ready Okay everyone Good morning Uh this is a regularly scheduled meeting of the Fort Myers Beach Local Planning Agency It's 9:00 a.m and it's April 8th 2025 If you would please stand for the invocation and the pledge of allegiance
I aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands One nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all Um may we always have the courage and
grace to do what we feel is or the grit and the grace to do what we feel is right and in the best interest of our community Amen Amen So um just if I if you all will indulge me for a second LPA members I wanted to
call you yesterday but Nancy said I needed to wait until today And since there are a couple of council members and a couple of people who spoke at the meeting yesterday about a donation I made I thought I'd just clarify it for you So I am not a member of the Fort
Myers Beach United uh group I'm not a member I'm not on their board I have no decision-making ability with that organization whatsoever I did make a donation to their cause Uh it's no surprise to anyone I stated it publicly
right here in this room during the council's deliberation about Seagate how I feel about that project Um I still feel strongly about that project that it was a mistake Um and should anything about Seagate ever come before us again
I would certainly recuse myself But I consulted Nancy and Becky because Nancy was hesitant to give me advice on her own So Becky got on the line I had a long conversation with both of them I said "Have I done something I need to
apologize for Have I done something illegal Have I done something u unethical?" And the answer was no I have not Um what I will apologize for is the drama that's been created about this I apologize for that mostly to the six of
you in I'm including Doug because yesterday several times it was said that um you know can these people get a fair can anyone they were mostly referring to the Arches project of course that's the big deal today even though to other people I'm sure their projects are just
as big a deal uh can they get a fair hearing before the LPA I'm one vote on this LPA and um so I believe in all of my deepest heart that uh anybody who comes before this body will get a fair
hearing and a just hearing and an impartial hearing Um I've been doing this a very long time and it's difficult in a small town Um you know I said the last time the Freeland family was here I went to school with those guys I bought my first car from that family I've known
them most of my life Um can I still be impartial about that case I believe I can Um it happens a lot in Fort Myers Beach and I'm the first one to point out that I know somebody personally that I have a relationship somehow with someone personally Um I did what I felt was
right and um I still believe what I did was right but I'm sorry that it's caused you all such consternation Um yesterday by the end of the council meeting I felt like I was a card carrying communist Uh and and that uh was very upsetting to me
Really upsetting to me Um I am uh I'm sorry that council members have lost faith in me over this Uh I you know I stood up because so many people had said to me that they were afraid to and I
said you know what that's just not right It's just not right So I disclosed myself and um and here I stand I have no intention of resigning Uh I'll serve my term I suspect that you know maybe I
won't get reappointed in October And if that's the will of the council that's the will of the council But uh from now until then at least I will do my best to look at each and every case fairly and without prejudice And that's all I have
to say So now uh unless any of you guys have any questions for me do you about this Okay So we'll move on to an approval of the final agenda May I have a motion So moved Okay
Is there any objection to the motion Hearing none The motion carries unanimously An approval of the minutes for the local planning agency meeting of March 11th 2025 And approve those minutes Thank you John Second Thank you Jane Any discussion Any objection Motion
carries unanimously And now we'll move on to public comment So and this is public comment not on a case that's before us please Unless you've got a time constraint in which case you're welcome to come up Go ahead I have Paula Kiker followed by Ed Rude Okay
Um Madam Chair may I just say on the record um you did mention that there were conversations with me and and Becky Vos Um my comments to you just for the record were consistent with the comments that I made yesterday They were exactly the same at the um town council meeting
Yes they was exactly the same Thank you Good morning Paula Good morning Paula Kiker 6035 Aster Boulevard I am here today to state my opinion on a matter that I had learned about over the weekend It has come to my attention that Miss Sarita has not only donated to the
Protect MMB organization but is actively lobbying for others to donate on social media And my comments are today are for any member who are serving on the LPA who has also donated if any At the town council meeting yesterday I urged the
council to address and any other LPA members that are involved with the suit against the town against the very folks who placed you on this committee Under that ordinance 2-96 removal of agency board committee or commission members It
reads "Unless otherwise precluded by state statute ordinance or resolution any member of an agency board committee or commission shall serve at the pleasure of the town council and may be removed by town council with or without
cause." Period End of story There's a second statement of that ordinance but it's only for a must situation I believe Nancy is wrong in her decision yesterday and when she told the council that they could not remove
you or any others I am prepared to have the state opine on that subject should I have to do that In my line of work I often ask my clients put yourself in the other person's shoes I ask them how would you feel if you were them So in
today's scenario how do you think these applicants sitting behind me today will feel about today's process Will they think it can be fair and unbiased Will they think if you don't like the final outcome you will sue to delay stop the
project again and again It may be the first time but I believe you've lost their trust Go fight your cause Just do not do it from that chair Thank you Thank you Paula Mr Rude
after Mr Rude is Karen Woodson Good morning Good morning everyone Um Ed RDE 8150 Estster Boulevard Um Anita I appreciate your explanation Um and I
understand both sides of the story pretty much Um I'm going to have to add lib a little bit because your explanation has kind of tore up my what I've got written down here Sorry about that Ed But I do want to express my concern I do
have a concern and it's pretty widespread obviously Um it's hard for me to believe that you are not biased towards these projects It's evident that you're biased
towards them You're going to vote against the arches today There's there's no question you you you know that coming in Um um the bias proves itself with your affiliation to protect FMB and
you're donating to the lawsuit to try to overturn the council's decision You're here at the council's pleasure Um it it it's my understanding that the donations to protect FMB are
confidential You should have kept it that way instead of going out on social media That was the fallacy And that fallacy that mistake should create a situation where you have to recuse yourself from the projects
that are me mentioned on this website and the ones that are upcoming including the arches today And it's my opinion if you had the integrity that that was necessary that
you would admit that and you would do it Thank you Thank you Eddie Karen Woodson Karen Woodson That's all I have signed up after Miss Woodson Well if anybody else would like to speak they're welcome to Good morning Karen Good morning everyone
Karen Woodson 823rd Street Anita on a personal level you're a wonderful woman who has done remarkable work for our town and have contributed immensely to the community Thank you But speaking personally what is happening here with the town with
protect FNB is ethically reprehensible From a 10,000 foot level everyone on the council yesterday had concerns Optics for the town are skewed and puts the integrity of our systems and governing body of the town in
question If you respect the process and the people of our governing body you don't undermine it This is not just a legal question but an ethical issue I asked this question of councel Who else has contributed to this lawsuit with protect
FMB No one And I'll ask the same question of all of you Who else in the LPA besides the chair Anita Sarasitta has contributed or solicited contributions for protect FMB which has filed a
lawsuit against our town I'm not expecting an answer but I am asking that you dig deep into your moral compass Hard to believe you can be impartial in this hearing In a perfect world I've had 40
years in HR It's morally unethical to contribute solicit contributions or engage in any way in a lawsuit against the town when you're an appointed member of a town advisory committee basically biting the hand that feeds you
or in this case that appoints you long term Anita I do not believe you're willing to support the direction and decisions of our current council and perhaps the will of the LPA Thank you Thank you Is there anybody else who'd
like to speak No one Okay public comment is closed Uh sure Jane But we don't really comment on public comment But I'm not going to comment on public comment I'm going to say with the statement that Karen just
said anybody that takes contributions So I haven't heard any of the council disclose their contributions on any of these Well that's not relevant It's it's and and can they keep an open mind for the public that they're serving
if they're taking in money it that no change No no no That that's that's it has nothing to do with this Has nothing to do with personal check So today before us we have five quasi judicial hearings and one legislative hearing And
we're going to start with a reszoning which is um an ordinance of the town of Fort Myers Beach Florida Approving approving with conditions or denying a reszoning of property located at 10113rd Street Fort Myers Beach Florida It is
strap number 244623 W300202.0060 from downtown to residential plan development It is an RPD with three deviations One to request to apply property development regulations for the downtown zoning
district rather than the residential multif family standards in section 34-943 requiring use of the RM development regulations Two reduction of the required 5-ft sideyard setbacks to
allow for development on the eastern property line And three requesting a floor area ratio F of 1.7 an increase over the 1.0 F allowed in section
34-675C3 Providing for clarifications is necessary for providing for conflicts of laws scribners errors severability and providing for an effective date Madame Chair I have a few comments I'd like to make before um we engage in our quasi
judicial Yes please do Nancy I forgot about your choke That's okay Um as as the chair has advised we do have five items on our agenda today The first five items that are quasi judicial in nature The last item is legislative in nature
Um and just uh so everyone is aware that there will be a recess um by the LPA uh from noon till 100 p.m So the five items that are on u today's agenda they are as I mentioned quasi judicial in nature and
this requires that the public hearing today comply with procedural requirements that have been established in Florida law and in our land development code So these quasi judicial proceedings will be less formal than a proceeding before a circuit court but
they will be more formal than the um hearing that we will have on the legislative matter as well as the remaining items on today's agenda our quasi judicial hearings They're going to follow basic standards of due process that requires certain notices
application of the correct standards and that the LPA decisions are made on competent substantial evidence that will be presented either in written documents or through oral testimony As the LPA your job is to
evaluate this testimony and information for each of the items that are brought to you and draw a conclusion regarding whether or not the criteria in your land development code your comprehensive plan or state law as may be applicable has
been satisfied So pure speculation or mere opinion that is not based on competent facts cannot legally be considered by you in evaluating an agenda item Testimony by professionals who are qualified as experts in a
particular area has been considered by Florida courts to be competent and sub competent evidence as well as testimony by neighbors and residents who have fact-based information such as minutes surveys engineering reports or testimony
that is based on their personal knowledge and information So anyone in the audience today if you are intended to speak on any of these items please keep my comments in mind When you come forward please state your name clearly for the record and whether or not you
have been sworn in Today you have several variances before you and an anonymous unanimous got it this time Uh decision by eligible voting members of the LPA to approve a variance shall
constitute final agency action subject to a request by anyone for an additional hearing review of the matter by the town council if that request for an additional hearing is received by the town clerk within 10 days of the LPA
decision So for purposes of efficiency I do need to dispose of a few more housekeeping matters First I need to ask the town clerk whether the agenda items today that are before you have been properly noticed pursuant to our land
development code and Florida law Excuse me Yes they have been Okay Thank you And at this time also I need to ask if anyone has a conflict of interest um under the Florida Ethics Code uh that
would require the com the um completion of a form 8B um that you have any type of benefit coming to you for as a pri a special gain or a special loss to please disclose it at this time so that in the
so I can ascertain that we do have a quorum present present to review these items Uh Jim anything None How about you Doug Uh no ma'am Jane just don't walk by Uh I have none Jim no conflict How about John
No conflict I also note that we have um six members present today Yes I was just going to say that but Okay go ahead and disclose Mr Sudith has um requested an excused absence for family issues So moved Thank you Second Thank you Any
objection Okay Okay Thank you And um so if there is anyone in the audience as well as town staff um who is intending to provide testimony today if you would please stand and raise your right hand and the clerk will swear you in This is
for any case that we're going to hear today Correct Do you solemnly swear and affirm that the testimony you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth Okay All parties have been sworn So Madam Chair you have read the title for
our first agenda item There are a few more housekeeping items that I think would you like me to go through them or would you like So I'll ask for correct So John anything Uh not on this one Jim
no J my walk by How about you Doug No ma'am No Jim I do I actually spoke with Matt Noble briefly briefly about this and oh a long time ago um George the property owner was in my store and
mentioned that he had a project coming forward Nothing particular but he did mention it and that's all Okay So can all members render a fair and impartial decision today Yes And has anyone already made their mind up regarding
this particular item No Is the applicant present on this item Yes Would you like to ask any questions regarding their disclosures Okay Um has the applicant received a copy of the agenda materials Yes
Uh as far as Has Mr Noble been accepted as a an expert Have you ever Have you ever done Have you done anything here yet before where we've accepted you as an expert in your field Matt I don't think so I don't think we have Would you come up for just a moment
Yes He's got a bomb Okay So Matt would you tell us what your what your uh specialties are and what your qualifications are as a planner Yes I am a practicing planner have been a
practicing planner in Lee County about 40 years now I have a master's degree in urban and regional planning I've worked for Lee County I've worked for the beach I've worked for Asterero I've done projects up and down the state of
Florida in multiple states actually Okay Um does anybody have any questions for Mr Noble or would someone make a motion please to accept him as an expert in his field for the town Also move Thank you Doug and thank you Jane Uh any
discussion or objection to the motion Okay Matt you're officially a uh an expert Thank you You're welcome So I I believe that staff will do an introduction and then the applicant will present their case Thank you Go ahead Jason
Good morning members staff My name is Jason Smallley I'm with your planning and zoning department Uh today I'm here to present a request for a RPD or a residential plan development uh located at 10 at 10113rd Street uh located in
the downtown zoning district Before you is a request to uh institute an RPD Uh along with it they are requesting three deviations Uh I will go over the deviations in a little bit more detail Uh the deviations before you today that
have been requested include a uh deviation to code sections 34,674 and 675 These code sections among other things uh detail what the setbacks heights bulk of the buildings in those
zoning districts would be Uh the request before you today is to substitute the RM or residential multifamily zoning district that the code calls for to be the underlying zoning district for any plan developments and instead replace it
with the downtown zoning district Um the differences and this was mentioned briefly in the staff report Uh there are some minor differences between the two zones It's uh from my opinion it's a bit of a mixed bag Uh some of it are some of it is less intensive in downtown some of
it's a bit more intensive in downtown as compared to the RM zoning district Um I will leave that to the applicant to explain any questions you may have about why they chose downtown district Um the second deviation request that they have
uh asked for is to reduce the side setbacks in the downtown zoning district There would be a 5-ft structural set sideyard setback Uh this is differentiated from the RM zoning district That district would require a 6 and a half foot side setback So the
downtown zoning district from the baseline is uh 1 and a half foot less than what would be required within the RM zoning district Um so they've requested to move the building over to the east side property line provide a zero lot line on the east side and as
such uh they will be providing the 5-ft setback on the west property line Finally uh the third deviation request is a deviation request to allow for additional floor area ratio under
the RM zoning district Uh the RM zoning district would allow for a 1.0 know uh F in that area Uh they are requesting a 1.7 floor area ratio Um the calculations based on what has been submitted to us
shows a building that is roughly 1 uh 61 and they're asking for 1.7 uh in the words of the applicant to provide them a little bit of breathing room and movement uh with the building So that's what's been requested today Staff is here for any questions that you may have
Uh and the applicants uh representative is also here to answer questions And Jason your um your recommendation is approval I apologize Yes recommendation of staff is approval based on looking at the totality of the project where it is located um the reasonable expectation
for any sort of negative nuisances uh that may pre be presented to that area and the fact that uh the density is being reduced from the four units that existed pre-torrm that we could validate Uh they're proposing to build two
dwelling units So it's a reduction in density um for the for the entire project based on what theoretically could be rebuilt under the post- disaster buildback policy Okay Thank you Jason Of course
Matt Do I have the PowerPoint He's bringing it up You need a clicker too I guess I'll take a minute and say I'm I'm so grateful everybody is here today I'm happy to be here You know it's
all good It's kind of my return to the beach It's been been a few years since I've been to the beach So I really appreciate everybody being here I am so thankful for staff and all the help they've given and multiple projects just
not this project Uh but you know very helpful and uh you know I it's a complicated code I'm not going to kid anybody You know it's definitely unique the the beach code you know and not working with
it every day you forget things And I I like being pointed out that you know my memor is not perfect you know So I wanted to start with that express my gratitude to the staff That's very nice Matt I hear everybody yelling at staff all the time and I think we we
need to be thankful for that You know we certainly are It's okay Have some technical difficulties We're having technical difficulties Um would anyone like a snack
Uh it is a very minor requirement I don't know if anybody remembers the building that was kind of kitty corner from um the the restaurant across the street John Lo had his offices there didn't he I think he did at one point you know and
I I kind of it it definitely is the way back machine because I I I lived it with the staff like well how did it become four units Well back in the early 70s the county would allow six dwelling
units on any parcel on the beach I mean there was an ordinance that allowed that That's how this unit came to be you know back in the day And there were four four units in in it Now they were tiny you know I mean we're
talking there was like one of them was like 167 square feet you know These these are like very efficiency and kind of out of the character of what's going on on the beach right now Uh th this does result in a little bit more
square footage than the totality of the four units but only results in two dwelling units Uh so there's going to be a reduction in traffic and and other things associated with two units versus four units
Um that's kind of the heart of the case Now you I wanted to kind of start with with the I mean that that's our development team and I I think we can
there it goes Okay So there's the old uh building that was their side of the bridge Also like to just point out how close it was to the bridge It was very close to the bridge and the The other the other thing I mean it's
two stories you know it was a short two stories and it was on the ground but two stories a lot of people have forgotten that I always have to remind some people it was two stories um here let me yeah so we went I think Jason went
over the request I don't want to belabor that the three deviations I think that's the heart of the case you know and that's kind of where I'll stop for a second is there is difference with downtown zoning in the RM You know in
downtown we're not so concerned with the buffering of the units or the uses Um very rarely are buffers required downtown Now there we did leave space on the site plan for buffers up against the parking
lot you know and also it allows some planting area for the owner to uh make it a little more lush than what was there before Um the the other thing you have to understand the parking
lot the uh town's parking lot underneath the bridge is actually set back from this property uh runs from 11 to 12 feet of where the paved parking is to the actual property line So there already is
kind of a natural setback from where the unit is going to be I know people like "Oh zero lot line." But that's downtown Buildings downtown are set on property lines The restaurant Kitty
Corner is set on the property line You go up and down Old Corkcrew Old St Carlos Old St Carlos Exactly I I've done that twice today I'm like "Yeah my my brain I know." But that's
what you find in downtown is the units right to the property line and it's more about the kind of the streetscape of what's going to happen You know that's why we felt it was more appropriate to pursue development under the downtown because it's going to fit in just like
everybody else in that location And yes we're only seeking a two family as the schedule of uses Uh and here here is the downtown
um requirements I just threw it on a property development regulation sheet so you could see you know that uh we will meet the minimum rear setback of 25 ft The building frontage you know will exceed 35% of the
lot frontage Uh and then of course we are asking for the the setback deviation um from five feet to zero on the one side which is up against the parking lot
Um the building height haven't asked for anything with the building height Uh 30 feet above base flood is the height Um the the other thing that Jason pointed out is the FAR request you know to up it a little bit
to accommodate the two units That's where it is right downtown right side of the bridge Um you you can see the uh what I said is actually true the surveyor
picked it up and it's on the survey on the bottom shows just about 12 feet set back to the pave parking lot and then up at the top it's a little over 11 ft Um yeah and the lot itself is slightly a
skew you know it's not exactly rectal a rectangle you know I I had to look it up There is a shape but I'm like "Oh we're not going to do that." Parallel again It It's not It
It's not Okay But Oh my god Yeah So here here's a photo with the old unit on it You see pretty much covered the lot back then too You know there was actually a couple couple
of shots that I had to like you know use a little bit of like Come on Matt You're starting to put too many photos in but I mean it was right on the property line so we're not really out of character of what was there you
know And then of course what happened there It is vacant It's a very small lot you know 40 by 80 ft Um th this is the LEPA sheet that
documents the four units that were there in the square footage Um yeah and the the build back is about I think it was like 13 a little over 1300 square feet in addition to what was
there you know so I I don't want anybody to and I just threw these here just this was the appraisal uh George did do a private appraisal before the storm and so we have some data of what was there so here's the
first board And then there's the second floor Um there's the master concept plan showing the building kind of over on the one side Uh it does give some room for
some water management Uh is is his intent to put water management on the site Some of it will be vaulted some of it will be detention Um that's that's a benefit of
this is it will have a water management system put in place And there there's kind of I just threw the the cover sheet just to give you an idea of what what the building's going to look like At least that's the current state And it kind of gives you
the bridge to its relationship to the bridge You can see the car up there The the unit's about as high as the bridge but you have to keep in mind we're beyond the peak of the bridge The bridge is already coming back down to the
landing And then there was I just threw a few public benefits on a couple of sheets you know and I I think one one of the the benefits is it is being done as a plan development It's the most laid-back presentation I think we've
ever had Throw in a couple of sheets with some benefits Go ahead Matt Well you know um I don't want to belabor it too You could you can read I don't want to read to you you know So is this pool going to
be like you're going to be up there and uh and somebody's going to be driving by on the bridge I think it's such a curious thing Yes Okay that's possible All right Yeah you can see there's somebody in the pool up there And I I
always like say to people too you know you're thinking pool It's more like a waiting tub It's so small You know you're not doing any laps in it You're getting out of the sun and cooling off That's what
it you know a waiting pool Large hot tub That I've heard that's what the architect says It's just a large hot tub Okay So can I answer any other question Uh I have uh one question So the
previous four units how many bedrooms in total was that versus how many bedrooms in total are we looking at now Uh I think it's one additional bedroom is what what the net result is There was five bedrooms I believe Five bedrooms in
the four units Correct And now there's three and three No there Yeah there's six Yes And then one comment You're showing a couple of G Wagons there And on the previous one you've got a Ferrari a Rolls-Royce and a couple
That's not my pick Yeah that must have been the architect's selection Okay Other questions for Mr Noble No Okay Thank you Matt Thank you Jason No additional comments No
additional comments Okay Um LPA members public comment Public comment It's good idea That just that was just kind of All right Um anybody have comment on this case Hearing none we close the public comment LPA
members any questions for staff or for the applicant or thoughts in general on this There's a motion by uh Jim by Jim and a second by Jim Dunlap and B Uh is there any discussion on the motion
Hearing none Your your vote Jim I Your vote Jim yes John yes Jane I Uh Doug I And I'm an I Carries unanimously Thank you Matt That was quick and easy That's very interesting I can't wait to see
that Uh all right The next one is a variance So if approved unanimously uh this uh this finishes it for the 10day except for the 10day period This is variance
202500027 for 726 and Sterile Boulevard A resolution of the Fort Myers Beach Local Planning Agency approving with conditions variance 202500027 requesting three variances from LDC table 34-3 for the property
located at 726 Eststero Boulevard generally referred to as strap number 244623 W300400007B in Fort Myers Beach to vary from required street setback rear setback and building coverage to build a
