Estero Development Report

Volume 4, Number 9

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.

February Opportunities for Citizen Participation

In Protecting Estero's Quality of Life

Date	Time	Event	Location
Tuesday, February 1^st	6 p.m.	Roadway Landscape Advisory Committee consideration of Sandy Lane Landscape Plan	3^rd Floor Conference Room, County Community Development Building, 1500 Monroe, F M
Tuesday, February 1^st	7 p.m.	Village with a Vision at Fountain Lakes	Fountain Lakes Clubhouse
Monday, February 7^th	9 a.m.	Board of County Commissioner Hearing on Coconut Point housing composition zoning amendment	Board Chambers, 2^nd floor, 2120 Main Street, Ft. Myers
Monday, February 7^th	7 p.m.	Village with a Vision …Marsh Landing	Marsh Landing Clubhouse
Wednesday, February 9th	5 p.m.	Estero Design Review Committee review of Toucan Grille, Galleria of Corkscrew	The Perry Room of The Estero Country Club at The Vines
Thursday, February 10^th	7 p.m.	Village with a Vision at The Vines	Estero Country Club at The Vines
Saturday, February 12^th	All day	Celebrate Estero Day	Miromar Outlets Mall
Monday, February 14^th	2 p.m.	Estero Civic Association Meeting
Monday, February 14^th	6 p.m.	Estero Community Planning Panel	Marsh Landing Clubhouse
Tuesday, February 15^th	6:00 p.m.	Estero Fire Rescue District Board Meeting	Estero United Methodist Church -- Founder's Hall
Wednesday, February 16^th	9 a.m.	Hearing Examiner Hearing on the AT&T plan to rezone their site located within the Pelican Landing Community from a Cell Tower to a smaller cell tower and 15 single family lots	2^nd Floor Hearing Room, Community Development Building, 1500 Monroe Street, Fort Myers
Wednesday, February 16^th	7 p.m.	Village with a Vision at the Cascades	The Cascades Clubhouse
Friday, February 18th	2 p.m.	ECCO Council of Community Leaders Meeting. These meetings are open to the public.	Pelican Sound River Club
Tuesday, February 22^nd	7 p.m.	Village with a Vision at Pelican Landing	Pelican Landing Clubhouse
Wednesday, February 23^rd	7 p.m.	Village with a Vision at Lighthouse Bay	Lighthouse Bay Clubhouse
Monday, February 28^th	7 p.m.	Village with a Vision at Country Creek	Country Creek Clubhouse

Index

Page	Subject
1	Calendar
2	Responding to Bonita Springs Annexation Initiative
3	Some Annexation Considerations
3	Estero Advantages
5	Estero Tops Post Office List
5	Village With A Vision
6	Estero Housing Permits Hit Three Year High
6	Estero's Commercial Growth Spurt Has Now Begun
7	The Williams Road/US 41 Intersection, Paradise Shoppes and West Bay Rezonings
8	West Bay Club Rezoning
8	Development Order (DO) Reviews by the Estero Design Review Committee (EDRC)
8	Walgreen's at Paradise Shoppes
9	T-Mobile Tower at I-75 and Corkscrew Road
9	Approved Developments Progress Reports
10	Roadway Landscaping Progress

Responding to Bonita Springs Annexation Initiative --- At its December 17^th meeting the Estero Council of Community Leaders (ECCL) unanimously approved the following actions:

· Form an "Annexation Review Committee"; and

· Screen and hire a knowledgeable and experienced attorney.

The ECCL also discussed the amount that each community should contribute toward the cost of this legal representation. A final decision on this question was deferred until possible attorneys had been screened.

On January 12^th the Annexation Review Committee met for a general discussion of the annexation issue in order to make some recommendations to the full ECCL. The committee decided to make the following recommendations to the ECCL at their meeting on January 14^th:

· The have a delegation of Estero community leaders meet with the principal officials of the City of Bonita Springs to learn more about their annexation plans; and

· To organize an Annexation Workshop for all Estero Community Board members. representatives of major community-wide organizations and major developers and landowners; and

· For the ECCL to hire Tom Hart of the law firm of Knott, Consoer, Ebelini, Hart & Swett to assist the group with all legal issues associated with any annexation attempt by Bonita Springs.

· For the Village with a Vision program to include an explanation of annexation procedures and how Estero's growth management program and standards would be affected by any annexation.

