of this road
segment can begin soon. In addition the State has drafted an agreement with Lee
County so that the County can contract with a landscape architect firm to
prepare the landscape plan and so FDOT can pay the County for this work when it
is completed. The County has begun to review the draft contract and is expected
to resolve any questions with the state shortly.
In addition FDOT is seeking
to accelerate the remaining $644,000 now budgeted for roadway landscaping for
this segment by two years from the 2006-07 fiscal year to 2004-05. If these
funds are accelerated this roadway segment is expected to be "core" landscaped
early in 2005.
Some of Estero's Pending Rezoning
Proposals
Estero is experiencing a
higher level of rezoning applications than at any time in the recent past. At
least seven applications are at various stages of approval; all of them contain
some commercial property; and most of them are located near Corkscrew Road and
I-75. The following sections provide some detail about three of the most recent
applications.
Stoneybrook Rezoning for Design Center --- On July 17th the Public Hearing on this
major Estero project began before Chief Hearing Officer Diana M. Parker. The
project includes a 400,000 square foot design center, a 14,500 square foot drug
store, 36,200 square feet of office space and a 125 room hotel all situated on
about 19 acres of land immediately east of I-75 on the south side of Corkscrew
Road.
The developer has worked
closely with all of Estero's community organizations and the ECPP in planning
this project. Both the Estero Chamber of Commerce and the ECPP testified in
support of the project at the hearing.
A review of the Department of
Planning staff report indicates that there are several outstanding issues that
the Hearing Officer will need to address. They are:
·
Retention of an existing
billboard located in the northwest corner of the property along I-75;
·
The applicant's request
for an Interstate Highway Interchange area sign that staff does not believe is
appropriate for the requested uses;
·
Staff recommendation for
a Type F buffer -- includes a solid wall or berm and solid wall not less than 8
feet in height -- along the southern boundary of the property adjacent to a
Stoneybrook residential area; and
·
The obligation of the
entire Development of Regional Impact (DRI), of which this request is a small
part, to provide or contribute to affordable housing.
The hearing was continued
until August 20 to permit the applicant, staff and the public to present
evidence and testimony regarding the affordable housing issue plus rebuttal and
legal arguments.
Hyatt Coconut Point Timeshare Zoning Amendment--- WCI and the Hyatt Corporation are seeking three minor
changes in the existing zoning for this 300 plus unit timeshare project now
under construction about one-half mile north of Coconut Road near Estero Bay.
The changes include:
WCI is expected to present
this request to the ECPP at it August meeting before finalizing its rezoning
application with the county.