new single family structure in the RM zoning district and providing further clarifications as necessary providing for conflicts of law scribers errors severability and providing for an effective date Eli O exparte Um John
anything None Jim none Jane none Doug none Jim none I have none Eli good morning everyone Eli Lee planning for the town of Fort Mar Beach Um the property owner is requesting three variances for proposed from the residence in the RM zoning district The
applicants requesting one a variance of 22 and 1/2 ft from the required street setback resulting in a street setback of 2 and 1/2 ft from the street easement The second variance is a variance of 15 ft from the required rear setback resulting in a rear setback of 5 ft And the third and final variance is a
variance of 9% uh from the maximum allowable building coverage resulting in a building coverage of 49% to construct a new single family home in the Arizona district Uh the site is a cottage lot that is adjacent to Sir Boulevard and is access accessible via driveway easement
Previously there was a single home on the site uh prehurricane Ian with non-conforming setbacks Um and the college code was not applicable due to the proposal Um the property owner uh representative is here I believe with a presentation Um Eli excuse me Did you
say the cottage code is not applicable Yes they the one of the conditions of the cottage code is that you can only build back the square footage that existed pre-storm Um they're exceeding that square footage which is why they came in for correct Okay Um and obviously I kind of outlined that in the staff report if I have and I can talk
more about it um after the presentation um from the applicant So the property owner uh representives here to give a presentation about his various requests Um staff is here if you have any have any questions Thank you Eli Any questions of Eli at the moment Your recommendation is is approval Yeah
Approve conditions Thank you so much Jim Good morning Good morning For the record Jim Bank Um previously accepted in the town as planning and engineering I'm here today to talk about
726 And being raised by an elementary school teacher I break handouts There you go I never trust Yeah I agree the parts that are there Well thank you J Um
726 is up by the Best Western We're here to deal with our three variances The team members uh Sea Shell Real Estate Arc Masters and his brother are the owners They have multiple
properties on Fort Myers Beach Uh design and engineering is handled by myself and the construction under contract is Daniel Wayne Holmes Dan Dodro who you know has built quite a few homes on the beach I went to high school with him Full disclosure
lovely man I've worked with him now for 15 years or more Very good And he's actually um See we just had a technical glitch There we go Why we're here We're here to allow
variances to rebuild a new single family house at 726 to replace the previous home that was built preform Myron Beach uh quite a long time ago that was lost in hurricane Ian Uh granting this will allow the
construction of a new single family home to current codes which is a sustainable resilient single family home As we saw from Hurricane Ian the homes that were constructed after the new code was put in effect after 2000 performed pretty well So this is this is
a rebuild of a home to to update it What we're asking for is three variances The variance is a variance of 22 and a half ft on the required street set back down to 2.5 uh
feet The second variance is 15 feet instead of the 20 foot setback that's required by the LDC to reduce it down to 5T and a variance of 9% to increase the building coverage from
49% for the new single family home One note on this is when we started this project we were in the RM district and we had an F and then town council changed it before we got here So we're okay with
the F but the unintended consequence of the 40% which I spoke at council was saying in the RM district for single family you should make it 40% like everywhere else for a single family But on some of these smaller lots it apparently causes uh some
problems So that's the reason for that Third I'm going to walk through each individual one by itself to to pres present on that So what I'm going to talk to you today is I'm going to introduce the property I'm going to do what I think is a little bit of teaching
which is our design assumptions is what did we start with How did we get to where we got to today A variance analysis of walking through each variance and then the finding and conclusions which is going through your five A through E steps on what you have
to look at on the projects and then we can have questions and discussions So getting into the property 726 Boulevard it's in mixed residential and residential or recreation I'm sorry Um the lot as you see highlighted goes
across the abandoned 78 line which was established by town as the defining district between the future land use and the zoning So we're split on that part The zoning district residential multif family on the upland environmental critical on the seawward size The lot is
0.19 acres which is the entire lot but the buildable area is 05 acres Very small lot Current uses it's completely vacant It was storm damaged Uh property to the southwest is a fivestory
condominium project Property to the northeast and and to the east is a 10 lot block I've gotten to call the north end of the island You have the 400 block the 600 block the 700 block of all the little
cottages that got taken out in the storm This is a 700 block Um currently what's working is we're 726 Right behind us is 724 Same team working on it but we did an administrative cottage lot deviation on that and that's done 722 which is
right behind it You will see at the end of the month if we get staff happy That is the plan and farther out the the the bigger building farther out to the the northeast is the Best Western So
that puts you in context of of where we are The pre and survey you could you could see what's there We actually had a good survey of the house It was a,058 square footprint
the street set back because this lot has a 15 foot easement It's 7 and 1/2 ft on the property 7 and 1/2 ft on the neighbor's property That's how you get to the property So that easement is considered the street So it's kind of
twisted 90 degrees and the existing was 2.1 ft The rear set back was 4.3 and it's required to be 20 The side set back was four and it's required to
be 6.5 because it's 50 feet or less in this case of of a lot The legal description and I put the legal description up there just to show highlighted that the actual legal description they own is all the way to
the mean title So they do own that entire piece of property the post survey It's just we surveyed it It's there shows a 78 line It shows the four corners above which is the buildable
area So getting into the design part now we have clients Clients have expectations Clients ask for things They say we want to build a single family home We want a fourbedroom three bath home We want a ground floor pool We want an enclosed garage We want a lot of
things And we want it to be a unique architecture and an appropriate home for a gulfront lot that has a tax base value of $2.2 million So you tend to in the home building any development world is your
buildings kind of got to jive with the property value in some instances old rule was 20% property 80% building But as we've got into the the waterfront and the high-end values that is skewed now
to almost be reversed where it's 80% and 20% But it's it's in the the realm of we have to do it What you see here we walk through and we do an LDC compliant site plan Lot is 50 ft deep We got a 25 foot
setback We've got a 20 foot rear setback That's 45 ft which leaves 5 feet but we got a seven and a half foot setback So we got zero building area on a on an LDC compliant plan So we would have to be to do something Town was wise enough to do
the cottage code which helps from an administrative level but in this case we want the home to be a little bit larger and we've got the lot coverage So we kind of fall into the realm of we have to go through this process and come to
the public and say "Okay we're doing a little bit more Is it still okay?" Here we've we've designed it where we put a footprint that says "Here's the footprint that works." And the uh front setback was 2.1
We were able to enlarge it to 2.5 Not a little but not worse The rear set back was 4.3 We've enlarged it to five The side set back was four and we've compliant with the 6.5 on the landward
side On the seawward side we're up close to the 78 line and our setback is actually today like 300 ft out to the mean high water area So that one isn't included but we are compliant on the side setback So looking at it when we
did this box we came up with okay we need relief from the front we need relief from the back and we need relief from the lot coverage Are are some of these setback improvements because you're able to straighten out the corners of the house
when you move down the Yeah we're going to straight It's going to increase the footprint Exactly Okay got it Yeah I mean it's they were all all those were kind of twisted back in the day Exactly and and it just to make it better we're straightened it up We're doing some things with the lots behind it so that
they have something to use That was the question I was going to ask Does ultimately that help you know because I always wonder the first guy out on these cottage lots what's the ripple effect for the We have design the home such to take into account to give the the lots
to the rear some view of the water I mean granted with a 50 foot lot you can't do a whole lot but right we put decks in different places and and things like that to create that We're maximizing on the rear lots some of the exposure through the 15t easement
because that's almost like a beach access area So we're we're maximizing those things So we went through the design we came up with a box It's consistent setbackwise as uh you mentioned with
what we had before a little bit better Um so we're not increasing the nonconformity So we came up with a floor plan This this just shows the floor plans that are there The first floor has a garage has a pool Second floor living
area Third floor is the upper deck And what if you look at it you'll notice owner wanted a fourbedroom three bath owner gets a threebedroom two bath what was there before was a threebedroom three
bath there's just not the capability to do a fourbedroom that the owner wanted So they had to realize that yeah it's a nice dream but you just can't get there with reasonable ass in the variances Elevation
um kind of a modern beach housey that has some uh flare back to the old 60s with the shed roof to uh give that feel Here's the sides of of what it looks like So the request statement was the
three variances the front setback the rear setback and the and the uh lot coverage which we have now shown that we can meet if the board sees our opinion and and grants us the the variances
there So walking through the variance the front set back this just shows the front The 7 and 1/2 ft is on the top You can see 2.5 ft to the house You can see a five foot rear set back That's that's what that
demonstrates Rear set back Same picture just we're looking at it from the reverse of the rear set back at 5T instead of 20 ft and and how it was put there Lot coverage Here's the lot coverage calculations Um under Lee County when
this was built before the town you could use your entire lot for lot coverage Um I don't know why but somewhere in and the chair may know why they decided to take that out when they incorporated the town to not count that in the lot
coverage calculations I don't remember Don't know why but it's that's what it was It and it is now that you can you can do that And actually if you go take the lot and you take out the 7 and 1/2t ement but
obviously you can't put anything on This lot only has 1,900 ft of buildable area You take 40% of that you've got a footprint somewhere in the high 800s What we're asking for is 1140
footprint which is a 200 foot footprint and if you compare it to the existing house it's an increase of 50 ft 50 square feet 52 feet So it's just the word that we have in the in the
termination dimminimous we think that's really a dimminimous look at it So looking into all the finance conclusions you have to weigh our proposal on the on the five things I
have them all listed here Uh I don't think I need to actually walk right through them but we agree with staff We didn't cause a problem We're trying to put something back that is reasonable but still modern and still affordable to
the cost of the land and the cost of the investment in in the property So that's the front setback conclusions The rear setback conclusions are exactly the same because it's the same argument And then the rear lot buffer we we did the same I mean variance three is actually lot
coverage I guess I made a typo That's what happens when you have to turn it in a couple days in advance that we have to turn our PowerPoint in a couple days in advance and we can't go back and fix it That's okay So we made the arguments in there that we agree with staff We agree
with the conclusions So again what we're asking for are the three variances The three variances is to build a new home to replace the home that was lost It is similar It is a little bit bigger but not much
bigger So what I like to do is I give you a suggested motion in there There you go It's really lovely and helpful Well this comes from sitting for almost 20 years on the Fort Myers plan board that I know is a lot of times it's great to have help This is what our ask is is
the approval of the three variances um with conditions and the approval of the first one is the standard We don't have the right for permits um in other ways We still have to meet the comprehensive plan The LD LDC would move it forward
with our plans The second is we're saying that what we're going to do it says development order We don't really have to pull a development order but it says development order shall be consistent with the site plan I showed you today and the building elevations
that I showed you today Don't bait and switch It's this is it It's in the documents And then the third one was a staff suggested that I picked up which is what we have to do anyway but we will meet the the LDC 614 for for drainage
and maximum impervious And with that I have questions Thank you Jim Any questions for Mr Inc No questions Doug Anything Uh no ma'am Very complete Jim No J Okay Thank you so much Thank you Eli Anything
else uh Lee again for Tom from Mars Beach I don't know if you guys want me to go over the five variance criteria even though they you know applicants most likely agree Does anybody need that I'm I'm good with it I can go over the u conditions if that's what you got Sure
As applicant already I'm sorry as the um the representative department kind of stated boilerplate language but I'm go through each one of them um and they're they differ from what the uh representative proposed So the first condition is you know the typical boiler plate which is approval of these various
does not give the applicant an undeniable right to permanent approval Development of the property must comply with all applicable requirements of the form beach comprehensive plan and LDC in effect at the time of permanent approval except as specifically modified area The second condition is that property must
ensure that they adhere to the neighborhood flooding ordinance um LDC session 6-14 um for drainage in the maximum impervious of the law Uh the third uh condition is the variances shall not shall only apply to the single family home as shown on the provided
site plan Demolition or substantial damage to the residential structure shall render the variances to be null and void And the last condition is that property owner or property owners must ensure that no vehicles are parked in the seven and a half foot driveway easement Um the reason why I made that
that recommendation u as a condition to ensure there's some type of enforcement with the town make sure there's no parking in that easement because cars still have to traverse through there to get to their particular parcels uh potentially So um that's why I made that last uh condition Um I don't think I
stated it earlier but there was a a property on in that neighborhood that came into the town last week as some questions about the project Um she didn't really have anything too much to say about it except the views but I told her to email me if she has any additional issues with it but I haven't
heard from her Uh another property owner I think that lives in a condo right next door just reached out about the project but nothing opposing the the project itself So thank you for put that on on the record So yeah if you guys have any questions here Thank you Eli Anything
for Eli Okay thank you very much Uh public comment Anybody have any comments on this case Seeing none we'll close the public comment LPA members any further questions for staff of the applicant If not any discussion on this or a
motion please make a motion to approve variance 20252726 eststerero uh for the three requested variances Is that condition staff condition with the five staff conditions Nancy um do they need
to do three different motions or can they do one motion with all three variances I think they could do in this particular one I'm okay with one motion for all three Um what you noticed is that we did break out your findings and the criteria
for each of the three We we want to make sure that our records going forward reflect that you did analyze and and vote upon each um of the variances and the various criteria and findings
Okay So we have a motion I'll second and John is seconding Uh and um and we can we can assume or may I ask is that for all for all three and because you've analyzed them all I have Okay Very good Very good Okay So there's a
motion in a second Any discussion on the motion Hearing none Your vote Jim Yes John I Jane J I I Jane Jane Doug I Jim I And I vote I as well Thank you very much Thank
you Jim Uh John Jim Bone made the motion and John Mlan seconded the motion All right next item V 2025000481 1901 Eststero Boulevard This
is a resolution of the Fort Myers Beach Local Planning Agency approving and approving with or approving with conditions or denying variance application 20250027 for the property located at 1901 Eststerero Boulevard Fort Myers
Beach Strap number 194624W4009B 0080 for the following five variances One a variance of 15 feet to allow a front setback of 25 ft where 5 to 10
feet is required Two a variance of 5 ft to allow a rear setback of 20 ft where 25 ft is required Three a variance to buffer requirements to propose a betterment plan without a boundary wall
Four a variance to parking location requirements to allow backout parking along Astero Boulevard and Ohio Avenue And five a variance to parking amount requirements from 22 required parking
spaces to nine spaces for a proposed mixed use commercial development including retail and restaurant uses providing for other clarifications as necessary providing for conflicts of law scribner's errors severability and providing for an effective date Uh is
there exparte from you Mr Dunlot None How about you Doug No ma'am Jane None Jim uh I did uh have Amy forwarded an email regarding this project but no other expire Okay Uh John anything The
same email from Mr Lee The same email Uh okay So we'll begin with you Judith Oh wait I did talk to you about this case and was wondering why why why why the denial Yes Okay So that's my
disclosure Uh good morning Judith Franco Community Development Um I did tell you the whole team was going to be here today so we have all of our community development folks with us Um so as Anita read you the full title and we've started to include the
specifics of each uh variant so that when um somebody is looking at that ordinance they can clearly see exactly what it's very helpful It's very helpful how exactly we're the the project is proposing to vary Um you may be familiar with what was uh previously um on this
site Um I believe there was a Hoosiers restaurant and some other uh retail establishments Um the applicant is here and he's going to go over some of the the history and the plan Um what I'd like to do is kind of take you through the variances Um and what we have
typically been doing is waiting until after the applicant to give you our um findings and conclusions But I think that I'll do that in the beginning just so that the applicant can respond to some of my uh comments in his presentation just for consistency
although I can recap it at the end um as well So as the the um ordinance title states there are five variances These variances are to enable the property owner to use the
existing structure that remains on the property If you've driven past I think it's blue at this time There's a portion of that which remains Um part of that property uh I'm told was a a wood frame and that's what was
destroyed during Ian and then the concrete block portion um was able to survive Um in speaking with the flood plane um reviewer um he let us know that while they can keep that it will have to
be brought up to um current flood standards It will have to be if they intend to use it um to be fully dry floodp proofed um which is allowed per uh the the flood plane u regulation But these variances are to enable the
continued use of that structure Um and that leads into our recommendation So I'm just going to go through one by one um just so you have an idea of of what the site is um proposed to look like So um variance uh
one is from section 34-674A1 uh which requires a bill to line in the downtown zoning district where this property is located of a minimum of five and a maximum of 10 ft Um the request is to set the front setback as uh 25 ft for
the existing twotory portion So the existing portion they're proposing to keep at its location now and then the new portion of the building would would um be at that 5 to 10 feet um uh build to line So the variance they're
proposing to use only for the existing portion of the building and what they would be rebuilding would meet current code Um so that's variance one Um and as I said it would need um dry flood proofing So variance 2 requests the change
minimum rear setback for 34 674B1A from the required 25 ft to 20 ft Again that's for that existing building is at 20 ft now Um and then they're going to take that line out across that property So that rear um setback
variance is for that existing structure Um variance three requests a change in the requirement of a type C or F buffer for residential commercial properties So the rear of this property abuts onto a single family home and so there's
specific buffering requirements there Um one of them being a privacy wall Um the applicant uh feels that the wall is not necessary There is an existing vinyl fence which is on the neighbor's property not on this property Um and
they are proposing um uh landscaping So they would do this alternate alternative um plan um if this variance is approved um and and typically the required buffers would be what kind of construction or what kind of entity So it's a wall that would be required wall
further defined other than vinyl No so a vinyl the vinyl fence is on the neighbor's property It's not on their property and that's a fence So a wall is generally you know concrete block or cement structure So it's it's a more substantial uh barrier between the two
uses Um the applicant um is proposing to provide the required type C plantings um as a buffer but not the wall Um variance 4 requests a change from land development code section
34-2154 to allow for the continued use of backout parking along Eero Boulevard in front of the existing structure and Ohio Avenue So if you have the the site plan in front of you and I think that that applicant is going to go over this um there was previously along Astero
Boulevard um the length of the property backout parking Um the code does not allow that anymore Um it's a a safety issue for pedestrians but also for cars in the road ra in the roadway and increases um the potential for
congestion on Astero Boulevard and as this is in the downtown area which we know um tends to get congested at certain times um the that backout parking impacts it So this is um um a better condition than what was
there previously because there was a row of backout and now it's only um proposed to be kept in front of the existing um structure Um uh they also need the variance for Ohio Avenue which is proposed also to be
backout parking which is what it was previously um they will need a lease agreement with the um town for the use of those spots as as it is in the town owned right ofway Um but the town did pass an ordinance or resolution a little while back um allowing for the continued
practice of that um leasing town owned right ofway to uh private property owners Um and public works um in reviewing this project didn't really have a didn't have a problem with that backout parking on Ohio because it's a
not as a congested roadway They um did express concerns about that backout parking onto Asterero again for congestion and pedestrian safety are the the concerns there Um uh variance five is a request in a
reduction of the required number of parking spaces from land development code section 34-2020 Um 1901 eststerero prean had 12 parking spaces So again that was mostly on Asterero Boulevard and on Ohio Um
uh the current land development code per the the expected square footage of what they're proposing now would be 22 spaces Um and what they're showing on their site plan u is a total of nine parking spaces Um so that's a reduction from
what they had before The square footage of what they're proposing is slightly smaller than what was there before but there's going to be a variety of of um uses in that space which the applicant can go over with you Um and those two
things that back out parking on a stereo and the um reduction in the number of spots um leads to the town's recommendation of denial Um we didn't necessarily and if you look um in the
backup the exhibit A of the ordinance we did um a review of each variance one by one with the criteria Um what I'm going to go over is kind of a generalized recommendation for all five but you could if you decide approve some and not
others because we went through and we we did them all one by one in that exhibit Um and that's if you want I can do that at some point but that's where we get to the recommendation of of denial Um the applicant is choosing to keep this
existing structure Um we've been told by floodplane that it will need to be brought up to current codes So there you know they'll have to do dry pl dry flood proofing Um so it's not like they have um some kind of exemption on on those
grounds Um and the potential safety hazard for pedestrians Um and the criteria that really um stuck you know um as a sticking point
here is that the granting of the variance will be interest to the neighborhood or otherwise detrimental to public welfare Um so we felt that the maintenance of the existing heavily damaged structure um is the impetus for the bulk of these
variance requests The reduced parking may impact nearby single family homes through increased traffic and illegal parking of customers as they search for parking Um the pedestrian safety along Astera Boulevard will be reduced by vehicles backing out onto the roadway Um
so I know the applicant is here He has a presentation It's going to explain to you their their plan and proposal Um and I'm here for any questions Thank you Judah I have one item just to clarify for the record Um so your denial is based on um the land development code Do
do you have an opinion regarding consistency with a comprehensive plan because that is one of the primary roles of the um of the LPA is to determine consistency Yes So we believe that the the proposed project is consistent with the comprehensive plan Okay Thank you
Jim This is actually an improvement on backing onto Eststerero There were nine spots before these five that would were pre-existing Correct Right They were there previously in in you're
correct So and that's what we discussed with the applicant This is an improved condition to what was there before However in reviewing this because the existing structure does have to be brought up to current code We review it as if it was a new project So if a new project is coming in we're going to ask
it to meet all the current code requirements So that's why they need a a variance in this case And there there is public parking across the street on Palm as well right There there is other parking Yes But the code requires us to ask for it on their site Can I double
click on one thing Nancy asked you about your technical denial on the land development code alignment I think is what I heard But you went further to say public safety and concern for the neighbors Is that part of your criteria for turning it down And where where do you reference that as part of your
responsibility Yes So in the criteria um that we use which is section 3487C it has the required findings and conclusions for the approval of a variance and that's the criteria that we're using that you usually see for
variances Um and the other ones you know there are or are not exceptional or extraordinary conditions You know you could argue there's conditions here because of Hurricane That's right Ian Um and the situation of the the lot It's a
corner lot I think it's a it's a bit parallelogram size So it's likely that a development of this type would need some kind of variance Um uh just to make it workable
Um B the conditions justifying the variance are or are not the result of actions taken by the applicant So in reviewing this these are is an action um hurricane Ian obviously was not their action but the choice to keep this uh damage structure This is their their
choice That's their um um you know option Um the variance granted is or is not the minimum variance that will relieve the applicant Um uh this could be seen as the the minimum