The ECCL approved all of the committee recommendations and adopted a minimum contribution level of $300 per community for the annexation legal fund. Checks from communities and individuals should be made out to the Thomas B. Hart Trust Account and mailed to Thomas B. Hart, Knott, Ebelini, Hart & Swett at 1625 Hendry Street, Ft. Myers, Florida 33901. Prior to the meeting the ECCL had received commitments for more than $6,000 for the legal fund.

On January 10^th the Estero Civic Association sponsored a program on Annexation that attracted over 200 Estero residents.

On January 28^th several Estero leaders met with the Bonita Springs Mayor, Manager and Attorney to discuss the City's annexation plans. The City representatives indicated that they had thus far taken only three steps regarding this issue:

· Prepared a map showing the boundaries of the Bonita Springs Post Office in Estero and the utilities that overlap the two communities;

· Prepared a graphic showing how much additional tax revenue the City of Bonita Springs had captured during the five years since its establishment. Had the City not incorporated these funds would have gone to Lee County to be spent throughout the county; and

· Voted to authorize the Mayor and the Manager to speak to Estero organizations and communities seeking to learn more about the City's annexation plans.

If and when the City decides to proceed with annexation of property located within the Estero Fire Rescue District, the City will first need to take the following steps:

· Negotiate an Interlocal Agreement with Lee County as called for by the City's Comprehensive Plan, and

· Vote City Council approval for the funds necessary to complete an Annexation Study.

Finally the City officials indicated that they thought that the minimum time necessary to bring an annexation proposal to a vote by the affected area would be six to nine months from the date that the Annexation Study funding was approved.

Some Annexation Considerations

In any Involuntary Annexation the burden of proof should be on the annexing municipality to show that they will:

· Provide more and better municipal services than the annexed area is already receiving; and

· Provide the residents with better representation and more responsive government.

As the following narrative indicates the people of Estero are already pretty well served in both these areas.

Estero Advantages

· Estero is a new community…three fourths of all homes and virtually all commercial structures in Estero are less than six years old...as a result Estero's needs for and costs of services today are much less than in older communities and neighborhoods

· Estero's infrastructure has been greatly expanded during the last several years…Corkscrew Road has been widened…US 41 is being widened…Coconut Road (west) was resurfaced and widened…Coconut Road (east),Three Oaks Parkway, Ben Hill Griffin and Estero Parkway all were recently constructed…Coconut Road resurfacing just completed…Sandy Lane construction is just getting underway…the Estero Parkway Flyover, Three Oaks four-laning and the I-75/Corkscrew Interchange will all be under construction by year end… thus Estero's maintenance needs and costs can be expected to be far lower than in more mature communities

· Estero's central location has resulted in Estero rapidly being recognized as the future commercial center of Southwest Florida. It is considered home to all of the following: the Hyatt Coconut Point Resort and Spa; Miromar Factory Outlets Mall; Coconut Point Town Center; Germaine Arena; Miromar International Design Center; North Point; the Embassy Suites Hotel; the Bonita Community Health Center and many other significant high end developments. And Florida Gulf Coast University is immediately north of the Estero Planning Area.

· Estero's property tax base per resident is already higher than any other Lee County community except the City of Sanibel…with all the commercial development along US 41 and Corkscrew Road it will eventually approach Sanibel's lofty perch. If the annexation effort fails and the residents of Estero decide to incorporate, they will be able to have a high level of municipal services with a very low municipal property tax rate

· Estero is the only community in Lee County where developers must hold a community meeting in the community before filing a zoning application. This requirement has permitted the Estero Community Planning Panel to negotiate numerous beneficial zoning conditions binding upon whoever ultimately develops the property

· Estero is the only community in Lee County where developers must hold a community meeting in the community before filing an application for a Development Order. This requirement has permitted the Estero Design Review Committee to obtain many beneficial architectural, landscaping and site design changes

· Estero is a planned community with the highest standards in Southwest Florida

o Pole and pylon signs are prohibited…only monument signs and icon towers are allowed for project identification

o Animated signs, balloons, banners, pennants, electronic message signs are also prohibited

o Special standards for gas stations and convenience stores require less intense lighting, architecturally pleasing buildings and canopies (no striping), enhanced landscaping

o Prohibit all outdoor sales, storage and display

o Commitments for roadway landscaping on all major roadway medians

o Overlay districts for all commercial corridors include exceptionally high architectural design standards…. primarily Mediterranean… and landscaping standards…only neutral, warm earth tones and pastel colors may be used…each project must be compatible with those that surround it

o Big Box retailers must use architecture and landscaping to break-up the size of the store…their parking lots must be broken into smaller segments by landscaped dividers

o Small parks and public areas are strongly encouraged

o Safe pedestrian walkways are required throughout each project

· Estero has volunteer community organizations that allow all Estero residents and each residential community to effectively participate in all community decisions involving proposed developments, infrastructure projects and county policies