request to be able to keep that building because they're not requesting anything greater than what they had previously Um and we don't think that the the this is furthering any of the nonconformities that were existing previously but D um
that the granting of the variance will or will not be injurous to the neighborhood or otherwise detrimental to the public welfare So that's where we talked or I got to public safety um and the the comments of the public works reviewer Okay Thank you Judith Any other
questions for Judith Yeah I have one more How does staff view the fact that the fence is on the neighbor's property The neighbor has no obligation to ever keep that fence It could be blown down take
down and then the code that requires a buffer we're now left with potentially just landscaping which may or may not be maintained So
um I is the idea that we can shift the screening requirement to the neighbor without I understand maybe you don't want fence to fence but there was a lot of discussion at the council with the food
truck with the fence and landscaping and you know is this an opportunity to discuss the fact that a neighbor one of priv privacy doesn't satisfy the applicant's request or
requirement to have a screen Yes So that is correct In in looking at a site we're looking at what's happening on that particularly property within those property boundaries Um uh the applicant has an explanation about that and uh I think in the packet
is a the landscaping plan where they're proposing significant landscaping but you're correct that resident could decide they don't want to have a fence anymore Um or you know it's not their burden to have that that fence Um I
don't I suggested that the applicant reach out to the neighbor I don't know whether that occurred I have not had any um response from the neighbor Um I will say though that because of what they're proposing um there's going to be a wall there
There is not going to be any vehicle access through that way They're not parking on that side Um so I would think the impact on those those neighbors is is going to be somewhat minimal Um they
have a stairway um which we look at the site plan you can see the stairway So they'll be able um that restaurant you know employee will be able to take trash out by um uh bag or or you know um trash
barrel but not dumpster Um and then move it over to the dumpster which is going to be over on Ohio So um there there's 20 feet They're going to put in some landscaping Um but you're correct that you know we don't we're not
giving them any kind of credit um because of something that's happening on somebody else's property Thank you Thanks Judith Okay applicant Another handout Another handout Another handout
This one uh the earlier case was maybe the uh spring training This is this is the big leagues For the record again Jim Inc Inc Engineering I've previously been accepted as an expert and I don't think
I messed it up on the last hearing You were okay So I should be okay What we're talking about and Judith thank you That was excellent of where staff is We're talking about variance V 202548 1901 asterero which was all known
as the hooers restaurant building Everybody knows it Everybody's seen it since the storm We unfortunately got put on the bad list of derelic buildings We've been working diligently to not get
it torn down because we think it's salvageable and I'll explain where it is Um owner developer Eddie Yab who is in attendance Uh I'm doing planning and engineering and the building design
architecture is by Albert Ambrose of Studio A So the same design team that brought you the beach bar is back with this project Now what the request does is the variances allow us to rebuild the
building with constraints with variances to bring back essentially what was there before We're not changing any of the uses The square footages are similar We're trying to just basically put it back but update it into the 21st century instead of
the 1990s or earlier that's that's there The five variances variance of 15 ft to allow a front setback of 25 ft for the existing structures only U I'll go into more
detail but it should be noted that that building was built as a FEMA compliant drive proof building Unfortunately through ownership changes and and other things that part kind of got lost So panels were not
there not put up and that's how the building got damaged But the structure of itself as you'll see in a little bit is all concrete concrete floors concrete roof everything is concrete It's designed to FEMA standards and and to go with one of the staff conditions Yes we
know we have to bring it up to current code and we believe we can do that Uh variance number two which is a 5T to allow a 20 foot rear setback for the existing building Uh mainly because there's the secondary exit stairs which
are concrete which are robust which are there and have been there for a long time and we just like to keep and we've mitigated it I'll talk about it a little bit of what's there variance of the rear buffer requirements to propose a betterment
plan We just chose in the LDC there is an option to do a betterment plan of landscaping We could have waited to do the development order but in transparency and what we're doing we thought it would be good to bring it forth now have the discussion in the
public and hopefully get the variance codified so that everybody knows what is going to be done Everybody knows what the responsibilities are going to be and we're not relying on the neighbors is is part of that uh various
four parking locations to retain backout We had backout We had 11 spaces on a zero We had three on Ohio for 14 A little bit different numbers and staff but close Um we want to keep those but
we reduce them some in the entrance of safety and and visual impact which again we'll talk about variance to the parking amount to go from the 22 parking spaces to nine Staff thinks we had 12 We think
we had 14 It's still a reduction but it's it's just a a small reduction So again you've seen this that you'll see this in every One of my presentations moving forward is the outline of how I present to the board of
what I do I introduce the property We talk about design We go through the variance analysis We do the findings and conclusions and then we discuss it So the property 1901 is in south downtown That's my
nomenclature of it's at the south end of downtown Um it's pedestrian commercial The zoning districts is downtown The property size is.3 acres Um it's vacant except for the storm damage building Uh
to the north we have two single families which there's provisions in the code and that's the reason for variance number three Um and to the east and the west and the south is all commercial and hotel We're right across the street from
uh Diamond Head and a Stair Island Beach Club which hopefully will come back as something nice you know so to rebuild that area We're directly across from Palm Avenue It's important to note that we have a crosswalk right in front of
our building We have a lean trolley stop right in front of our building So we really are part of a multimodal kind of use of our building that's important to the parking
spaces Pre and survey we had approximately a 8300 square foot building It was woodframe singlestory that was destroyed in Ian
and it had the twotory section that was a replacement to a fire I believe that's what I've been told that they had a fire and they replaced that section and when they did that they did it as a a dry proof flooding design that that shows
that it didn't work because there was no hurricane management plan currently post survey building's there You can see the all the parking spaces are still in the front They're they're there They're functional Um we don't
have to put them back if we went that way But we have the 11 spaces on the front and we have the building This 20 foot foot path do you know where it goes to Uh it goes from the residential and it goes and it kind of
aligns with Palm So the people from the north can go down that footpath cross the stereo go to the beach Does it go like a block or all the way to It only goes basically a block and then it builds into the subdivision What the the subdivision is
a really old subdivision and they put that in there They put two lots which are the two commercial lots One's Diamond Heads parking lot and us And then behind it they did the single family residence neighborhood when they platted it Actually shows some
forethought of providing a footpath which is amazing for how I think the plat of 1950 or 40 or something went along There's there's a road that goes just a little bit further behind there which a lot of people can use to cut through for
that beach access So which does line up with that crosswalk really well Yeah So moving on to the design again we had it the design criteria that we had retain the existing structure The reason for retaining the existing structure it's so important is
the replacement value of that structure is about 300 grand give or take a little bit to build that structure back as a dry proof building We have to build dry proof if we're going to put leave it on grade That's about a $300,000 investment
to throw it away and move it forward And there's other reasons why not to move it forward but that we think that's very very important of $300,000 is a lot of money The proposed use remain the same Retail on the ground floor the
restaurant second floor Um I don't know how much the board goes to Santael but the property owner owns the lighthouse cafe and all the shops down to the end the the commercial activity
When you go there it's like Disney World with people walking around and going in and out of the shops and eating the food Same concept here That's what they had before Same concept The the Santael piece was put back together quicker It's
it's open and and operating The ground floor retail is we think from my professional opinion and from a lot of reasons retail is important on the ground floor Sure is If you're walking
down the sidewalk and you got to go up the stairs or up an elevator to go to retail a lot of people will just bypass it and keep right on going So retail is really important You're a retailer you understand that to be where the pedestrians are where the shoppers are
It also does twofold is it allows people to walk more and bike ride more which means they're not getting in their cars and driving here specifically And so it enhances that that part of it Um a unique
architecture We were tasked with a a unique architecture on the on the more modern beachy kind of scale remain as close as possible to build back We really looked at could we work under the bill back provisions and it just didn't work So we're here asking
for variances Not to create any new code inconsistencies We don't want to ask for anything So we're we're just dealing with what we have and how to get a little bit better on some items to make it work Remain consistent with FEMA
which is you have to And like I said this building this shell is FEMA compliant And when Albert does what Albert does and puts it back it'll look really great If a storm comes hopefully not we can protect it and it it'll
weather the storm Promote an enjoyable pedestrian environment This is kind of walking up and down the sidewalk is a good thing We do have backout parking which I'll talk about but we really want to promote the professional
environment Um inappropriate building design and scale The way I have that in there is we kind of looked at and says "Okay if we got rid of that building and says we're going to build it compliant with the code," which we
can't because of the geometry but if we were you were looking at parking on pretty much the entire ground floor columns and walls and everything up high So walking down the street you're going to see columns and walls of cars parking
lot You can screen it but that's what it is And it reminds me of of something that I do when I walk through downtown Fort Myers where my office is They had an old building that they tore down right across the street from Doc Forge right on West First Street And I've
noticed And I it was really interesting that when people walk down that sidewalk and they're in front of Franklin Arms or they're in front of the barber shop but when they go through that section they tend to move away and move closer to the curb like this is an unfriendly
environment And that's what we're going to be proposing to not we're trying to create a friendly pedestrian environment Now it's not consistent with the code in some places but that's what we're gonna we're going to try to uh we think we've
done and and hopefully you can see that vision also And it's again to provide convenient activities safe activities visible activities for there And what I put on the right is this little
visibility little quote that I got out of a ULI about rebuilding downtown neighborhoods Now the article was blighted old neighborhoods that needed to be uh revised but it says transparency is critical Buyers want to
see inside the store They want to see what it looks like that it's safe They want to see that it offers goods and services that they are interested in They want to feel comfortable that a salesperson is not hovering to grab them when they come
inside which I thought was a cute part of the comment But the the the whole idea of that is that human scale that interaction they're walking up and down the street that part of the code that is
in downtown Fort Myers Beach on St Boulevard that same picture those old Bill Spicowsky drawings that he did is to create that walkability with flood that becomes increasing increasingly more difficult
Here we have something that works that we can keep this on the ground floor Uh tunis is on the ground floor Beach whale is on the ground floor So some of the rebuilds and some of the others are on
the ground floor versus elevating up If you were doing a destination store someplace that you actually know you're going to then it's not quite as important to you could have a building that was elevated if it was destination
This is retail This is walks This is important for people to see your goods and see your t-shirts and hats and experience that and come in and spend money that we all enjoy Pictures of the building Um picture on the left that's
upstairs And I think that's important to show that even though it's got a pitch roof and it's got trusses that's the metal pan of a of a system that's a concrete deck up there So the concrete deck is there We don't have to do anything to the building The picture on
the right shows that it's reinforced concrete mainspring It's all exposed You can see all the fill cells and and all the things that shows it's what there the blue and the and the hip roof gingerbreading that that was just put on
it to to cover it up So we go through we look at the site plan This is a site plan of our parallelogram Jane from earlier This is a parallelogram Um shows the building and
in the gray you see the setbacks that are required five to 10 foot build two line on Ohio and on a stero a five- foot set back to the foot path and a 25 foot setback that is overlaid with a 15 foot
required landscape buffer type C landscape buffer if we chose to do that So that shows what our building area is There you can graphically see the existing building The existing building is within the rear set back or outside
the rear set back So it's compliant It's just set back from the street too far And that area in the gray area that is the stairs that that's actually in the building set back So the proposed plan that we came up
with and and we worked with staff a lot We went back and forth We had quite a few meetings quite a few drawings quite a few what can we do here what can we do there It was a very interactive area Is the the white area of the building still there The colored area is the
replacement of the one story that was lost We brought it out of the rear setback from what was originally there It's not in the setback It's not in the buffer We moved the dumpster from the north property line right next to the
fence and we brought it down with some parking on Ohio We kept the more south eastern part of the parking spaces in front of the existing building and then we eliminated the parking
spaces on the other side in front of Ohio for two reasons The new building compliant 5 to 10 foot setback and it's also we all agree that was not an appropriate place to put back We have back out but putting it that
close to the intersection was not appropriate from a safety standpoint So we came up with the site plan We sent it over to Albert and his crack team And here's what we came up
with This is that blue building The whole right side of that is that blue building It's just we stripped the roof off the top of it We built the new on the left side This is I showed this at a council
meeting We're talking about parking back out parking or no it was the lease Did the council want to keep leasing parking spaces inside the rightway which I don't know why it is So I showed that and of course then it was public record and it showed up on Beach Talk Radio with Ed in
about 15 minutes before I walked out of the room and comments were vast majority like the parts that were more negative comments were those were majority is we
don't like the color we like it to be more beachy but from a public standpoint people like the building They got excited by the building This shows it it turned a little bit So you can see the interest
of by keeping the existing building and then bringing the other building forward We've created a real interesting feel around the parking of what the building is It's not just 5 to 10 foot flat slab 35t tall
which is kind of what would happen if that building wasn't there That's what would have to happen Looking the other way we carry the uh the corners around One of the reason we show all of these is I want this all to become part
of the record if this is approved to move forward that yes this is what we're going to build We have the DO sitting right in the sidelines pending how we get through this process and the architecture is then going to be released to move forward The owner would
like us to start construction now We still got a ways to go but that's where it was So just the proposed site plan again to show where the variances are the five variances Now I'll walk through quickly but I'll walk through the variances the
front set back the rear set back the landscape buffer the parking back out and and the uh parking space numbers Variance number one the front As I talked about just a few minutes ago by keeping the building we have a very
interesting front facade but we keep it all at the ground level And I'm gonna defer the backout parking till we get to that one But it keeps it a very interesting sidewalk plaza on the
corner of Ohio and and a stero And it's a very good from a pedestrian scale pedestrian usage kind of design Can I have a quick question Yes So uh this front setback uh the existing building the primary access to Hoosiers in
Paradise was up those stairs that went through that building Yeah Is it the intent that that remains the primary access to the upper restaurant And what would the would the use of the rear stair
be public or more back house You're getting ahead of me but yes the back stairs is strictly for employee emergency access Okay thank you The original stair stay elevator in that same area as a entrance to get upstairs
Great Thank you So follow up on that then Deliveries how do they function in the new design here Deliveries have to be through the front or side door Okay All right So nothing in the rear there then The rear is strictly for emergency
access as as Judith kind of related to carrying the trash out doing that kind of stuff But we're really trying to leave the north side of the building as green and unused as we can Variance two the rear set back This is
the stairs and this is a picture of the stairs And what we're going to propose in in our conditions is those stairs are used for employees only and emergency access only The rear
buffer were from what Judah said we're a little bit different on on of what she said and maybe we didn't talk about it enough Item one the vinyl fence that belongs to the neighbor We're proposing to build a new vinyl fence on our
property maintain the fence so it won't go away We're proposing it's there If they want to leave the vinyl fence that's fallen down on their property you know that's their choice but I don't think they would They'd probably take it out So we're proposing
that One of the reasons in a type C buffer you have to build a wall you run into conflict being unique on the beach is we're building a wall perpendicular to the Gulf or parallel to the Gulf right Big 8
foot concrete wall If we have a storm that creates a problem because helps the neighbors but it takes that volume of water and puts it over there which is kind of not sharing And it may be to
actually permit that under the FEMA guidelines because of the flow diverting the flow and the velocity picks up around those edges and becomes more of a torrent True Hits the walls and goes around is what you're saying No
the wall Yeah the wall is like a big It's a seaw wall right Seaw wall It's not It's smaller but it's not unlike what Margaritavville proposed years ago is they were going to build a wall on a beach and they couldn't get permit Jim isn't there Yeah Isn't there an
inconsistency and that the ask for a wall but then the wall has to be breakaway right to make meet FEMA codes Uh it has to be breakaway which it's hard to build a concrete wall that's breakway I mean it will resist some of
the hydraulics Right Or it won't stand up to the wind You have to It has to be wind compliant but it doesn't have to be flood Yeah Which is a a challenge to design something that meets the wind code but
also correct Can break away in a storm surge Plus we have a FEMA resilient building sitting right in front of it Got Yeah Plus there's a female resentment bill right in front of it that was there before and it's now better than what was there before So
that's a part of what we're asking for is we'll build the final films but we're also asking for an You have a question J I do Okay What What's the height of the fence Height of the fence is six feet
Okay like um on the back of um Sandy Bottoms I don't know how high theirs is but it certainly shields from 8T Is it just 8 feet Probably
Well that's okay Go ahead Jim That's Yes So what we're proposing though is as a betterment plan architectural betterment is instead of building the wall we build the fence But then behind the fence we
upgrade the plantings to a type F planting which is far more trees far more shrubs And the trees are the important part And the trees have to be taller when they're planted They have to be 12 feet tall when they plant instead of the little little sticks of the code compliance They have to be a bigger
caliber or bigger tree So it creates a 12- foot visual buffer day one So that's we're we're proposing there We're also in the betterment plan The code says I believe it's 75% has to be Florida native species We're saying
we're going to increase that to 100 I mean it just it just makes sense And then number five there is the trees have to be three inch in diameter at 12 in and the 12t height of the trees Um and then the facilities uses on the north side of the building are for maintenance
and emergency purposes only Uh we did get an email which I think you guys got some email from the neighbor to the north and we're talking to him He called up We had a conversation One of his concerns is the trees He doesn't have a screen enclosure on his pool He would
like to see palm trees I'm going "Well by code I can't do palm trees because it doesn't meet it." but we'll talk about it of of what's there So we're we're working on on that part here It shows the the backyard with the
fence that's kind of dilapidated down Um it got beat up by the storm The house that's being reconstructed there is from what I understand is under some sort of grant request and and is being
delayed back out parking We had 12 spaces We want to reduce them down to six to get them away from Ohio We we think it's better Backout spaces are on the island now I mean not many but
now tuna skins back out Saw that this morning Between St Carlos and the bridge back out right in the middle of that congestion And then actually over on the other side where Sand Castle Resort used to be there's backout that belongs to
the town So back out is not a unique animal It's not great It's not desirable but we kind of feel that we had it before It kind of makes sense And then what I talked about earlier is if we
can't have this kind of parking and we have to do off- streetet parking that changes the whole complexion of the project and has to elevate pretty much everything in terms of ground level into a parking lot We think that's not in the best interest of the town or in the best
interest of our project of of what we want to do So we're removing the six bases along a zero Um the calculations is 22 spaces Um depending on which one of us is right I say there's 14 historic
staff said 12 So it's not a great reduction to go to nine with the crosswalks with the tram right in front of the front door and and with the other parts of the town really wanting to put people on their feet instead of in their
cars driving up down below So I think that's a a good compromise of of what needs to be done I'd like to have some discussion with the LPA but uh around this backup parking but I would wonder
if you would be amanable if if we think it's an improvement or not to actually either reduce that further or convert it to golf cart and bicycle racks in the front I'd love to have that
conversation which it does further reduce the amount of parking that's available I get that But my experience with this location is it is heavily pedestrian friendly You have people walking from Diamond Head all the way
down there Um and and I had this thought about it the other night was that you know golf carts have got incredible visibility They're much more heavily used now We could potentially convert those to a combination of golf
cart and bike rack And I think that would help promote what we're trying to do in this town and I don't think it would be a detriment to the project Now that's for discussion within the LPA but my question to you is are you open to that Oh we're amable to that I mean we would need some parking Ohio may be
enough for deliveries and for you know other type of things We need some sort of access But as far as parking I would be on board with less parking on a stair is not warranted which is I'm
going to discuss a variance Jim what no go ahead Now um ADA is going to have some uh handicap parking requirements So can those be accommodated on Ohio because
they have to be closest to the main entrance as possible or um it's a little bit of an misnomer They make it feel like you have to put it in front of the front door No you just have to provide reasonable access So could we
put it on Ohio with the store right there at the corner Yeah it's reasonable access Um variance five I'm going to get in Can I just ask one question So I am I actually made some little paper cutouts at my house the sides of these parking
spaces because I I I just had this idea Was there any talk about creating a a driveway to the back of the building and have some kind of angled parking on the back side of the building That was one of our scenarios that we looked at was
to do that But the lot depth is if you have to have a buffer that's 15 feet you have to angle parking You have to be able to get in and out two ways which we can't do with the existing building If we do only in 90 degree
parking that's 24 ft Then you got 18 foot for just one parking space So it wouldn't work It worked with my little pieces of paper It ends up with the building in the front to do what you're asking Have it on the ground and in the back building on the front would be about 20 ft deep
Okay So it doesn't work So it doesn't work Or could it work with parallel parking with golf carts Parallel parking with golf carts There's a lot of options I I I like that the board's even bringing it up I mean I didn't think that was even an option to
to ask for that part Well and I'll I'll echo while we're on this topic So thank you for having this conversation Um I completely support what John's observations are My notes were around I'm on record many times and regardless of the code I think parking is your problem And if we can make it more compatible with the uses of the of the
island today and tomorrow and eliminate this mandatory you must and however and we can't be creative and alternate I don't think we're doing a service to you or the community So couldn't agree with more John's on this and if it gets to that point I'll clearly support it Yep No we would we would gladly talk
about that Um which I am variance five parking reduction Parking reduction On the the right hand side you see our property in in blue and I highlighted private and public parking Right next to us is Diamond Head which
is private parking but is still parking People at Diamond Head will be right next door Uh across the street Palm has got public beach access parking and then it's just two three blocks down the way past the illegal parking You have a lot
of public parking I'm sorry That was smooth I had to say that but I mean we're not very far from parking And that goes to what we're saying is if we're going to make it a true tourist destination
walkable community we've got to put the parking in one place and the people then can walk they can bike they can golf cart they can ride the tram There's lots of opportunities that they would take if they could but it's awful easy
for any of us to go "Oh I can go park in front of the building because they got 22 spaces in there and you know and just go drive and park and then I want to go to the hardware store down the way." Well I'll drive and park there and then I'll drive and park there That's what we do in a suburban mindset
There's um beach access parking right across where that crosswalk is and even right across from Diamond Head I don't know if it's five or six or four but there's four five or six uh town spaces right across buttered up to the Diamond
Head overflow All back out too All back All back out on Secondary Street though On secondary street Yeah Yeah Ohio in Virginia But this is you know so this is what I feel as a professional is the town needs to hopefully Sarah's working
on the code I know real diligently to deal with that in the downtown district and and figure out how we can do that I mean there is a parking reduction that's allowed a 30%
reduction but maybe more is is necessary So what we're asking for is 22 is required We had 14 or 12 and then we're asking for nine in the interest of getting the existing parking It's not
like we're asking that we don't have it We have it today Get rid of that existing parking off of close to Ohio out of the visibility triangle and and and those type of items So findings and conclusions I'll go
through them a little briefly but I think it's important to go through them On the front setbacks we agree with we didn't cause the problem which is A B is the conditions justify the variance are not the result of the
applicant Um I think we're in disagreement with staff because the building is there the building is ours and the backout parking is there the backout parking is ours and it's not consistent with with the code
But we still I think we put together a pretty good argument to say as a whole as a whole project this outweighs you know the variance is is acceptable because it outweighs
tearing it all down and starting over that the granted of the minimum variance is not an unreasonable burden Uh I think we all agree with that that we're not furthering
inconsistencies that we're not creating new inconsistencies the granning will not injurous to the neighborhood Um everything we do is out on the rightways which I think is very pedestrian friendly We've addressed our relationship with the neighbors to the
rear with an upgraded buffer and the fence and those type of things And the conditions are such that they're unique which is the last one Yeah Paradrell lot with an existing building I don't think you got a whole bunch of those laying around the
island The rear setback is exactly the same kind of deal is it'd be a shame We could cut the stairs off and get rid of them but that just doesn't make any sense to me that it's we reduce what's going to use it We put big trees in so
that the neighbors really won't even notice the stairs They'll see a building but they won't even really notice the stairs It's not anymore It's you know wasn't caused by us It's existing and and it's unique that therefore doesn't need to be any LDC
amendments The rear buffer I think we've come up with a really good landscape betterment plan Uh we chose to bring it to you so that you could agree with us or not
And then it's codified It's there When we go through the development order we don't have to go through all kinds of discussions We do what we approved today and everything's fine The backout parking we disagree
with staff on on whether that's ours or not It's existing We inherited it The property owner hasn't owned the property He bought it the way it was He didn't do anything to create it didn't do anything to build it He just bought it what was
there there So through variance five we're trying to reduce it make it better get a better of a plan I think I've testified that backout parking on the island exists Yeah it'd be great to make it all go away but it's not going to for
a very very long time So by reducing it we're making that part of it better And then the number of market spaces I presented to you that there's lots of opportunities to come visit our
building Uh the owner put a big investment into this building and and as Mr Dunlop said it's kind of we think this is going to work and and we're not doing anything outside the community that this
shouldn't work and and it should not cause injurous to the community So again we go back and and the request is the five variances ask for what we need at a minimum to build
the picture to build the story to build the environment that we proposed here this morning And in my professional opinion I've presented substantial competent evidence to support that position And I look forward to
uh hopefully I've you guys are in agreement and as I do I gave you a motion Thank you Jim Thank you very much And the motion that I propose is we approve the the five variances under the following
conditions Condition one is the standard We're not going forward We don't get permits Condition two is when we do our development order it's going to be consistent with this site plan with these elevations So that expectation that's there Condition three is the 6
foot high vinyl opaque fence is put on our property We maintain it We're responsible for it and it's there and the buffer is going to be 15 feet It's going to have type F landscaping It's
going to be 100% native all the trees are going to be bigger and that the sidewalk and the back stairs are only used for egress and for maintenance And number nine which we haven't talked about which is just a given is all the utilities are going to
be screened so you don't see them be it on the roof be it on the back be it wherever they end up And with that I'm open to any more questions Thank you very much Jim Uh questions for Mr Inc I have one So in the packet it shows that
this is a phased project Phase one basically being rehabilitated Yeah That is basically uh through owner direction We feel we can get phase one the infrastructure and the first
building going quicker to get rent revenues But it's essentially going to be built as one phase building The second phase is going right with it It just may not be completed in construction and done before the other side is done So the
phasing is really the phasing Yeah The phasings for us is how soon can we get a tenant in there and how soon can we collect rent But you'll build it as soon as you can We're going to build it as soon as we can Yeah Okay Other questions I'm sorry Go ahead Uh Jim uh the um 50%
rule I have to have to admit I'm kind of struggling with the ability to save that structure You said it was where three doesn't apply Oh it's commercial We're going to build this to code compliance Oh okay We're allowed to dry proof it in in the
coastal zone So the 50% rule doesn't apply Well I resend my comment Jim you had a question Can you go back to uh variance five parking finding conclusions for a second Jim Right there So B where you disagree with staff It
says we disagree with staff and believe that reduction in required parking places will not create use of the facility What's that mean Oh that's horrible grammar is what that means Now we got that in the record Explain what you meant What I meant is reduce of
the park will not create a burden a pardon on the use of the facility Okay Yeah So that that's uh I'm an engineer All right You can't be everything Jim thank you very much That's it Thank you Okay Any other questions for Mr Inc at
the moment All right Thanks Jim Thank you Um Judith any you want to follow up with anything or shall I ask for public comment Okay Um Jim did you have anybody else that wanted to offer testimony I mean I know sitt here in case the question went towards the architecture
side Okay Can only hurt your cause Yeah It's true When in doubt be quiet All right We'll open the public comment Does anybody have public comment on the CL on the uh case Yes David Nice to see you here Hey how you
doing Good Good to see everybody Yeah I'm the infamous uh neighbor to the north Uh my property does but say your name for the record My name is David Lei I was sworn in 1920 Bay Drive Um yeah I sent a email to all of you yesterday You
should have a chance to read that by now Basically Kim Beaver and I are uh who is my spouse are in approval of this project We recommended it proceed with these conditions that I included in my note So I did reach out to Jim I had never been contacted by the owner or by
Jim or anybody else So I reached out to him over the weekend after I had a chance to review the package And again we're we're pretty much in agreement with most of it except I want to read into the record some of the issues that we have I'd like to get clarified or
changed Uh clarify how the runwater uh water run rainwater runoff will be handled Uh that footpath becomes a running river on a big rainstorm You were asking about what that goes to That goes to my street which is Baby Drive
which is just a block off of the stereo It's one of the very few parallel streets to the stereo boulevard on the whole island U so u okay that's the first issue I did talk to Jim about that Uh plan show the owner to install sixoot
vinyl privacy fence Now Jim even explained to me he said that fence is is supposed to be according to code frangible which means it's intended to fly apart So the way that this building is located as the wind whips around the
sides of the structure it amplifies the force of the wind and it hits my fence and my neighbor's fence The fence that you saw knocked down I put in a $7,000 fence Three months later Milton knocked it down So Ian knocked it down and Milton
knocked it down So a sixoot viable privacy fence in all due respects is not going to work It's got to be CMU reinforced CMU or something Um so again that would be something I did talk to Jim about Um we appreciate the fact that the owner
wants to put something in but a a vinyl privacy fence is not going to not going to work U again we had talked about item three was we prefer the parking being nine spaces We've lived there and owned the property since 2011 We don't really
recall parking ever being an issue Uh the traffic is so slow on Astera Boulevard in that area You can back out anytime you want It's not a problem But I like the idea of golf carts and things and having access So that's a problem But in no issue would we ever want to
have that property forced to be elevated to put 22 parking spots up right Makes no sense So let And we really much appreciate the owner trying to keep the original concept as it was originally together Um because it
was it was a good neighbor to the community and everything worked fine So we like that Um I've got three other noise reduction You saw it in your notes Landscaping We want that to be non
debris resistant landscaping I suggested Jim we put in Foxtail Palms trees He said trees are not palm trees I said we have open two pools my pool and my neighbor's pool right behind there I don't want leaves blowing over the fence
in my pool So if you have the option foxtail palms for trees not not buttonwoods Oh yeah And the other last item is the the view behind just like Jim talked about at 726 He wanted to try to help enhance the
view of neighbors behind I'd like him to do the same thing on the first story part of this phase two and reduce that level If you saw in the drawing that's actually a two stage twotory roof over a one-story plan So that the interior
volume is 20 foot tall We're asking him respectfully he can do what he wants but we respectfully ask to do only a standard one foot height on that phase 2 section And again I'll just mention that my house that's behind there is totally destroyed I'm part of the HMGP grant
program that's stuck and we have about 90 properties on the island that are in the same boat that I am I can't rebuild I cannot even touch that house So thanks y'all Good luck to you David questions on Thank you No we got it What's behind
there Thank you very much Appreciate it Anybody else wish to speak All right Hearing none we'll close the public comment Uh Jim I'll let you come back up but let me let me first let uh um uh Judith finish her Judith before you even go could I ask
you a question Sure Uh parking spaces are parking spaces does that mean cars or parking spaces Could be a golf cart could be a bicycle could be a motorcycle could be a skateboard I I don't I'm a skateboard's a little bit dramatic but
is a parking does a parking space only qualify as a car space for our code Ye Yes Um per the code there's specific dimensions for a parking space and how you can align them and what drive aisle
width and that's all designed around a typical vehicle you know So it doesn't have to be a car It's only space that they're they're Yes But um I would say in we've seen more proposals um yesterday's with the uh the food truck
mobile vending park um they provided some some spaces for golf carts We don't count that towards our total there In typically a golf cart parking space you can do it a smaller you know footprint But if for our code when we're talking
about parking spaces we're talking about a typical parking space as defined um by the land development code Okay So you could put something smaller in that spot You could put a bicycle in that spot That would be an inefficient use of the space but you you know you could do that Okay Okay So when the land development
code sets out the number of parking spaces required we're talking about a specifically defined um space um and you know parking lot and and all those things that go with it Um I I did want to point out a couple
things Um I thought you know um uh I I see Mr Inc's point with a lot of his his um presentation Um and I understand what the applicant is saying what's happening in the the rear with
the buffer There's a couple things to something else I would consider when thinking about the CMU wall is um it it is it will resist wind more than a a vinyl fence Um but typically um they're
about a foot at least a foot wide and that impacts the the available area for rainwater retention So by leaving that substantially open um without any kind of structure because a CMU wall then becomes a structure um there is more
kind of open space for that um you know rainwater uh absorption into the property Um Um the other point I would just on on um minutia disagree with with Mr Inc is
that the existing building is not FEMA compliant at this moment but it can be made sure it can be made such right so we're in agreement that it can be made FEMA compliant but it is not at this moment and that's kind of where we get
to the disagreement about um the variances and and um where we are at the moment Okay All right The the other thing I just wanted to clarify the parking spaces that are on Ohio um we've included them in our calculation because of the discussion at
town council but they do not belong to this site It would be through a lease agreement and that you know it's is a separate procedure So really on their site it's really just the ones on Eststerero I didn't think it made sense to exclude the ones on Ohio because the
town council said they're they're amendable to that kind of agreement Um but that is the situation And in looking at those spots how they're laid out now and the space given to them right now there's four spots there on Ohio If one
of them were to be made an ADA spot you could probably only fit three spots in that same space So just something to consider in your um discussion So the ADA is on the front now Right now on the front I'm I'm
actually not sure that it's uh the right width anyway but they have some room there because of the the pathway they're putting around the building to kind of play with the dimensions on that side Um uh not to say they couldn't make it fit but just the space that they've
allocated for parking right now you know that ADA space has to be wider than a typical space And then you need um an access you know usually it's it's a diagonal line next to that space so if somebody has a wheelchair wheelchair
ramp you know can get into that spot So um I just wanted you to have that information Um I appreciate Mr Inc's um listing of proposed conditions Um if you were to recommend approval I'm happy to include those conditions We have a
couple more Um but I do think his his profering of those conditions I think helps to um make this a better project if you were to recommend approval Um so as I went through the variances and their criteria already I'll just go
through what our our um if you were to recommend what our recommended conditions were Um so I I don't know if you want to are they different than what's in our packet So um the ones that Mr Ink has has profered
here are not in the packet right Um so but I would be happy to include those if those are amendable to you Specifically um the type F planting at the property line Um
uh foxtail palms are a Florida friendly tree palm So if that's something you would like to do that would be in compliance with the Florida friendly requirements not native but Florida friendly Um that the facilities and structure
access on the north side of the property be used only for employee access um and emergency access I think that's a good condition to have in there as well Um uh so but the town conditions if I
could just read them in would be um approval of these variances does not give the applicant an undeniable right to permit approval Development of the property must comply with all applicable requirements of the Fort Myers Beach Comprehensive Plan Land Development Code in effect at the time of permit approval
except as specifically modified uh herein Property owner must ensure they adhere to the maximum F for the pedestrian commercial u future land use which we expect that they will but we don't have construction documents at this time to verify that um property
owner must have complete visual screening that enclos all mechanical equipment to obscure from the public rightway and from the immediate neighbors property to help mitigate noise So in the renderings we don't see where those will be but we're um requiring that they be screened properly Um and that the property owner must
ensure that the parking space dimensions adhere to section 34- um 2016 Um I did also want to add not in my report and not on Mr inks proper Um but since we're talking about landscaping um that I
would also ask that the um uh landscaping all must be compliant with line of sight requirements especially at the corner of Ohio um and Eero to pre preserve traffic um the visibility
So that's what I have Thank you very much I have a question Go ahead J Um so how do you feel about the possibility of making um extra parking in the back for golf cart parking that would be parallel So I think you want to weigh
that against the neighbors privacy right So by restricting access back there to only employee use and emergency access That means there's going to be less noise in that area for the the neighboring property Um I didn't think about that That's good point So you you
have to to weigh those two things Um I think that there maybe is some way to accommodate some golf cart parking but there's no through access there So they would have to back out and come around Um sometimes those those beep when they
back up Yes they do Um but maybe you know a bicycle rack would would not have that right issue Um so I mean I would I would consider for a bicycle rack Other questions for Judith John did you want to talk any
more about that Well I I believe that there is something in the code that allows some reduction in parking for one bicycle rack right We don't currently allow multiple bicycle racks to reduce
But yeah if you it would reduce one um space one parking space They're already you know asking for for less Doesn't make any help much But it's a good point But we could certainly add that as a condition I mean it sounds like they
would be amendable to you know being required to have a bicycle rack Even if it's at the back it would be you know available and you know it wouldn't have to take up parking space right I mean there's more flexibility with a bike rack where you're going to to put it Um
and I I will say you know we did work with Mr Inc a lot on this project and go through multiple uh versions of this and he is right Initially they had all of that um back out parking on a stero that was originally there and you know we
wanted to reduce that especially um coming up at the corner of Ohio being able to to see around that that curve there um and moving up the dumpster I didn't want the the dumpster you know to be in that setback too close to the the neighbors there So they they have worked
with staff on making um changes to the project Okay Okay Anything else for Judith Uh Jim did you have anything you you just have to tell us Couple things Well to help maybe clear up some things Okay Um comment from the public on the
storm water Uh we're going to have to retain all our water on site and that's part of the nature of the game Um the fence the fence has to be designed to meet wind load
So unless we have storm surge the fence isn't going anywhere Um I agree that some of the Home Depot fences that people put in they'll blow down in an afternoon thunderstorm Yeah Uh one of the comments where we collaborate and
consultants uh save me sometimes Parking in front of the building I'm under the assumption that we're going to approve this site plan the way the site plan is And there may be a sentence somewhere in the code says you can't park in front of the building
What Yeah In the downtown district I I don't know But I want to put it on the record that in in my opinion we're substantially compliant with the picture when we do the DO We shouldn't run into problems with staff getting it approved
Okay Judith do you want to comment on that Um I mean I'm just thinking of the hundred million businesses that are parking in front of their building Well you got to remember the code is aspirational for where we want to go Yes I understand I I I I understand And you can't park in front of a
building if you build to the 5 to 10 foot build to line There's no space Amy pass your mic is I'm just trying to avert Okay don't worry Any other questions for Jim and the Foxtail Palms Foxtail Palms You guys are good with
Foxdale Palms I'm good with Foxdale Palms Thank you Jim Appreciate it Thank you Appreciate your efforts Um so uh is is that statement that if we were to approve this project that in fact they
could not use that parking I think that's a variance Yes So we could we could add that in I mean to Mr Ing's point he wants to have all of his bases covered If you are um thinking about approving we could add that in on
the N is making a base there It it is um there um it is kind of existing So but we've been treating this as a non-existent Could it be brought in as a
a variance on the town council since this hasn't been this It's not going to go to the town council It's just variances I mean provided that the LPA approves it Yeah Right Right So as it's decreasing a nonconformity that was a pre-existing condition
um and we're presenting it here if this is amendable to you because they are asking for variance for another portion of the code um and I think if we can say that on the record because if we're adding N uncomfortable with adding another
variance uh on the fly here which is right not been advertised haven't been published right Um so how would we deal with that Hypothetically if challenged if we left it out proceeded on everybody knows the intention here historical use etc
Somebody challenges that how would you deal with that Is it worth all the effort It's the non-conforming feature of the existing building So we would be looking in that section of the code um which does encourage the reduction of of
nonconformities Would you like a quick break to work this out Yes Okay let's take a 10-minute break It's 11:25 We'll be back in 10 minutes It's 11:35 and we are back And Judith
did you fix the problem Yes Um wonderful Well we we did a review of the code Um I I did want to say because this is not a CPD this is a variance request the site plan um will be reviewed upon uh when
when they come in for their um development order their development order but it does not constitute a master concept plan as that only applies to the CPD So we need to make sure that we have everything um on record um so that there's no confusion later on Okay
So um in accordance with section 34-3241C uh a variance is not needed regarding existing parking spaces in front of the existing non-conforming structure since no alteration is being made to the existing spaces Um it does not violate
division three of article 5 of chapter 34 So there was some confusion I mean not confusion but there was a a comment made that um a separate section of the code asks for there to be no parking in in front of a
a structure in a the downtown district And this is in the downtown zoning district because but because these are existing and they are not um making any other um changes to that space that they would be um they wouldn't have to bring
that up to that portion of the So we're free to disregard this latest kuruffle Yeah Thank you We would just ask that that we make a finding in your resolution so that way five years from now if anybody questions it the decision
was evaluated and made and what would you like that finding to say specifically that I think what Judith said would work So would you like me to I can add that to the it could be in the whereas clauses Okay
Okay Okay All right Thank you very much Any other discussion from the LPA Um I'm gonna say something I love your project I really do I I'm I thought it was weird that you were keeping that
uh blue section I kept thinking when are they going to take this down What are they going to do with it Why is their concrete building standing and mine fell I I had all these thoughts but um I love the way that you have adapted the old and the new together Uh the design is
beautiful and I think it's going to be a great addition to the downtown And to that I'm I'm not going to make a motion but I'm going to support a motion to approve So would somebody like to make one I'll make a motion to
approve variance 25 20250048 uh for the five variances I believe it is including the uh conditions by staff and adding the conditions that the uh
buffering will be Florida friendly plantings and include foxtail palms that the facilities on the north side of the building will be used for maintenance and emergency eress only Uh that landscaping will conform to line of sight
requirements and including a warehouse clause to recognize that parking is allowed in front of the building Good job Excellent Excellent Second Jim Okay so there's a motion and a second Um uh
is there any discussion on this motion Uh hearing none Your vote John I Jim I Doug I Jane I John I I Congratulations Really lovely project Lovely Good job to the staff and to the
applicant It was very thorough Congratulations gentlemen Okay We'll do our last hearing before our break and that is um hold on have to have to regroup here This is another variance VR
20250056 This is for 2900 and2902 Eststerero Boulevard This is a resolution of the Fort Myers Beach Local Planning Agency approving approving with conditions variance 202500056 requesting four variances for
the property located at 2900 and 2902 Astero Boulevard in the RM zoning district and generally referred to as strap number 304624 W2003 MO 0140 in Fort Myers Beach One a
variance of 5 feet from the required 25 ft setback in division 4 table 343 from Astero Boulevard to allow a primary structure 20 ft from Eero Boulevard Number two a variance of 10 ft from the
required 25- foot setback street setback in division 4 of table 34-3 from C View Street to allow a primary structure 15 feet from CU Se View Street Three a variance of 15 ft from the required
accessory structure street setback in division 4 table 34-3 to allow an atgrade pool with out of screen enclosure 10 ft from C view street four a variance from section
34-1174B to allow a pool closer to the street than the primary structure and providing for other clarifications is necessary providing for conflicts of law scribner's errors severability and providing for an effective date Sarah
good morning Sarah Propes And thank you guys for that break and for figuring out the glitch Of course It's very nice Glad we could do that I am too Uh Sarah Propes with community development Uh Tamara Defles I didn't I didn't I didn't Are there any
exparte communications Mr Dunlap None How about you Doug No ma'am Jane Jim None John No I have none as well Good morning again Sarah Frost with Community Development Uh Tamara Dipul uh
Trust the owner of 2900/2902 Wero Boulevard um represented by Caris Stewart is requesting four variances This property is zoned RM and is non-conforming for size width and
length The property is between aero boulevard and C view street meaning it has two 25 foot street setbacks and is not a corner lot So it cannot meet it doesn't isn't allowed the uh reductions for the corner lot setbacks Uh the four
variances include two variances from table 34-3 for the primary structurehouse Uh and a one variance is for 5 ft from the required 25- ft setback from a stero boulevard which would allow the house to be 20 ft from a
stero boulevard And the second variance is uh for 10 ft off of the required 25 ft setback from C view street So that would allow the house to be uh 15 ft from CU
The second set of variances are for the pool Um there is a requirement found in 341174B which requires pools and accessory structures to be um behind
from a street uh a primary structure So you can't have a pool or accessory structure forward of the house They're requesting a variance from that code section to allow the pool forward of the house on C view street And they're also requesting a variance from uh
essentially section or table 34-3 to allow the pool to be only 10 feet from C view rather than the required 25 feet from C view Um so staff is recommending
approval with conditions due to the fact that they would be required to have variances in almost any instance if they wanted a pool on this parcel Um and because the house is small or house
because the lot is small Um and the design of the house has been um uh the house has been designed in such a way as to allow two cars to park under the house which would improve the condition that they previously had where there were cars parking often in the
right ofway and in the pedestrian ement Okay thank you very much Staff is available for any questions The applicant is also here I have a silly question Okay If if the driveway comes off of C view how come it has an Asterero address I