· All these groups have close, effective working relationships with the Lee County commissioners and staff. The County approved the community plan, provided the legal authority for, and works closely with, Estero's planning, zoning and appearance committees

· Although Estero is not a municipality, the residents of Estero are represented in the decision-making process by their community's member on the Estero Council of Community Leaders (ECCL) who is appointed by the community's Board of Directors. Estero's community-wide organizations are also represented on the ECCL. In addition all Estero residents are encouraged to attend these meetings and participate in the discussions in a true town-meeting, democratic process

· The Estero Fire Rescue District provides outstanding fire and medical emergency service while maintaining one of the lowest tax rates in the County. When the Coconut Point station opens this summer, all of their four stations will be less than 3 years old.

Estero Tops Post Office List --- On January 4^th regional post office officials announced that Estero ranks Number 1 on their list for new post offices in 2005. Replacement of Estero's small facility has been delayed for several years due a US Post Office moratorium on new post offices. According to Postmaster Deborah Rardin ground could be broken later this year with occupancy about one year later. According to post office officials Estero's high rank is the result of the areas population growth and the level of community support that has been demonstrated during the last couple of years.

Once the new post office is open for business the areas of Estero that are now being served by the Bonita Springs post office are expected to be transferred back to Estero, thus eliminating a lot of confusion for south Estero residents.

Village With A Vision --- This program was developed to better inform residents about the community in which they live, either on a full time or seasonal basis. It was initiated in early 2003 as a review of Estero’s history and a preview of its future. It was presented 11 times last spring to over 1,600 Estero residents. The 2005 program has been updated to include new information and illustrations pertinent to our fast growing community.

Special emphasis will be given in the new edition of the program to Bonita Springs’ possible attempt to annex part or all of Estero into its municipality. Estero is currently a planning community in unincorporated Lee County.

During January Village with a Vision was presented three times…at the South County Regional Library, at Stoneybrook and at Spring Run in The Brooks.

Estero Housing Permits Hit Three Year High --- During December Estero's housing development continued its rapid growth with another 161 housing units permitted during the month. That brings the total for the year to 1,646 units, up 221 units from 2003 and 145 from 2002.

The following table shows how 2004 compares with the same period during the prior four years:

Year	Total Annual Housing Units	Building Value of Units	Average Building Value Per Unit	Percentage of Single Family Units
2000	2,088	$291,811,402	$139,756	40.9
2001	2,104	$325,403,253	$154,569	47.1
2002	1,500	$278,888,919	$185,926	50.9
2003	1,425	$231,712,400	$162,605	46.8
2004	1,646	$365,109,794	$221,816	59.5

Calendar year 2004:

· ranks third of the last five years in the number of housing units permitted;

· ranks first of the five years in total building value and is $133 million greater than the prior year, 2003;

· has by far the highest building value per unit --- up by 19% over the next highest year (2002);

· ranks first in the proportion of single family homes by 8.6 percentage points.

The residential building value understates the purchase price of each residence because it excludes the value of the underlying land.

Although residential permitting in Bonita Springs has increased greatly in the last couple of years, residential growth in Estero during 2004 was still 13% higher.

Estero's Commercial Growth Spurt Has Now Begun --- Building permits have recently been issued for construction of the Miromar International Design Center and the Embassy Suites Hotel. As the following table indicates the total value of commercial building permits (excluding multi-family residential) issued in Estero during 2004 easily exceeds all prior years, except 2000 when the Hyatt Coconut Point Resort was permitted.

Year	Building Value of Commercial Permits
2000	$77,250,835
2001	44,116,526
2002	23,135,139
2003	23,234,725
2004	60,859,820

During 2005 the first phase of the Coconut Point Town Center will be permitted in addition to many smaller, but significant, commercial projects.

The Williams Road/US 41 Intersection, Paradise Shoppes and West Bay Rezonings --- At present the eastbound left turn lane on the west side of the Williams Road/US 41 intersection provides space for only 4 vehicles. Oftentimes there are so many vehicles waiting to turn north on US 41 that vehicles seeking to enter the Albertsons/Coconut Point Ford entrance road are blocked by these vehicles, thus backing up all westbound Williams Road traffic. In addition, one east bound vehicle blocks all east bound right-turn vehicles from turning south on US 41.