don't know I think that they were probably addressed by uh Lee County back in the day And the one next to it actually does have a C view address That's interesting So no idea Okay Jane your question Um I called Sarah or texted her or emailed
her over the weekend about the um pools that I'm Is this one of those pools that is not going to have a walkound on two sides Um I believe it has a very narrow walkound Um so this has been a question
that's been asked and I apologize I don't think I got back to you Yes you did Did I Yes Okay Sorry It was actually yesterday Oh okay Um so it's required potentially by the building
code but it's not required by zoning Um we would prefer to see an edge around that for safety purposes and when you're encroaching into a front setback Um there are different requirements on how we count that when it's pulled forward of the
um residential structure which we have applied in this instance However I'm not sure that it's actually required that they uh have the walkound because when you think of the um
those edgeless pools Yeah Infinity pools Yeah Though the infinity pools they don't have a walkound but they have a catch basin The thing here is that like I've seen two pools on my street that the fence goes into the cup uh the
what's it called The the paver No coping The coping on the pool So there's you know maybe four inches on the edge to hold on to without getting you know holding on to the fence And that's on
two sides So if something should fall or something should happen you can't get out on two sides of this pool To me when when I looked up what the code was for walkounds for Fort M or for Florida
it said four feet all the way around the pool All the way around the pool I I recall that we've done several with three feet but um I'm just a little concerned with two sides not having access to get out of
the pool You're really a safety feature there to me is my my concern because on these on these two existing properties on the other side of the fence it goes straight down from the pool down So there isn't even a a
walkound at all And and I I know that this has been part of a disc discussion in the past It was several years ago when we had this discussion Um I feel that zoning was overruled in this instance but it was determined that it was a building official determination
regarding SA because it's a safety feature more than So you don't think that there's a a need for a variance if you're not going to have edges to your pool Our code doesn't require it for zoning but if building did require a variance from that that's a different
process Yeah that's concerning Okay any other questions for Sarah at the moment Thank you Sarah Miss Stewart Mrs Stewart how's your ankle Still there It's a good answer
Good morning Cara Stewart In reference to that pool I'm texting the architect right now to see if there's a specific code section that it needs to be concerned with I'm not aware of one either Quite frankly um in relationship to zoning or even in the building code but let me get an answer
Okay Um and secondly on the address actually Cara say your name for the record Oh I'm sorry Carara Stewart I thought I did Cara Stewart on the address Um we are going to once this is resolved request from 911 to change the address to C view It's in the
works We waited because we had already made the application We didn't want to confuse with the address changes So um just for ease of that Um so as Sarah mentioned that lot is very small It's irregular It's we don't have many
options Um the variance on a stereo the five foot coming back from a stereo or forward to a stereo was one we thought was a better option versus maintaining that 25 and then you know bringing our pool and our house that much
closer Uh in reference to the house the reduction in the front setback um it's kind of interesting the the design of the home has uh two layers of decks in that front So if we actually in essence only had one we wouldn't be standing
here asking for that setback But the fact that the second floor has a deck on it as well requires us to request that that setback As uh Sarah also mentioned we're in agreement there's really nowhere else to place a pool on this property without requiring some kind of a variance And because the structure is
being located in such a manner to be facing of course the Gulf Adonister the area of entertainment and whatnot would be in the front of the house So therefore the pool is being located in that location It is at grade the home below flood We're only asking to enclose
the area for access So there is a staircase Uh we're in a in a high elevation here So that so the the home will be elevated rather high to comply with flood That's all I really have If you have any questions for me Thank you Cara Yep Jim any questions You don't have a
recommended motion with you do you You know I feel a little I'm not going to say I've already stuck my phone What to do without that help Thank you Doug any questions for Cara Anything Jim No John No I'm good Thank you Thank you very much Cara We'll open the public comment
Is there any public comment Seeing no public thank you very much We'll close the public comment Uh any discussion from the LPA on this case My only concern is I think we do need to find out what the rule is on that because there's an awful lot of houses
being built with no walk around on two sides Wouldn't that be a permitting issue when you go through that for the building code Well but I mean if if by law by state regulations it's required they should be asking for variances if
they um are not going to have them or provide them No You come back up here your the zoning code doesn't have anything in there in relationship to that Um what would have to happen would be us requesting a variance to the
building code which is a whole another process in that instance Here we go I just have the the architect just responded back I asked him the question between is there a distance requirement between the edge of the pool and the fence which is what I
think you're asking And it can be against the pool can be against is his answer Wow As I'm not that architect I'm quoting Kyle Vita Good to know Good Thank you Anything else change No you guys
Anything Nope Okay Somebody like to make a motion to approve or deny these uh these variances I make a motion to approve variance request number 20256 29002902 Eterero Boulevard with uh
including staff conditions all four variances Jim all all yes finding that uh compliance is uh with all four all three of the variances right there's
four Second One two three Oh second date with the four and the conditions Is there a second for that motion I'll second Thank you Jane Any discussion on the motion Hearing none Your vote Jim yes Jane yes
Doug yes Jim yes John yes I'm a yes Thank you very much Cara Thank you And congratulations to that person Okay we are now it is um 7 minutes of 12 and we are now officially on a break until 1
pm where we will come back for the Arches CPD a comprehensive plan amendment for uh for the Arches project also and to finish up our administrative task So we're on break Thank you Josh
Hey could we do the um historical Uh hello everyone We are back from our break It is 100 pm uh still on the same day and um we are here to have the second half of our meeting which is going to be a CPD a commercial plan
development and a comprehensive plan amendment um to the future land use map So if you um if you all have well I'm just going to turn this over to Nancy She's going to swear you in and give you the the groundwork Thank you um Madam
Chair Just a couple of comments I' I'd like to make Um just to recognize that the first item that the LPA will be reviewing this afternoon is quasi judicial The second item which is related uh is a comprehensive plan
amendment which is uh legislative in nature So the two hearings are going to be just a little bit um different And I'd like to I generally I make comments before our quasi judicial matters Um we did have a very long break so I wanted
just to go ahead and make a few more comments about um quas judicial hearings and how they're conducted Um so uh we have it all into the record itself So the as I mentioned the first item as the chair identified um this is the Arches
Resort CPD and it is quasi judicial and then that that will require our public hearing today on that item to comply with the procedural requirements that have been established in Florida law and in our land development code Um as in our other hearings these uh the
proceeding will be less formal than a proceeding before circuit court but it will be more formal than um the subsequent hearing on the comprehensive plan amendment will be following the basic standards of due process that requires noticing the application of the
correct standards and your decision to be made on competent and substantial evidence that's presented to you either in written uh documents or through oral testimony Your job is to evaluate the testimony and information regarding each
item draw a conclusion regarding whether the criteria that's been identified in the land development code or state law um has been satisfied So speculation and opinion that's not based on competent facts
cannot be legally considered by you in evaluating an agenda item testimony by individuals who have been qualified as experts and I think we do have a number of them in this case uh in a particular area has been considered competent
evidence by Florida courts as well as testimony by neighbors and residents who have fact-based information such as minutes surveys engineering reports or testimony that is based on their personal knowledge and belief So anyone
in the audience if you are intending to speak on these matters please keep these my comments in mind when you come forward State your name for the record and whether or not you've been sworn in So I do want to go ahead and ask the the clerk um our town clerk whether or not
the two items that remain on your agenda have been properly noticed Yes they have been Okay Okay And at this time if there's any LPA member who has a conflict of interest that would prohibit them from voting on any of these items if you could disclose it for the record
so we could ascertain that we do have a quorum present I do note for the record that we only have six members of our LPA present today Um with one excused absence for Don Setth Anyone have a conflict Any conflicts of interest No
conflict No conflicts Okay So we do have a quorum and we can proceed forward Um at this time if there's anyone who wishes to present testimony um or evidence today if you would stand and raise your right hand and the clerk will swear you in
And that would include public comment That would include public Anybody at all who's going to speak Do you so do you solemnly swear and affirm that the testimony you're about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth Okay everybody has sworn
So Madame Chair if you would read the title for our first um quasi judicial item Uh this is Arch's Resort CPD Arch's commercial plan development an ordinance of the town of Fort Myers Beach Florida approving approving with conditions or
denying the commercial plan development CPD zoning for the properties located at 450 445 441 and 436 Harbor Court 435 and 438
Bonita Street 935 and 939 Third Street and 401 Old San Carlos Boulevard also respectively identified as strap numbers 24-44623 W3002700 0 and
244623 W300260020 446 23 W30030B.200 2 0 2 44 46 23 W30030 B1090 I mean
0190 244623 W30030 C000060 244623 W30030 C 0044623
W30030 A 0110 244623 W30030 A0030 2446 23 W30030
A0020 and 244623 W3003030A000010 Fort Myers Beach Providing for clarifications is necessary providing for conflicts of law scrier's errors severability and providing for an effective date John do
you have any exparte communications sites visits anything Uh I I do uh very familiar with the property I've spent time there as in its current state Um I also have spoken with the neighborhood company and the applicant and they uh
provided me with a presentation I've received we've received multiple emails uh both for uh and opposing this project Thank you Um Jim I have the same
disclosure as John did Okay Jane Um I had the meeting with the company or the neighborhood group and I had conversations with several people on my street that after church on Sunday they
wanted to discuss the arches and give me their viewpoints Doug I met with uh Ken Patrick and the owner and reviewed the project here this at this office and also uh I've read
numerous emails both pro and con Thank you Jim Same as Doug Exactly Same as Doug Um so I have the same as Doug and everyone relative to meeting with the neighborhood group and Mr Freeland uh for a presentation and the emails but I
also have uh had many conversations in my place of business about this project I've talked at length about it with uh Chris Mysterio who's a neighbor in that uh in that um uh neighborhood Um yesterday well this weekend uh I spoke
with Bill Spicowski about this project because I couldn't think of why we didn't include this in the downtown to begin with Uh and we had a long conversation relative to that the impact on the neighborhood and the project even though he had not reviewed it but just
general concepts And then I also called Tom Torerson because I wanted to find out how his parking is working Um so I spoke with him about that and um to the best of my knowledge that's all Okay
Okay So um again as as we always do I need to just ask um for the record um that you as decision makers that you are coming to today's hearing with an open mind You're willing to listen to the testimony and the evidence that's
presented to you um and that you would fairly decide this um matter that is before you Jim yes Doug yes Jane yes I'm a yes Yes Yes So the applicant is present today
with their attorney Um if this is the opportunity for the attorney to ask you any questions that that she may want to uh regarding your disclosures um on your exparte Good morning Thank you Madam Attorney For the record my name is Megan
Strayhorn I'm an attorney with Strayhorn First Mullica and Fischer here on behalf of the applicant and property owner It is a pleasure to be with you all this afternoon Nice to have you Thank you Madam Chair And I do have a couple of follow-up questions regarding the disclosure in light of um recent events
as well as the town council discussion that occurred yesterday as well as the public comment and discussion which occurred earlier this morning Um and madam chair I would like to provide this opportunity to you to explain um we have been aware or become aware of the social
media post and um at this time we just ask for clarification as to the nature of that donation and the reason and um allow you to put in into the record in a little explanation I'll be happy to and thanks for the opportunity Um so uh it
has absolutely nothing to do with the Arches project uh strictly um in support of an effort uh relative to the Seagate project and that group I'm not a member of that group I'm not a part of their board I have no decision or any kind of
impact uh on it And um you know I I I said to someone yesterday if someone was going to challenge me on impartiality on this case I think they challenged me because I've known the Freeland family most of my life and whether or not I could be fair and impartial based on you
know a longstanding relationship friends you know I went to school with one of them Um but that isn't the case It's because I made a donation to another group uh in uh all truthfulness it has no bearing
whatsoever I swear to you on my ability to be impartial in looking at this case I hope that that's how Ben Freeland feels as well And I think that we all want to have the same result of today meaning we all want to have a clean and
a fair hearing Sure And uh I appreciate your sentiment and your explanation And I will ask the the follow-up question which you already touched upon Is there anything that would lead your to be biased or prejudiced to impact or render your decision to be not fair or
impartial You know ma'am living in a small town and growing up in Lee County there are so many people that come before us whether it's now as a member of the LPA or in previous situations as a member of the council uh that I have personal relationships with I have voted
in favor and opposed to many people and I just do my best to look at what's in front of me and make the best decision possible based on the rules and regulations that are in place and what I think would be best for the future of the town And that would um conclude my my follow-up questions Madam Attorney
thank you Okay Thank you Um thanks for asking me As as we always proceed in our normal course of business um there will be um I'm sure a number of professionals that will be testifying as experts in today's hearing Um could those
individuals identify themselves so we can ascertain if they've already been sworn in as experts So can you just come to the podium for the record and state your name in your area of expertise Patrick Vaness um certified planner
um here to provide competent substantial evidence evidence today Thank you And he has been accepted as a expert before many times already start Ken Galander with the neighborhood
company uh AICP planner been found as an expert able to provide competent substantial testimony Thank you Ken are town planners so we have it all on the record Okay Judith Frankle uh principal planner for
the town of Fort Myers Beach Community Development And she has also been accepted as an expert in uh land use planning in Fort Myers Beach Sure Just in case Yeah you never know Uh Sarah Prost with Community Development
Similarly she has already been accepted by this LPA as an expert Is there anyone else in the audience that's intending to give uh testimony um as a professional uh as an expert in a particular
area Okay seeing none Um again some housekeeping We just want to make sure that the um applicant property owner has had a copy of the agenda materials had the opportunity to review
that Um okay I think at this point Madam Chair we're ready to have staff give an introduction to the agenda item and then the applicant will come forward and present their case Thanks Nancy Judith good afternoon Judith Frankle uh
community development for the town of Fort Myers Beach Um before we get started I wanted to point out um that there are two applications we're two requests that we're going to hear this afternoon Um the first um that we're going to hear now is for a commercial
plan development resoning I'm going to go through and list out all those properties Um the approval of that application would be contingent on the approval of the second uh item that you're going to hear which is for a smallcale comprehensive plan future land
use map amendment which for brevity we just going to call the comp plan amendment Um and the I believe that there's two different presentations the applicant is prepared to provide on both of those So you'll hear me say a couple
times um because typically when we look at a CPD we're going to ask is it compliant with the uh comprehensive plan in this case uh it is it could be um this afternoon but it is not yet So just keep that in mind There's going to be a
lot of caveats there Um uh Freeland Florida Holdings LLC is seeking the concurrent applications Um what we're talking about now is the reszoning of the subject property encompassing 10 parcels which is
approximately 4.98 acres located at 450 445 441 and 436 Harbor Court 435 and 438 Bonita
Street 935 and 939 Third Street and 401 Old San Carlos Boulevard Um you previously this board previously heard um a comprehensive plan amendment
um application last year on April 9th 2024 At that time the LPA voted two to four to deny that request Uh CPD application request did not accompany that application for the
comp plan amendment Um the town council on May 6 2024 granted a continuence for the comp plan future land use map amendment to a date uncertain um until such time that it could be presented simultaneously with the comprehensive uh
plan development So that's why you're seeing this today and that's why you're seeing it in the order that we're seeing it So we're bringing you the comprehensive u the commercial going to try to keep them straight the CPD first so you can have full understanding of
what the applicant is proposing for the site Um the proposed mixeduse resort aims to provide a high-end resort with a wet dock marina commercial retail ancillary restaurant bar banquet space an event chapel and outdoor market and
bodega The applicant's proposal lists public benefits including public access to the waterfront a bayfront public prominade lined with commercial retail storefronts view corridors a linear park a memorial garden uh and potential for a
waterferry taxi uh and terminal to the downtown area I'm not going to go through all of those elements in detail I'm sure the applicant is going to go over all of those with you and how they fit into their proposal U I'm just going to hit some of the high points now um
just for brevity but please if you have any questions let me know Um the proposed density in this case um again subject to the companion smallcale comprehensive plan map amendments change
Um they're proposing that to be pedestrian commercial Um and so they're looking for a density that would be in compliance with pedestrian commercial Um that land use category allows for a maximum
density of six dwelling units per acre Um except in certain cases this proposal requests 263 lodging units which is reached through an equivalency factor of 9.1 um we get to that that 9.1 equivalency
factor we multiply what is allowed uh by right that's six units per acre Um and then we multiply that to get to the the proposed dwelling units um lodging units in this case Um this is the same equivalency factor which was utilized by the
Margaritavville development Um the downtown core area is considered the nucleus of commercial and tourist activities on the island It is identified and as an appropriate area for higher densities and intensities Um the floor area ratio the
development area development is also subject to a maximum floor area ratio Um again this relates to the proposed comprehensive plan amendment in a pedestrian commercial future land use category which is what the applicant is
proposing Um uh you're allowed a maximum F of 2.5 Um in the land development code um when you're proposing a commercial plan development you have to follow the U
zoning regulations for a commercial resort zoning district which allows for a maximum floor area ratio of 1.8 within the downtown redevelopment district Um they are asking for a deviation request
uh which is part of this application to allow for a maximum uh floor area ratio of two within the Arches Bayfront Resort CPD So if you can if you can follow that um if they get their the comprehensive
plan amendment change that they're requesting which is to uh pedestrian commercial then what they're requesting here with the CPD would be compatible with that So they're asking for a floor area ratio which is greater than is allowed by right zoning but would be
within the limits of that comprehensive plan amendment if approved um height Again the town's comprehensive um plan comes into play here Um policy number policy 4C4
um talks about um properties that are contiguous with other um other properties that have buildings that are of higher than typical height Um the Arches Bayfront Resort site is just west
of the Marina Village at Snug Harbor which is a six-story condominium with an overall height of about 71 ft Um and that's from from grade Um however across the canal to the west
on Matanis Court single family residents exists which are approximately three stories The proposed project is requesting buildings that will vary between and seven stories with a maximum zoned height of 81 ft measured from base
floods Um and a total height of 102 feet measured from grade Uh so in comparison to the nearby properties there are single family houses which are three stories So we can um guess they're
around 30 to 35 feet in height and the marina um marina village at Snug Harbor which is about 71 feet from grade um and what they're proposing has a maximum height of 102 feet Um in this proposal the allowance
of the additional height through the plan development process will allow for narrower buildings with greater separation and greater setbacks from the adjacent properties Um I will also point out policy 4C4 um charges the decision-making body the
LPA and the town council with balancing the public benefit of a height limitation um against the resulting public benefit from the proposal Um I'm sure the applicant is going to go over with you what those public benefits that they're proposing are but that's something that to keep in mind when
considering if those public benefits are commiserate with the pay increase that they're asking for There is a whole long list of schedule of uses which I'm not going to read through but there are in your packet and will cover most of the things you would expect to see in a
resort of this size Uh retail space the banquet space restaurants Um the uh thing I will specifically point out is the old San Carlos parcel which does abut the existing um uh you know
downtown um business district on old San Carlos Um and that is uh they're what they're proposing there is similar to what you would see on Old San Carlos Um in terms
of neighborhood compatibility the current Marina zoning which does not cover all of the 10 parcels I listed also in your packet it goes over specifically what zoning is for which of these properties um two properties have
the commercial marina zoning Um and five of them have the residential but also commercial office and downtown zoning But in thinking about the commercial the marina zoning specifically um as it exists now it does
create a buffer between the higher impact downtown and the lower density residential districts Uh elimination of that buffer between the intense commercial district and the neighborhoods could increase conflict Um
uses that create additional noise in residential neighborhoods have been of particular concern to the town of Fort Myers Beach in the past Um evaluation of the proposed outdoor music and COP consumption on premises areas along with the vehicular
circulation is needed to ensure that nearby homes are not negatively impacted with this proposal Again the applicant is going to go over some of those um proposed um buffering to reduce that conflict um with you Um they are
proposing a buffer area that varies from about 30 feet in width to reduce impact to the homes along Harbor Court Bonita Street and Third Street They also have a vehicular circulation plan um that has the intent to reduce intrusion traffic
into that neighborhood just south of the proposed development Uh there are eight deviations requested here I'm going to go through them again um somewhat briefly Again if you have more questions
about it please let me know Deviation one is a deviation from land development code table 343 which requires properties in the commercial resort zoning district Again because it's a commercial plan development they're charged with using the commercial um resort zoning district
as their baseline um to request deviations from to have a and the commercial resort zoning district requires a minimum lot width of 100 ft and a minimum lot depth of 100 ft This deviation would allow for either um
a minimum lot width or a minimum lot depth of 80 feet depending on the development's frontage on either old San Carlos or Third Street So this is for the particular part of the property that is abing old San Carlos where they're proposing to put in what they're calling a bodega like a small grocery corner
store um and a restaurant as well Um deviation a deviation from land development code section 34-645B and table 343 which allows for a maximum floor area of 1.2 within the
commercial resort zoning district uh and a maximum floor area ratio of 1.8 within the downtown redevelopment district Um and they're requesting an F of two within their resort CPD And you can see in their application
they've listed um what they think that the public benefits they're offering um in conjunction in conjunction with that request Deviation three from land development code section 34-1803A1 which allows the conversion of
dwelling units to hotel motel guest units per established equivalency factors as allowed for land development code section 34-1802A2 deviation allows an equivalency factor of 9.1 which allows would allow them their proposed request
of 263 guest units And again they've listed out what their proposed benefits are to um go in conjunction with that request to justify that request Deviation four a deviation from land development code
note one of table 10-9 which requires a solid wall not less than six feet in height and with the landscaping to be placed on the adjacent property side of the wall to allow for a 6 foot high decorative fence with solid columns and landscaping to be
placed on the interior resort side of the decorative fence for the southern property line as depicted on the enclosed master concept plan Um I'm sure they're going to go over what exactly that's going to look like but this deviation is to allow them to have that
significant buffer on the south side um and to help mitigate any um impact to the neighbors by putting in this solid wall um directly up against the neighbor's property with all of the
landscaping on the inside Deviation five from land development code section 26-77B which states that new or expanded seaw walls are not allowed along natural water bodies in order to allow the existing boat ramp to be replaced by seaw wall
Um this is kind of a cleanup item for that property I imagine this is something they would want to do in general Right now there there's a a boat ramp um a closest to Marina Village Um our
code does not allow them to fill that in and replace that um with a straight seaw wall instead of the boat ramp So this would give them permission um to do that and to have a um a consistent seaw wall along the property edge Deviation six a
deviation from land development code table 343 which requires properties in the commercial resort zoning district to have a minimum height set at 30 feet and three stories to allow a maximum building zoned height of 81 ft um as defined in the Fort Myers Beacheland
Development Code for the resort track Again 81 feet is from base flood uh maximum building heights will be in compliance with the approved uh master concept plan and you can see on the master concept plan there are a variety
of heights there It's not all deviation seven um from land development code table land development code table 343 which states that property setbacks in a CPD zoning district shall be the same as for commercial resort zoning districts to allow for adjusted building setback
lines within the tract and adjusted side setbacks and build two lines for the buildings located within the old San Carlos track as outlined um within the closed development standards exhibit um which you can also see on the master
concept plan Um this deviation allows for a more cohesive urban street streetscape along Old San Carlos Boulevard It's going to allow that property to be um more visible and and more accessible from the uh pedestrian
rightway Um and also will allow greater open space along the linear park and prominade areas Um you'll master comp comp plan that linear park is what we're talking about the the buffer on the south side with the neighbor So um they
have not built to the the the build two lines there nor on the the um the water side to allow some public space on both areas Deviation 8 from land development code section 34-2020 required parking regulations to
allow a parking reduction of % in accordance with land development code section 34-676A1 Um the applicant and I um disagreed a little bit on this one Um uh going to staff finds that the
deviation from this land development code to allow for a 50% reduction in the total parking requirement does not align with section 34-676A4 which requires other streets in the downtown district to multiply the
total requirement of 67 So other places in downtown are allowed to have a a 33% reduction and they're asking for a 50% reduction Uh the proposed development will be similar in nature to the
existing downtown district and this comparison um is appropriate in staff's opinion that they should be made to comply with the the regulation for the rest of the downtown district Uh the proposed development has more intense
uses Um one example is the event space The the event they're going to have a little chapel for weddings and and things of that nature Um the total required parking spaces for
the resort calculated by use is uh 490 approximately Uh the number would be appropriately reduced in a manner similar to the abuing downtown zoning which gives you 328 spaces Um They are providing
336 spaces which is more than what I'm suggesting would be the correct amount Um but the applicant is providing more than required minimum However this leaves only eight parking spaces available to the public for commercial shared parking Um I know we've discussed
this issue on other hotels and other properties Um and I just wanted to bring that to your attention So they're stating in their application that there are 91 extra spaces available So in my calculation there's eight extra spaces
Um staff suggests allowing the applicant to conduct a parking study after the development is fully operational Obviously it's approved to determine if additional spaces could be allocated to the public commercial parking This is done sometimes Once you are operational
then you can prove that you're not using all of your parking spaces And then um you have a case to make for um being allowed to do commercial uh or shared parking um at your lot They have people come out and will do studies about how many are coming in and out and what the
actual use of the parking is Um and we could make that a condition of the application if the LPA and town council desired Um but our position is that there is a number of uses happening here
and we don't really know the full impact So giving them an additional um discount is not warranted at this time So I'm not going to go through the full findings and conclusions at this stage Um the applicant has a full
presentation but I'm here for any questions if you want to ask any questions at this point Thank you Judith Um Jim any questions I'm good at this point How about you Doug I'm good at this point too Jane staff's recommendation So uh we're recommending denial and
there's a couple reasons for that Um so one any the situation here has to be contingent on the the comprehensive plan amendment right But even if you're assuming that that is approved and moved
forward um staff has concerns about the impact on the neighboring communities Um in terms of what we talk about a lot um nuisance um detriment to public welfare um the applicant has done a lot to try
to buffer that but it is not clear to us that um there will not be significant impacts to the residential neighborhoods both um south on Bonita and Third and Harbor um and also across the canal on
the Kansas court Um I have specific findings and conclusions to go over it but that's the general gist of it Um the other thing that you know the comp plan points out is that especially when you're
requesting greater height you have to show what the um the the benefit is Um the community has to weigh what is the benefit Is there an increased benefit to allowing the increased height is um
keeping the PIP restrictions Um I'm sure they're going to go over you everything they're providing for public benefit Um so you can see whether those two things weigh out The other thing I wanted to say at this point which I can probably reiterate again at some later point is
that when we're considering what goes in the ordinance which will be the final rules and guiding document for anything that were to happen on this site or any site um we want to make sure that we're only including um conditions that are
enforcable either by by zoning or by our code compliance officers Um There are a number of items in general that get proposed to you which are good ideas and things that are nice and beneficial to the town but are not appropriate in
either of those categories staff has had discussion with the town attorney about the possibility in some situations of creating an additional agreement with the town where the development the the developer or the property owner would make an agreement with the town but that would be specific
to that property owner It would not run with the land as this is a reasonzoning It runs with the land Um so if you're making an agreement say um for them to um conduct a certain policy right They're going to they're
agreeing to recycle Let's say I don't know if they're required to recycle or not but just as an example that would not be something that we would put in the zoning regulations It wouldn't be appropriate there But if they're going to provide enhanced recycling or something like that that's a nice idea
but that would have to go in some kind of separate agreement document So just something to keep in mind when you're thinking about public benefits and conditions and what we can actually put into the ordinance Thank you Judith Jim anything for Judith right now No How about you John Uh would a water taxi
ferry fit into that category So I would put that in that category um uh unless they tell you that that's something they are going to build and have in place when they're either coming for their development order or for their
building permit because that's the teeth that we have So we create that ordinance we have the conditions we have the master concept plan which their master concept plan does show that water taxi but when they come in for their permit say they're not ready for the water taxi
maybe that's going to be a year plan I don't have any ability to hold up their project which is really the teeth that the government has We can you know they they say they're going to do um a 10- foot wide prominade Well if
they don't show that on their master concept plan on their site plan when they come in for the development order then we reject it They have to come back and show us where that's going to be We don't they don't have that at that time proof then we would hold up their
project and I don't think that a water taxi I mean unless they tell you they're going to do that this and they want that requirement in there um I would not put that in the ordinance and I would looking to Nancy to verify that but if that's say that's their their fiveyear
plan right they have an intent to do it it's a five-year plan maybe they have to get capital or they have to get other people involved or whatever the case may be um that would be something that would go I would think in a separate agreement So the terminal itself would be
appropriate to be part of this However perhaps maybe it will maybe it won't but the service itself may be something that's contingent on other factors and therefore would not be appropriate Great Um and the terminal is a good example The terminal like they're they're
showing that on the master concept plan um say the the um the water fairy you know doesn't happen it doesn't materialize Um if they were going to use that for something else they would probably have to come back Fair enough
That's great clarification Thank you Thank you John Jim so help me with one more double click on the items you represented that aren't part of the master concept plan but are represented as let's say public benefits
in the overall scheme and your at least what I thought I heard is your representation says well that won't stay with the land it could be a contingency on the approval by a separate document between the town and the owners or the town and the operators Is that what you said
Yes Um uh and we'd have to let the attorneys work out the details of what that agreement would would look like Um so if I could make a specific reference to something in their in their project um the don't rent a car
program Correct Great idea right But it's not appropriate in zoning regulation It doesn't have to do with the layout of the site It also is not something that code compliance can go over and check Code comp if you're we agree that your hours are 8 a.m to 6 pm Code compliance can go and check Are you
operating Completely understand that Let me let me go back to Nancy then because this is the first I think I've heard that staff or the town may be willing to construct a separate understanding agreement
seminding to codify the public benefits represented during the presentations and on which we have relied for approvals Let's let's use the pumpout facility over at Pink Shield I I don't remember having a conversation before that we could actually document
itemize and have at least go along with not the land go along with the approval and therefore be more enforceable than a casual agreement representation by the owner of the applicant Can you walk me through that for a minute That is correct In fact the attorney for Pink Shell um has communicated with me and
she's beginning to work on that type of agreement Um that agreement could also be binding upon future successors Um so it would seem to me then that our protocol at least we can debate this on whatever uh the chair wants to do later
on etc Our protocol includes some sort of an additional document in our um approval or contingency of approval that gets read in the record gets enforceable of representation documentation maybe not by code and zoning but the reliance
upon which we made our decision and therefore the expectation of that service being provided in pertu uh based upon the approval we made in that condition would all vaporize if ownership changed the land got sold or something So we can talk more about that Madam Chair if you want to but it certainly seems like a foundational
document we ought to pursue It does and it's interesting because it is uh quantifying and memorializing this nefarious public benefit thing we've been trying to wrap our head around Yeah I didn't realize we had this Okay The the only challenge is that at this point
in the process we don't have all the details worked out and you know how attorneys are with details Um so but we're also not the last stop Well that is correct But but there would be some type of condition included that would
say that there would be a separate agreement to be executed maybe with some parameters in it Um and then once that agreement is is negotiated uh approved and signed then the planners
at the development order stage can actually check that box that that condition has been satisfied I think that's a wonderful enhancement to what we didn't know we could do In addition to that we can do we can do a compare and contrast Patrick's going to tell us
some today and it's going to be many many months if not whatever till we're down to the final deal We can take that document and compare what the final deal looks like and all the promises and agreements representations that were made can be documented for good and you have that signing or the ceremony is to
to memorialize that just like we were told in representatively when we gave our supporter like they're up to it right and and you know and sometimes when um I mean this is a reasonzoning sometimes in other communities um there is uh I hate to use the word a
development agreement that sets forth a roadmap that says so for in order for this project to go forward you need to get a reasonzoning you need to get a comp plan amendment you need to get an agreement that provides for certain
things you need to get an easement it's kind kind of like a road map Um but but it can be done the way that we're proceeding as well and you know things are evolving and um but I think where Judith is coming uh from is a is a
standpoint where they want specificity when the when it's time for the development order Yeah They don't want to have to have any type of delay because of ambiguities or inconsistencies So that is the point where we are now in
trying to separate what can they check the box on and what has to be this pulls those two apart I like it a lot It's got the even number rationale around it Promises made equal promises kept and we have it moralized both for your enforcement and in the representation
that what's in it for the town I think it's a consumable document by the public too Got to speak right Doug did you have something to add to that um just to support I think Jim's ideas Yeah Excellent Yeah Okay Okay Okay Thank Thank you Any
other questions for Judith at the moment Thank you very much Judith Appreciate your hard work Okay Mr Vaness or Mhorn Good afternoon Madam Chair Were you following that combo Sorry Did you understand the Did Yes Yes
I understand And for the record Megan Strahorn attorney for the applicant Uh we are in the process of reviewing the conditions as well Um I have had uh small conversations with the town attorney about this We're aware that we need to kind of work through it identify those public benefits which we need to
have notified Just pull your mic down just a little bit Thank you for for pointing that out to me So we uh we will be working with staff absolutely to to work on that Okay without further ado so again my name is Megan Strayhorn here on behalf of the applicant We have two uh
requests before you today We're beginning with the commercial planned development resoning First I'll introduce the team We have the property owner the Freeland FL Holdings LLC We have Mr Ben as well as Mr Thomas Freeland here present We have myself as legal counsel For our
expert planners we have uh Patrick Beness and get Ken Gallander And for transportation we have TR transportation Ted Trice who I do not believe is present here today The applications as I have previously mentioned we have two applications before you both and I want
to talk about this very briefly I think the town attorney did a great job of um explaining the differences So we have the comprehensive plan amendment Right now we are discussing the discussing the commercial planned development resoning So the analysis and the basis standard of review for that commercial plan
development is going to be a little bit different We're asking you to assume that all 10 of these parcels are commercial pedestrian commercial in the future land use Now by way of background regarding specifically the comprehensive plan amendment this project uh was
started and came before you guys almost a year ago to the date So back in April of 2024 there was a recommendation of denial The project was put on hold We continued it Uh the developers the owners heard your all's concerns
criticisms thoughts One of the big ticking items was how are we supposed to approve a comprehensive plan amendment if we don't know what you're going to do with the property We've heard that concern and now we bring both of them back to you again today so that you can look at both the comprehensive plan
amendment as well as this commercial planned development As far as the hearing process is concerned we are going to be addressing the comp commercial commercial plan development in its entirety Uh and we'll be asking for that motion to be subject
to or contingent on the comprehensive plan amendment which will be the second agenda item before you all today The basis of review I will keep this simple as madam attorney has done an excellent job for the comprehensive for the commercial plan development which we
are involved in right now This is quisai judicial It is a different st level than what is on review for the commercial plan uh for the comprehensive plan amendment I wonder how many times I'm going to mix mix those two words up here today
And for either application everything we are presenting are competent and substantial evidence to support our requests here today We do ask that we do ask that uh the presentation which is being presented to you today be part of the evidentiary record We ask that all
the public comment that has been received be part of the um be part of the evidentiary record as well as we have an additional I want to ask for this to be added in the evidentary record both for the comprehensive plan as well as the commercial as well as the
commercial plan development which is the um this is a prepared for from last year regarding uh public input and support Do I turn it to clerk or staff Here we go Thank you all As well as the public notices that
have been provided in both the mailers and the advertisement So this request is the commercial plan development request We are requesting to to change amend the zoning for all 10 parcels uh that will become part of this commercial planned
development I'm going to turn it over to continue Thank you very much Um can I ask Megan do you want the LPA to take a look at what you just wanted Oh absolutely Okay So I will pass it around
during a make sure it makes its way back Okay Good afternoon My name is Patrick Vaness I'm a certified planner with the neighborhood company Um I believe last time I was here uh in front of you guys for the Neptune I told you that
typically that's where I say I'm excited to to be talking about this project today and I think what I told you then was that I was tired very tired I think a lot of people felt the same way That was on the heels of Helen and Milton and I I think we had all taken a beating Um
so today I feel very differently Uh I'm not tired Uh feel pretty energetic but I'm anxious Uh and I've got a lot of anxiety because I I fully appreciate and understand the importance of this this
hearing but also this project and understanding how important it is Uh I I I take this meeting very seriously So um I hope that uh we will convince
you that this is a great project Um but I truly believe in my heart that this is the most significant project before use post hurricane and that this project is the catalyst to cement the recovery the
redevelopment and the uh revitalization of our downtown of our local businesses and our island Also what I want to tell you is that uh unlike some of the stuff that you may have read uh on social media I I'm not here to pitch you a
project okay Uh I I want to spend some time with you and and my team and myself and the applicants have spent a whole lot of time on this project We looked at every aspect of design every comment
that was received every aspect of compatibility and we did everything we could to enhance and improve upon that So again I'm not here to pitch you a project and sell you on a project I want to discuss it in detail I want to walk you through it I want you guys to ask me
questions and I want to explain why we made every single decision that we made So with that said bear with me today It's going to be a long presentation I've got a lot of slides Again I think the slides like like many hard things in life you got to put the time into it So
we're going to put the time into it Um where I can make it brief I'll try to skip over things but you have a lot of slides there And by all means you guys tell me if you want to say "Hey time out Let's look at a certain detail and let's
discuss it." But uh at least from a design standpoint I'm going to take quite a bit of time to walk you through it and explain the decisions we make So you want us to ask you questions during this Yes Feel free to stop me and ask me some questions Thank you Patrick And and
I've told the same thing to to my team if uh if they feel that I haven't uh provided enough detail or or missing something they'll just interject and come on in and and and talk about that
Um you know the the other thing also in looking at those details I want to explain to you that when we were brought in by the freelance and we were very lucky to have a client that was willing to listen to us on our recommendations of how they could change uh this this
project and improve upon it but also they were very willing to acknowledge the comments and the feedback they got from the community and improve on it So so the obvious one is uh we were told to scale it down you know so we're coming back to you from the original concept
that was three hotels 400 units Uh and we we scaled that back to 260 uh lodging units and and a project that has a lot less massing and provides a lot more setbacks and and open space So I'll walk you through that Um just know that we we
we we made a great effort here and we we put a lot of thought behind all of this Um so with that said u quickly go through this uh staff did a great job summarizing the project So it's 4.98 acres
um 10 parcels um and uh a lot easier to go through it with a pretty picture So this was uh prehurricane Ian Um as you can see the Moss Marina property is uh the blue and
green and and white buildings Um at the located along the bayfront at the intersection of Third Street and Old St Carlos uh adjacent to Snug Harbor and Marina Village Just to quickly go
through around the surrounding uh uses we've got um like I said to the um east of us we have Snug Harbor and Marina Village Beyond that we've got both St
Carlos Um to the west of us we have a canal and residential property single family residential uh and um uh some vacation rentals also in that area Um to the south of us uh we have uh
residential uses some vacant lots and some vacation rentals and to the north is uh the back bay and uh the marina use Um just to give you uh an understanding of the properties included
within the CPD Um as you can tell the larger lots uh are where the boat barns currently exist and there was an additional boat barn along the waterfront some of the
adjacent um residential properties um were owned already by uh the Freedom family but they had the opportunity after the hurricane that there was some willing sellers um and their uh houses
had been destroyed and um the Fillian family saw an opportunity to buy those uh properties and and do uh what they they believe would be a great project and something that would benefit the town Um what's important to note with those single family properties as we go
through our design is the majority of those properties those are the ones that are subject to this comp plan amendment and and so is the marina But but I think an issue is converting residential to
um to CPD uh zoning Uh but keep in mind that most of those lots are are 30 or 40 foot lots and the majority of those lots are being utilized to create a buffer and provide landscaping and provide green space and something interesting
and beneficial to the community Um so we're going to have a second presentation about the comp plan amendment but just to give you an understanding so you have that context as we talk about the the reszone Uh up
top on your screen the blue area is what has a future land use category of marina Um and to the south of that we've got mixed residential Uh a little portion of our
property is also designated mixed residential and some of the existing property is already in the pet commercial uh future land use district The map on the bottom is that map change where the blue and the uh mixed residential would all become pedestrian
commercial and thus would allow the proposed CPD before you So keep in mind and and I'll talk a little more about this when we get to the comp plan amendment The reason would be contingent upon the se the the comp plan amendment
And also keep in mind that when you change the future land use category for this property since these are coming in concurrently uh it it can't be that the future development can be anything allowed within pet commercial Okay The only
thing that would be allowed is what's approved through the CPD Could someone later on come in and amend that Of course they would have to go through this elaborate process and go through a public hearing But keep in mind that the uses that can go onto this
property would be limited to that CPD Okay Patrick can I stop you for a second I don't understand what you want other what what what part of this do you want as part of the record I mean I can touch upon that So So yeah and I saw your face kind of questioning what that was So So
um I think what's happened is that everything that came in since then has been forwarded to you as emails or letters from the clerk's office This was prepared uh during the first round As as you all know there was a very extensive
program to do public outreach where they had public meetings sharetses one-on-one meetings Uh we don't want to belabor everything that was done That summarizes everything in it was for a different project but no it was for the same
property and we have we have revised the project Okay But but there's been several years of discussion about what was going to go on that property and it's just to have it in the record that there's been a great effort to to have that public outreach Okay
Okay So uh just to give you a snapshot as to what I'm going to be discussing with you today uh just the the highlevel points we're going to touch upon We are going to touch upon uh this idea of this project be being a redevelopment canvas
I think it's gonna revitalize the downtown It's going to create a real sense of place and it's going to create an attraction for the downtown Um and it's also going to define what we want and it's going to be consistent with that vision of what we
want for a downtown It's going to have a positive commercial and economic impact Uh and also I believe it's going to be a flagship project that's going to signal to everybody out there uh that Fort Myers Beach is back and thriving
Um we're going to talk about compatibility and design So from a design standpoint we've done everything we could to ensure that we are compatible with the adjacent properties Again we can't please everybody but we
really looked at all the comments that we received and we looked at uh while still providing a viable and attractive project what we could do to enhance all those compatibility issu issues and and address those concerns Um we are also
going to talk about uh the outstanding public benefits that are being provided Um just touching upon the conversation about potentially other further agreements what you'll see when we get to the public benefits we also have a detailed list of commitments And what I
encourage you to do we don't have to go through every single one of them but we've tried to draft the language in such a way where if there was an easement needed or a future agreement we've identified that in the condition saying that council should delegate
authority to the town manager or town attorney to negotiate with us and develop an agreement So we've already put that in the conditions happy to look at that language if we need to rephrase things and word smmith it more than happy to do it but we we've already got
through that effort and we had that discussion with staff understanding that we may need further agreements um then um when it comes to that outstanding public benefits I think you'll agree with me that what we are providing here
is above and beyond what any other project has been able to provide uh before um And these benefits are also very proactive and creative So I'll give you just two highlights We we all know
we've got congestion and and traffic concerns on this island We've talked about an airport shuttle and we've talked about a ferry for many many years Um you finally have an applicant that is willing to invest serious dollars and commit to those things So that's what I
mean by creative and proactive Um and and also these things represent significant public investments So again the ferry terminal that's been discussed It wasn't just a commitment to be part of the ferry service It was you know who
knows what's going to happen with that It's a it's a private entity but we are committing to a brickandmortar multi-million dollar investment to provide that term to demonstrate that commitment not just say we'll be part of it but demonstrate that we're putting
money into it Um and last but not least I hope that I'm gonna demonstrate to you that this is the right project and the right place What I mean by that is it's right in our downtown That is the place that we've identified in our comp plan our future land use map that that's
where we should locate our most intense uses Um and I I think from a traffic mitigation standpoint it's the most appropriate place for a resort like this It's right by the bridge You've got on
and off ramps that are easy to get in on and off the bridge So I don't think the traffic would exacerbate uh traffic going south or potentially if it was further on the island traffic going north Uh what it also does is it
creates this critical mass in the downtown where you're starting to have everything you need for a visitor to park their car and not have to leave unless they want to So there's there's some entertainment there's dining there's shopping everything is walkable
and hopefully we get that capture and we um we don't have those extra trips So again we believe it's the right place it's the right project and when it comes to issues about potential concerns and impacts of neighbors I hope I'll be able
to convince you that we mitigated for those and this is an appropriate project in this location So before we go into walk you through the project I want to read the core area vision or excerpts from that vision that is in the comp
plan That's on page 305 of the community design element And the whole thing is about half a page almost a page And I encourage everybody to read it Uh again I'm pulling out what is most relevant to us but there's also sections that talk
about Time Square Crescent Streets and the side streets but I think this is especially relevant I want you to keep that in mind as you hear what we're proposing and just kind of keep thinking are we consistent with that vision I think we we hit it right right on the
head So um what it says is on the bayside tree-shaded plazas surround the expanded Well let me There you go On the bay side tree-shaded plazas surround the expanded marina which hosts vessels from
excursion boats to water taxis to commercial fishing boats bringing fresh seafood to sell from scattered kiosk The corner at Third Street has become a focal point midway between Times Square and the Bayside with corner
stores providing a variety of goods and services Please keep that in mind as we go through this Okay So um as you recall there was an initial uh
project um proposed for this site Um I think it's it's important to go back and look at what was being proposed and how we've um made some changes to this and in my mind uh improved many aspects but um this this was what was
presented Um personally I thought it was an attractive u architecture a little uh kind of art deco um kind of chic look look to it Uh what I can tell you is is I personally thought that
um there was a lot of massing and and I fully appreciate people saying that we have to reduce the scale And if you look at this one of the things that that you see is the two buildings that are closest to the Marina Village while they're two separate buildings they they
really there's not much spacing They create this one large mass So uh we set to work on on addressing that and addressing the overall uh reduction in number of units and addressing the scale and the massing issue Um so these were
the elevations presented to the public Uh if you look at the top of this slide this is a view from Third Street essentially looking at the back of the resort Um again on the right side those
two buildings significant massing also a very large component of that mass is a parking garage To me parking garage is is a harsh environment Uh not not the prettiest thing to look at So again that was one of the components that we really
wanted to address and um and come up with an alternative Uh then if you look at uh the bottom uh elevation this is looking from the bay uh looking at the resort Um some some really nice things that that we like is the public
prominade u the arches again honoring the history of Fort Meyers Beach and incorporating that into the design One important thing to note and we'll talk about this as we look at the prominade that we're proposing uh that prominade that they had that public plaza space
was on two levels So you had the the level closest to water at grade and you had a secondary level up top Um and for several reasons we uh and I'll go into this we decided to uh make it just one
level prominade focus our energies and do it uh do what I think is is is a great job on one level not confuse things Um so these are elevations from the on the top You're looking from what
would be old San Carlos let's say looking at the side of the resort Again uh one of the prominent features is that that parking garage and I think it kind of overwhelms the entrance uh to the
hotel So that was one of the things that we wanted to address Um bottom uh rendering would be a view from uh the canal on the western side uh looking east and that was uh so this the building you see that's kind of clear is
that building closest to the canal and what's shaded is what you would see the buildings that are further away Um you would see those but they'd be pushed away So um also as part of all those sharets
and what was uh provided to the public uh there was numerous renderings Those two renderings that you see right there is what our team like the most and we we thought was very attractive and that was really what inspired us in our design
What we wanted to emulate Uh obviously these are the smaller scale elements of the resort you can't necessarily do kind of a Key West style on a larger hotel Um but we wanted to borrow all those architectural elements So what you see
on the top left is what was proposed as the Arches Cafe at the corner of Third Street and Old San Carlos Um really like that concept Like the idea of having a restaurant and bringing the uses right up to the the the street and kind of
activating that public realm And then the other one was uh the chapel that was being um proposed in the middle of the project Uh love the architecture of that one and something that we wanted to carry forward So that inspired us and that
helped us in our overall design So one of the things that I will ask you to do as I walk you through this is is keep keep this key plan close to you and I'll refer back to you to kind of let
you know what what the when we're looking at various renderings where we are in the world So what you can see here on this illustrated plan is our property uh starts right here at the corner of uh uh Third Street and Old San
Carlos That's where we identified building A That will be a combination of a bodega restaurant with outdoor seating and an open air uh market And that would be a market with arts and crafts also
with with u food products and those would be various kiosk and vendors So as you uh move from east to west we have created a new street It's going to be a new private street
dedicated to this resort called Arches Way Um that street is very important for multiple reasons and we'll go through that Um but this will bring you to the resort Buildings B and C will be the the
the largest components of that resort Um and where we want to focus the activity Um we've got building uh D which is uh towards the
the western side of of the midpoint And then we have building E One of the things that we're going to discuss is uh we broke down uh the massing to create more of a village feel and create view
corridors and to really reduce that massing What we've also done is we were very considerate of the creating a gradient in activity meaning that buildings and uses that are closest the
old San Carlos are the most active mo more intense uses and as you get closer to the canal the uses uh become uh less active more passive and the buildings go from bigger to smaller from taller to
shorter as you go from east to west Um and some of the the things that we'll talk about is u the the obviously the public prominade uh bayfront prominade providing access to the waterfront to everybody to the public
and also uh this linear park and memorial garden that we are using also as a buffer and separation from our neighbors And if you go back to that um boundary that I showed you in purple
Uh if you recall the smaller lots that were purchased if if you compare that to what we have here most of those are are used for garden and for landscaping So here's a look at the the
re-imagined uh Arches Resort Um so this shot is from the bay uh looking south Um as you can tell we we've broken down that massing We brought in architectural elements such
as koopulas metal roofs corals to bring in that coastal feel Uh what you see on the left corner of your screen is that ferry terminal Uh the inspiration for
that ferry terminal was a ship's lantern Um again nautical feel coastal feel Um that that's what we were going with that design This is a slightly different angle Also keep in mind that we are
looking at this standing right by uh the docks the slips Um people have asked if we are going to maintain that marina use Of course we are going to maintain that marina use and we are asking to expand
it going from 55 slips to 75 slips Um uh another view here of the overall project before I get into the the more localized and finer details What I really want to highlight with this one is that public prominade and as you can
see from there it it it's undulating It varies in width and what we've done is and this is a benefit to my business partner Ken Galander Ken was um community development for Destin for for
years and they have um a very successful harbor walk project over there and it's very popular but it is on two levels and what Ken was aware of is the shops on the upper level always struggled Uh
where people want to be is they want to be directly by the water That's where the fun that's where the activity is and that's where the merchants also want to be So uh the idea was to to reinvent that that prominade not have it on two levels have it purely on one level make
it a little wider make it interesting make it attractive and do a great job at it and then uh create a separation with the hotel uses and another reason for that there there are pragmatic and practical reasons for that for a hotel
operator and for a hotel to be successful it's a lot easier to be able to separate kind of the general public uses and the guest experience and you do a better job at the guest experience and you do a better job at that public realm experience And just another thing to
keep in mind because that question came up when when we were meeting with with each of you individually is does that mean that the guest portions will be completely closed off to the public No it won't Bars and restaurants uh at the hotel will be open to residents and the
public it just won't be that general plaza for the general public There are going to be uh there's going to be dining and and and entertainment activities along that prominade too So there will be options Obviously this is a higherend hotel Uh I think if you go
to the restaurant in the hotel it's going to be uh fine dining It's going to be different uh type of restaurant that might be at the prop house So I see you've got the pier rebuilt What year is this picture So uh no just want to get
you on the record The the picture is is actually a picture post hurricane So as you can see it looks pretty great Not a whole lot of landscaping So you know that's that's what we're dealing with Uh it's it's um we got some work to do you
know Okay So now I'm going to start walking you through the project So we're going to start at the corner of Third Street and St Car Old St Carlos So this is uh what we uh have designed as a um
coastal Kiwa style uh bodega on the first floor on the very corner The building that's well it's all one building but the component of the building that is blue Uh as you can see we've um kept the arches theme going
with the windows and then the the arches when you get to the market in the back So the the blue component you got a true bodega And the idea behind the bodega is if someone's visiting here they don't have to leave unless they want to There's going to be uh a mini grocery
might be a sandwich shop in there there's going to be stuff they need to go to the beach Uh it might be some pharmaceutical products So what you think of as a true bodega in in in bigger cities Um can I ask you a
question just to orient So so uh where Jim is is the Smok and Oyster That's John Rashard's parking lot and that's okay Correct Right on Um then as you move down the building the the area that's more of a yellowish color that
would be the entrance to the restaurant Again we we change the color to to make it clear You've got a bodega you've got a restaurant You go upstairs Some of the architectural elements like the awnings are uh consistent with the overall theme
And you got these same awnings on the bigger resort building You've got nice porches outside for people watching and to enjoy kind of that lively street that we've wanted that we've envisioned and we've wanted to create since the
inception of this town And uh also that restaurant has outdoor dining on top of that open air market And my next slide shows the market in a little more detail So previously what they had is they had
the cafe on the corner We love that cafe but in back of the cafe where we've got the market they had a parking lot and that great parking lot We thought that wasn't very attractive a and it wasn't the best window to draw people to your resort So we thought of what could we
put there that would be uh uh uh create a census space uh of place would be um complementaryary to the entire area and something that basically is providing a public benefit on top of being
complimentary and consistent with the overall theme But but something that that really works and and that goes back to the vision of these kiosks that might you might have a fish vendor in there But that that was the idea behind the market Again open air uh that would
create opportunities for local residents local vendors to have their businesses there and have their kiosk there Uh a few other things to to highlight with this rendering As you can see we've got golf carts Uh we know that we'd have to
work with the town This isn't a public rideway but if we are going to make those improvements we'd be happy to make those improvements to provide golf cart parking Uh we want to encourage alternative modes Uh they're gaining in popularity Let's find some parking for
them Um also towards the back of the market that's where we want to have a dedicated uh transit stop and a dedicated uh pickup and drop off for ride hailing
services That's an Uber or a lift We think there's a few reasons for that uh a you kind of take it off the main stretch and you avoid having cars parked in in the roadway and creating congestion It's a dedicated spot It's
also very easy for anybody to to understand if you're an Uber driver or or uh lift driver pick me up at the downtown terminal at and they know exactly where to go And I think also what it does is it creates a safe
environment So you got people that might come here and go out and stay out late at night and this is going to be a dedicated spot for that and we we think it creates a safer environment for for people to be dropped off and picked up I have a question Yes On um just because
the limited parking that's going to be on the street and the limited uh public parking that's going to be in the in the you have to speak in the um parking area Will there be valet for the restaurant
for those people who do drive Uh that's one thing we can consider The the the option of valet at the resort is definitely going to be there Uh so I don't think we've thought through all the logistics but the idea is if someone goes to the resort there's going to be a
nice porter where if you want valet it'll be there So I guess if you went to the restaurant and you also wanted your car valet again we'll talk about parking but anything that is supplemental and overflow parking would definitely be
open to the public Okay Um on on your list of um benefits you had said you were going to have water taxi and airport transportation but the airport transportation isn't on that list On what list that list of improvements
or uh benefits in your packet or in the presentation In the in the packet in the packet Uh if if it's not in there that was an oversight It's in my presentation and it's definitely a commitment Okay I'm writing
it down Yeah You'll see We we've got in the commitments It's it's in the commitments and and uh uh and the Freeland family is is is actually going to you know have a van and run that van and they're going to be in charge of it and hopefully it's it's very successful
and very popular and other hotels decide to jump in and eventually if there's a big enough critical mass I'm thinking this could be a third party uh company that runs numerous buses at any given time during the day Patrick I want to
touch on the Uber taxi uh the pickup zone the pickup spot Uh I started to say this to you all when you were giving me this presentation I thought it wasn't it wasn't the moment Uh in concept I love the idea but I'm I'm concerned that
you're bringing that pickup spot into that neighborhood Okay So uh I mean the homes begin right there I'm just wondering if there wouldn't be another opportunity for that same concept uh someplace else I I mean ideally the
other side of the so would be a great spot for a I mean the the idea is fantastic Um I I have a concern about that location for that Just like you think about we'll make a note There might be there might be another spot I think we want to look into it The reason we chose
that spot is we are creating that new arches way Yeah Because you got Yes And it made sense from a you're not there's plenty of queuing for our visitors There's plenty of t opportunity for people to to park and pull aside That's
why we did it We were thinking more I was thinking more of an engineer of how do you make it work Yeah Uh good point We can we can certainly look at that Just just think about it Okay Thank you Um while we're talking about Yeah parking and vehicles How did you arrive at
um a 50% um reduction um in the required parking versus Judith testified that it's six twothirds elsewhere in the downtown area
So that gives you more relief which I think conversely adversely affects the number of public spots that you're understood Yeah If I may um can we hold that one Let me go through the presentation I've got slides I've got
slides to address that And I'm more more than happy to go into it Got it doesn't have to suggest motion You guys saw me They came prepared with my snack You got your lunch and everything I even brought some Tums The aida starts coming backing up
Okay So uh again when we were talking about creating a a a nice sense of arrival uh I I I didn't want people to see parking garage first thing when they got to the hotel I think this is more of
a classic look for uh a Florida hotel Uh it's got that that great sense of arrival You've got the port share People can can swing in you know drop someone off pick someone up or just turn the car
over to the valet There's going to be self parking There's going to be valet both Um the areas with the the striped awnings um those are entrances to the parking All the parking will be under the building So what we've done is we
went from a one big massive uh parking garage to having parking under each building in here Yes And the other one to the right And there's another entrance right next to that And that would be the service entrance So that would be everything that's back of the
house for the hotel deliveries uh service all that stuff We've tried to separate that And we are trying to direct all our traffic to the front of the resort and to minimize and we know some people will will put up signs
saying no through traffic local traffic only whatever We know people will go there but we've done everything we can where all our access all our traffic guests service back of the house everything should be done from this area
and there's connection throughout internally to the resort And I've got exhibits for that Okay One question on that I just wanted to clarify Trying to speak in here Guest uh arrive guest experiences down arches way Yeah
And around Yes All back of the house deliveries etc etc are coming through this street Is that correct That that's where we have identified as the priority It's not really a street It's a it's a it's an ement Um right now as you guys
know it's it's mostly a parking lot Um we would love the opportunity in the future to work with the folks at Marina Village and Wahoo Willy folks to make that a little more attractive and to
create a safer uh pedestrian environment Right now we don't want to encourage people to go there right Because it's a parking lot We really want to encourage them to go down Third Street and up Arch's way but if we have the opportunity to work with them to improve
that and make it a better and safer uh access we definitely want to do that And if you did then ideally would everything root there No I still think I still think the Arches uh Arches Way is is
where we want to funnel people Okay Yeah Okay So um uh another thing to point out again we um we've replaced um the parking garage with u resort uses As you can see that's our tallest building
That's going to be seven stories Uh next door at Marie V Marina Village third at six stories Um you know albeit we we we fully understand that we're taller Uh we are building with very different code requirements and at very different times
Uh we're talking about an older building where you know standard floors weren't as tall and you your base float elevation wasn't the same as it is today Um but um you know we're one more story at the tallest part We've stepped down
the the wing which is closest to the residential by two stories Um there's a nice sunset deck on there with a small bar Again this is not a party bar We see this as a an upscale resort where it's
it's more of a sunset nice cocktail jazz music kind of a place Is there service there Uh there would be service The coop we'll talk about the cop and coop would apply to that area
Um so moving on uh this is taking you down um the linear park and the memorial garden So that's where I want to talk to you about our design choices what we did So
we knew that we had to create uh more separation more buffering uh more landscaping and create a nicer interface with our neighbors So we we set forward to to do that Uh but at the
same time we were looking at using a lot of valuable space and um we we we said what can we do that would be a public benefit to everybody would be attractive
would provide some element of place that we don't currently have in our downtown Uh I think as as you guys may know I I spent a few years in Key West before I moved to Fort Myers Beach Uh there was a
uh memorial garden right close to Mali Square and you know that was kind of the inspiration You make this passive uh nice shade places to sit and rest We all know that when it's 90ome degrees in the
summertime you might want to take a a little water break Uh so that was the idea keep it passive but also commemorate the the the great disaster we had in our community and and kind of commemorate the efforts to rebuild and
also honor our history Um and I think that'd be a great place to have little plaques and bus and really um really play that up and and and you know if someone's visiting I think that's always fascinating when I go somewhere where I
can get a little piece of history and and not just there to to to go have fun but I I learn something at the same time So um that's that's really the intent behind it We we are creating that buffering that separation nice lush
landscaping but also making it interesting and creating a public benefit Yeah Um going back to the previous slide on the building B That's a sevenstory building over parking How many total of seven stories
How many levels of parking are there We've got this building here We got three levels of parking with four levels of lobby and lodging above And and I've got And what what's what's the height then if you have three levels of parking
and four levels of of room Our zone height from base foot elevation to the top Let me let me make sure I get this right It's it's either 80 or 81 ft 81 Yeah Yep It's it's 81 ft And then what we call the actual height
And again we we want to be 100% transparent So every application that we've been before you guys we always tell you base flood elevation what is considered zone height and we tell you from grade to the tippy top and that's I'm born that term from an attorney down
in Cer County but tippy top is is 102 feet Okay And and go back to to some of the height you know So we've got one more story than Marina Village The building methods and what we have to the codes we have to meet are very different But also I'd like you guys to appreciate
the fact that we we wanted to put uh decorative u architectural roofs slanted roofs We wanted to have metal roofs We wanted to have koopas We wanted to have certain design elements Um I fully
understand why people do flat roofs when you're when you're stuck having to meet a rigid height requirement but but I think uh a slanted roof and a architectural roof is is way more attractive How many rooms are in building B
Ken do we do we have the numbers U Ken can can pull that up I don't have that readily available to me Okay But uh so so one of the things to explain we've got the various floor plans and I can go through them I've got those at the end Um
so when architects and we've we've got architects that we typically use for a lot of our projects We've worked closely with them and and the reason we like working with them is that we uh when we come up with those pretty pictures they they let us give quite a bit of input as
to how things are going to look But okay so what they do is they look at a building structurally and they create these bays Okay And depending who's going to be
operating the and and doing the finishes on on that resort at the interior they may decide to do suites and combine two bays and and or keep them as smaller rooms So there's going to be a combination of suites and smaller rooms
So what we have right now is a is an estimate of what would be in each building subject to change Okay So u buildings B and C there would be 173 lodging units in there Building D there would be
61 And building B there would be 25 to 29 Building what was the last one Yeah would be 25 It's the one bordering the canal Yeah Yeah Thanks And and I will show you some
pretty pictures uh illustrating that in a minute Okay So this uh now brings us to the prominade and the uses along there Uh again go back to the the the inspiration
for the terminal is is a a ship's lantern That's the building that it's it's an accessory used to the resort and to the marina It's the one closest to the water uh with the the the smallest setback The intent to put it close to to
to the water and that seaw wall is you're close to the the ferry and close the water taxi Um so in there what we envision is a ticketing booth uh some offices for the marina and and kind of marine type of uses and a little cafe
sandwich shop where people can get a drink and get a sandwich while they're waiting for the water taxi or the ferry And then as you move west what you guys are seeing there is the prominade kind of widens and you've got a restaurant um
and you've got some outdoor seating above that at the mid level that is for the hotel guests and and what it is is an observation deck where people can go sun themselves and it's not it's a little separate from the main deck which is right above that And and again
someone that wants a little quieter spot rather than being right by the pool uh they've got that midle up above is where the most of the activity is between buildings uh B and C You've got the pool you've got the pool deck area you've got
a bar that you see on on the on the left of the screen Um and also um overlooking the pool area would be the restaurant on the interior Um so the the
most active places for this resort Uh the activity is really concentrated uh amongst those two buildings around that deck area As you go along the prom what you'll see is the uses um kind of decrease in intensity And the idea is we
really want people to we want to open up the waterfront to everybody but we also want to concentrate the amount of people in this area And as as we go further along towards the canal there's fewer people So this is just a closeup of what that terminal could look like Outdoor
seating uh nice place to wait for your water taxi or ferry Uh this is when you get to building D So few things to point out uh the prominade is much wider The uses we envision So what you
see on the left of the screen would be that view shed view corridor that would be between building A and B and building D That's the widest one There' be a little green space there There would be a splash pad for the kids And that's
where we envision maybe alongside that area where perfect space for an ice cream shop really cater to to families Um what we see here is at grade uh the building that we see the the commercial
uses over there would be ancillary to the marina use That's where you would have your ship store That's where you would have a boers lounge Again boers lounge you have to be a member You have to be at the marina Fewer people less pedestrian traffic So again we're trying
to create that gradient in commercial use Also what we want to highlight is is two great architectural features that we we kept that um that chapel um and we created that clock tower again that
clock tower the architecture is very coastal but also complimentary to time square We kept that in mind And if you're in the water that's kind of your beacon that you see from far away And that's where you know if you're dropping off family and friends to go hang out at
at this resort you aim for that clock tower So um I'll show you that upper deck area for there Um so obviously the chapel is not
necessarily for religious gatherings The idea would be it's an event chapel Uh we think it'd be a great place for a wedding but it all can also host other uh activities Uh that building that kind
of a a tannanish color um at the deck level that's where you would have banquet hall kind of facilities that would be complimentary to that The one thing if you go back to your key map that I want you to look at is the configuration the design of building uh
D So building D is an L and the outdoor deck area is nested within that L That was completely intentional The idea is we want that building to buffer the residential behind So all that activity
is nestled in the middle The other things we want to point out is um if you see the the the chapel is is angled If you guys know that property you know that's where the back base starts widening and we get some of the best views We want that chapel to look right
at those views So uh this is going west and that's our last building That's building E on the prominade Uh what I want you to notice is that's our smallest building Uh what's important to note also is that building E will be a condo hotel
building Okay And the reason for the condo hotel is again it's going to be more of a private building within the resort Uh that building and and the pool and deck area associated with that building is going to be only for the
guests of building me So again we're not inviting everybody from the resort and providing them access to that pool It's only the people at within that building Another important thing to note is there is no commercial at grade over there So
again we're not putting commercial there and attracting more people We want it want this to be the quieter part of the prominade The previous concept brought the prominade and wrapped it all the way around down the canal We've eliminated that Um we heard the concerns from the
neighbors We've got 40 ft of it It's a pool but it it's creating that separation We're landscaping it and we are not putting a public prominade We don't want the public there Again relegated simply to the guests of
building And in the narrative you state that that would be um uh consumption on premises but it would be strictly for the guests of Yeah E as well That there wouldn't be any entertainment there would be strictly
ambient music or and and I'll paint the picture right now So so so the picture is is we've asked for consumption on premises This is a higherend hotel and if if one of the hotel guests that is paying a pretty penny to to visit us
wants to have a drink by the pool we think they should have the ability to do so Is this going to be a party scene Of course not Uh and it we don't even envision necessarily a bar there uh day in day out it it'd probably be more of a happy hour roll out cart or in the lobby
And I've been to hotels like this where resorts where I I was at a resort where the resort component where I was in and I rented it but it was the condo hotel park and just for our building we had some some fridges downstairs with snacks
and with some drinks and we took our drinks and we went to the pool and that was the quiet pool and then you have the resort pool which was a lot more active So so that's the concept there Um we we just think it makes sense
Question on this building in particular You say it's going to be a condo hotel Is this going to be owned by the resort or individual owners Uh the the idea is they it might be both They might keep some of the units as as the resort
owners and they might sell some and and the kind of hotel limitations of no more than two months a year would apply and it would be run as a hotel So it it's it could be sold as a condo but it it the use is a hotel use And is this still
nightly change outs Uh yes people could could rent them nightly but we also envision that that's probably the place where if you're going to want to do a longer stay that would be the spot But not a time share type of situation No not a time share Patrick can you talk while we're on this slide this area
about Harbor Street and Bonita Street Harbor Court I mean What happens to those roads as they come into your development Uh yeah I think we're going to get to that later Yeah we're going to get to that So just a bit of a closeup of that 40t that I said along the canal and again creating a a a little quiet
sanctuary for for the folks in that building Okay So we we could talk about the streets with this one Yeah So this is a view from Third Street Uh a few things to highlight Again the gradient that we did the breaking up of the massing the the view corridors and the
view view sheds Um and also that we've really widened the buffer and the separation So one of the things that we heard is um the folks along Bonita and Harbor want to try to avoid and prevent as much local traffic as possible We get
that We understand that Uh one of the things that we considered was do we put gates there Okay Because we don't need people to access the resort right over there They can access through the resort
So putting gates brings about two concerns First is invariably someone's going to go want to look at that neighborhood and drive around If we put a gate there then someone's going to be backing up into someone's private driveway We didn't think that was great
So that's why what we have is as you come in there's like a little square little plaza where you can turn around at each of those Yes Yeah and we we've got some better um depictions of that The the other thing is from a fire and
um emergency rescue standpoint we need to provide access to that part of the resort Uh also we need to allow a fire truck to turn around Yeah So what we've done is the um linear park that is between Harbor and Bonita Uh we have a
substantial pathway but we've got clear zone with stabilized subgrade so if needed the fire truck can cut through and turn around So those are the reason we didn't gate it If we we can certainly
consider gating I think we just have to talk about the practicality of you might have people backing up in your driveway Also it's done elsewhere where the the uh the our our fire guys have access with a code and they can they can go
through the gate and that's done done everywhere throughout Southwest Florida So definitely something that we can discuss with the neighbors We be happy to consider but from practical reasons that's why we did it Pat do you are are you going to go back You have more slides about the marina or
should I ask Marina a question now Go ahead hit me with the uh the marina question Um marinas you know I think um in our uh comp plan you know they deal with uh boat slips and the water taxi and and
pumpout station which you have in your public benefits but currently there's boat sales there and boat repairs Are both of those going away then Yeah the uh the idea is
to have a recreational marina Uh the the marina use is going to be expanded It's going to be opened up to the public Right now it's a private marina Uh we're going to provide access for way more people to the waterfront than than before The recreational component is going to stay Uh we intend on having uh
gas service uh pump out is going to remain We also intend on uh expanding some of the services and uses there We want to have dedicated that like include boat rentals and Yeah Okay slips for
other vendors or charters So potentially boat rentals potentially fishing charter boats dolphin excursions all that stuff So again uh bring people to waterfront let them experience our our our lovely waters and and provide for slips just
for that We are also going to do uh day docking So you're visiting you want to go there for the day Of course it's going to be limited but if you're one of the ones that gets there early you can get a day dock We're also going to have a dedicated spot where if you're a
resident and you've got family in town and you want to drop him off pick him up there's going to be a place for drop off and pick up at the marina And also we're going to have what we call a non-motorized ve uh vessel parking So if you live close by and you've got a kayak
or a paddle board and you want to go uh eat or hang out at the prominade you can paddle over We're going to have a rack and you can park your kayak or your paddle board So from our standpoint we
we get rid of what we consider an industrial component of the marina which is kind of the repair the the the the stacking all that stuff and what we keep the recreational component and enhance that component Now does the town get any
portion of the boat sales from a tax standpoint Well ultimately yes any any business So there will be some reduction in town revenues by not selling boats Well I sure hope the the resort as a as a whole more than
overcomes that but there is an effect Well I think it's a net positive Well I can clarif no excise tax Ben you have to talk at the microphone but but he's
right That doesn't be like Hi Ben Ben Freeland Boat sales tax goes to the state of Florida not back to the town but the state doesn't share any of it with the back to the counties and then how they distribute it So it's definitely an indirect path A penny here
and a penny there Thank you But I have a spine for economic impact also So I've got a sign for that We can talk about that But so before you go on Jim are you done with I'm done Okay Well just to follow up on this because we talked about this during our one-on-one meeting and Ben thank you for listening
to this Remember I brought up a couple meetings ago that where's the place that we can drop off family and friends Yes you do With our boats when we're hearing them whatever happens to be that you don't have to pretend you're going up and buying drinking and run away real quick And we talked about that during the presentations And I just want to
emphasize that the development of this includes a receptive friendly place where you can be a private boater come up and drop people off get them onto the walkways whether it's Times Square here and pick them back up And it's not only available it's welcome Yeah It's part of the design and I think it's unique
feature that I hope duplicates itself down the coast a bit so we have several options like that But good start on that I appreciate you listening And look we've approached this completely from a win-win standpoint And we're going to talk that when we talk about benefits Yes the the the land owner and the
developer has to win but the town also wins So so the idea is is and we'll talk about what that test is of what a public benefit is but but we we kept that in mind throughout the entire design is creating a win-win for the town and
obviously for for the offer Um so we were asked to come up with a uh two more renderings and we did so Um and Anita thank you And they I think they came out great you were asking us to to show what it would look like at
grade from one of the side streets and this is a shot from um Harbor and of our view corridors or or view sheds That's the smaller of the two that are midpoint and again it it shows kind of the the
opening to the sky in the air and providing that that that access for that neighborhood to walk right to the prominade to the waterfront Um the next one that we were asked to show is show a shot from the bridge and
what it looks like So this is it Um we see Marina Village right next to us And in the background we've got the resort Again we're slightly taller Those are our tallest buildings close to the Marina Village But I think it's complimentary It's in keeping I think
it's a great asset and frankly I think it looks beautiful So um that kind of concludes the the the rendering portion We're going to go into the exhibits that deal with specific compatibility issues So this one is is I
just want you to to to look at this And the top one kind of gives you a view um from Third Street looking north And um what we really want to convey here is that we we broke down the massing and created uh more air and space between
the buildings And again I think a a monolithic big mass building The way you approach it as a human it's what we call it This is a little more human scale Uh the the the massing is not as imposing and um that was one of the key
components in our design that we wanted to address Um also it gives you kind of the height and we've already discussed the height but it illustrates it right on there Um this is to talk about the um vehicular access that we we talked about
So a few things to point out on this is when you go um on Third Street right by where the Bodega Market would be we've intentionally angled the street there so we could provide the neighbor more
buffering and landscaping and that is on our property So we we are providing that buffering in that landscaping and we're we're going to be putting in that vegetation right there again to ensure compatibility and we could have kept it straight but that that that provided
just that extra Uh so again we're we're we're we're bringing everything up Arch's way Uh and this shows you that cars can drive into the parking garage area and they can drive from building uh
B C D and E internally No need to go onto the local streets Um we're going to work with the town to have a sign right there No through traffic dead end whatever we decide is appropriate as a
town but we are happy to install that Uh and what we are also pointing out on here is that we are providing that emergency um turnaround area for uh fire
rescue Um this shows you the the pedestrian network but also it could be a bike network Um so we've got different colorized arrows and lines The one the the yellow
and red are really highlighting the access for the neighbors um in that neighborhood So they they can just walk through the resort get to the prominant Um what we're showing in red is showing that the guests of the resort they have
access throughout the entire resort internally there's no need for them to go on outside roads They can access each building and go from building to building internally Uh and then what we show in green is that network that interconnects
everything on the resort and that is going to be uh available to the guests and to um to the general public and uh you'll be able to walk throughout the entire property
Uh next slide is a public access plan So the things I do want to highlight on here is obviously the areas in in orange or public uh access If you look at building E closest to the canal that is
not orange That is private and relegated simply to the folks that are in building E Again that was designed intentionally for compatibility sake with um the the residential neighborhood across the canal Also I want you to notice the
gates that we have for the linear park The idea is after sunset those gates would be closed Uh we don't want the public there past sunset Uh and again that is in order to be a good neighbor
to to the residential to the south Um these are uh the view sheds the view corridors Again I think there's been discussion of um what's a view shed what's a view corridor Uh we we fully acknowledge that
between buildings B and building C there's you know there's three stories of parking that connects those two buildings We understand that We understand that if you're standing right there there's going to be an obstruction But if you look up there's a separation of the buildings There's a lot of benefits from that from a massing
standpoint Air light So those are what we see as our as our view sheds view corridors Also by by reducing the number of units and going slightly taller on some of the
buildings we've been able to move the buildings a little more inside They were pushed a lot further on the outside So between us and the adjacent properties there's more of a view there And same thing by the canal Um so um Jim when you were asking
about the heights uh we can go um we can look at this a little more detail with this slide here Let me let me catch up over here So what you see is uh at
the bottom of the slide you see uh an elevation for buildings B and C So you have in gray you've got the parking underneath and the lodging component above Also you see the step down on the
left side of the screen where that's the part that is closest to uh the neighbors So again that was in intentionally designed that way to create that step down Uh building D a smaller building than buildings B and C And then you've
got two levels of parking garage on there four levels above The height drops down by one story And then when you get to building E that's our smallest building and it's also our shortest building with one level of parking four levels of lodging
above uh this no need to go into great detail but it just goes to to show u the exact dimensions of some of those areas So if you look at bottom left that's cross-section BB and you can see above
where BB is Um we're looking at a 50-foot separation 50 foot buffer You've got that linear um park in there memorial garden but it's lushly landscape and creating that separation That's a a significant increase to what
was there before And again um some of those lots that we are converting from residential lots to resort uh are being used for buffering for landscaping for greenery Um
cross-section AA which is also on there is a 40 foot width and uh same thing cross-section uh by the canal is a 40 foot width That's what we are depicting here So if you move on to the next slide
um this is the master concept plan No need to look at all the details but that's the regulating plan that would be in the ordinance There's a lot of little details on there but those are kind of all the details that I've walked you through that are in that regulating plan Unless you've got questions no need to
to really go through that Um and then what I want to do is I want to give you a quick snapshot the before and after of where we were when we first came to the LPA and we are where we are today So we reduced uh the density I
hate using the term density for hotels but that's that's what we have on Fort Mary's Beach So we were at 400 we're at 263 now Uh significant decrease Um and the commercial retail that is non
ancillary commercial meaning that completely open to the public and dedicate where the primary primary user is the public Uh we've decreased that Um the floor area ratio previously was at
2.07 Right now our concept shows 1.93 We were asking for 2.0 Uh that extra uh it provides us leeway when you're designing a resort of this size There will be changes when you go to
architectural drawings and everything And we need that leeway to be able to make some some adjustments Um the zone height we had we pretty much had one monolithic height previously with a
little variation But I think what's important is yes we we do go uh to our maximum of seven stories U but what we do is we vary that height quite a bit and uh we create that height gradient
which we believe is an improvement um setbacks and buffering We had a 20ft minimum setback before and planting area was 7 and 1/2 ft Our minimum width is 30
ft with at least 10 ft of of uh plantings but that that linear park is more of an average of 40 feet in the entirety and in some areas it's up to 50 feet
um separation from the closest homes to us Uh closest home was at 25 ft We've increased that to um 38 ft and with most of the homes being at 55 ft or more from the building Uh the view corridors we had uh
five view corridors Uh we in our minds we have five uh we had four we have five now I fully understand that uh people might have different opinions as to it but we're breaking down that bigger building and providing that separation
between the buildings And we we think there's a a benefit to that a design benefit Um the massing we had five wider buildings We're doing much uh smaller and narrower buildings Uh parking
um we had 381 spots we now have 336 If you guys support our deviation for a 50% reduction that would give us 96 access spaces Technically 91 of those
are under building garages and five are on street Um talked about the view corridors talked about the massing Uh I think those just got repeated when I did my copy for emphasis reason when I when I did my copy and
paste That's just uh that's just me Gotcha Yeah Having technical difficulties Uh pedestrian access Uh before we had ped pedestrian access throughout um I think our pedestrian access is a little
more strategic right now and u we are trying to guide people in certain directions and trying to reduce the amount of activity on the western side So I I think while you've got access throughout I think it's a little more
strategic Uh vehicular access again we've tried to reduce all the access on the local streets We've talked about that Um density and density gradient we talked about that Architectural theme we've talked about that So um with that said I can start going
into the regulatory aspects which are not quite as fun I'm going to try How would the 96 public spices be be managed or administered Okay You know what I'll do I'll skip straight to the that
deviation in that parking issue Can we raise the temperature in here at all Is that possible back there So so one of the reasons why staff is recommending denial is that
they do not concur with us with our deviation numbering Um we apply a 50 park 50% parking reduction They say that what should apply to us is a 33% reduction They however acknowledge that we have
sufficient parking to meet our requirement So it's really splitting hairs So So what it is is I think they're they're saying that what we are presenting as a public benefit might be diminished right And and I think that's that's fair That's completely fair I
don't think that should be grounds for denial because we meet the parking requirement And if you guys want to discount that as a public benefit by all means discount it But let me explain to you our rationale how we got there Okay So if you look
at the code section um with regards to parking and let me find it Okay This is the code section that says if you're downtown you can get parking reductions It says that if you're Time
Square you can provide no parking whatsoever It says that if you're along San Carlos Boulevard you can get a 50% reduction I don't know folks but does our bodega building face and it's a contiguous property Does that face old
San Carlos I sure think it does And then it talks about Bayfront pedestrian plazas And the figure that's in the comp plan is what you guys envisioned in 1999 and you thought it was going to be under the bridge and to the right Now you've got an applicant willing to provide that
to you at no cost to the left So but we think it's consistent with the intent was pedestrian plazas uses along that pedestrian plazas can get a reduction of 50% also So that's why we looked at this and we said we're consistent with that
We we we abut old San Carlos and we are a bayfront plaza pedestrian plaza We we completely agree that figure 3 34.7 is not consistent with what we're asking but we're asking for a
deviation We don't you can ask for any kind of deviation you want and I think we've justified it and then you guys can again if you think that ultimately the amount of overflow parking that's left there if you think it it might not be 96
it might be eight or it might be somewhere in between by all means discount that public benefit as you guys see fit but please don't use that as a ground for denial Uh you know I think I think the basket of benefits
far justifies the ask Does that answer your question Yes Thank you Thanks for asking So man now you can forward and find where you were Question Go ahead
This might not be the best place to insert this question but as I'm looking at all these slides I'm thinking there's a pretty large staff for this facility Yes What is there a plan to manage the you know bringing staff on site and
offsite So one of the things is is uh you know some of that overflow parking some of it is is the the ferry uh some of it is the public parking in the downtown area and some of it is that shuttle So the shuttle will be for the
guests and for um employees for the employees And one of the stops for sure will be that transit stop um at uh Pineriidge Pine Ridge counties and then going to to to the hotel So So yes
there's there's been some thought to that and some mitigating factors I would uh I don't know if it's occurred or not but I know the Pink Shell has a very interesting and unique program by which they are able to bring in their
primarily it's I think their uh housekeeping staff Yeah Is they're able to shuttle them in from a couple of different locations and and we we were so happy I I've been doing this for for 25 years down here and I did not know that service was available I think it's
through Lee Transit And uh I'm I'm happy that John brought it to my attention and that's another uh item on our radar of of using Lee Transit and getting those um those services Okay So look bear with
me Comp plan consistency is not the most fun A lot more fun looking at pretty pictures But again in light of everything happening on this island we need to establish a strong record and we need to
to really touch upon comp plan consistency Okay So I'm not going to read through all of this but I'm just going to highlight what I've put in green here and I bolded in green If you want me to stop and provide more detail please do but that's going to be part of the record And the detail is there And
everything all your written documentation goes into way more detail than this also So again uh goal one 1B there's discussion about beautifying public spaces I think we hit that Um goal three
to revitalize and improve specific transitional neighborhoods I think we are contributing to that uh Times Square and keep in mind that Time Square is is related to Times Square and the downtown area as an overall area to stimulate uh
stimulate the revitalization of the downtown core area I think we do that Um goal number four um talks about Fort Myers Beach a healthy and vibrant small town while capitalizing on the vitality and
amenities available in a beach resort environment Providing amenities we are providing a resort uh and minimizing the damage that a hurricane could inflict We are building a resilient structure hardened structure
that will meet all code um building code and FEMA standards small town character The highlight there is pedestrianoriented public realm Again I think we're we're we're trying to build up that that
streetscape that public realm Uh we want to make that intersection of Third Street and St Carlos that node that is in the vision and we want to make it pedestrian oriented
Um 4 A2 talks about a vibrant economy and walkable commercial areas Enough said there uh policy 487 the sterile bay also provides great benefits to the town
and can be enhanced by improving public access So I want to stop on that one spend a little time on it because I think it's Ben that made me realize how important that is So what
Ben explained to me is they've had that marina forever and it's a private marina So really the folks that get to enjoy that bayfront and that marina and that access are people that are members that are paying to have it So by doing this
resort and opening up that prominade we we we're opening it up to to the general public to now people can go there not only walk there and enjoy the prominade but you're going to have charters there you're going to have a ferry you're going to have access So we're this is a
great way to to promote that water environment So I I think that's that's very important I think that comm some communities pay great amounts of money to acquire land to provide that access You've got
again I look at this it's it's a private public partnership where you know both parties benefit Um future land use categories What's important with pedestrian commercial is that's the ation we're asking for to allow this to happen and
it talks about commercial uses and intense activity centers So again when I say this is the right places that's what I mean we've always envision that pedestrian commercial as our most intense land use on the island
um and commercial activities uh contribute to the pedestrian oriented public realm I think we do that Uh all marina uses are allowed in the pedestrian commercial commercial So I've had people ask me does that mean if you make it pedestrian commercial you're not
going to do the marina No we're keeping the marina We're expanding the marina Transportation element Um talks about improving mobility through balanced transportation improvements And then it talks about arriving without a
car the drag program water taxis huge investment in in a multi-million dollar terminal hidden pathway system You've seen our exhibits where we show all our pathways and shared parking Again we've talked about
parking We believe we're going to have an access of parking that would be open to the public And and and the the other component of that that parking that I think we all need to keep in mind is you got season you got inseason and out of season And that overflow parking is
going to fluctuate But our commitment is that whatever overflow parking there is it's going to be available to the public Um commercial intensity policy 4C2 encourage more intense commercial use in
the pedestrian commercial category Um pedestrian commercial category allows a F of 2.5 That's the highest F allowed on this island We are asking for a maximum of two which is uh significantly short of
that 2.5 coastal management element Plan a more sustainable redevelopment pattern I think I don't think I don't maybe you guys envision a devastating storm and
and having to do this but um we have to do it and it's definitely going to be um better structures more sustainable more resilient um limit the potential for uh damage of structures hurricanes same thing Uh
construction methods that we're going to have to use increase the number of well-maintained accesses to the beaches to the bays We are providing that bay access So uh if I could take a breath here and then we can talk about um the
LDC compliance and the criteria of approval Um I think one of the ways Patrick would you like to take a break I'm okay I can keep going Not a problem Um if anybody else wants a break that could be a good spot But anybody else
want a break You all okay Okay We all do individual So so one of the ways I want to shorten this presentation but again we want this in the record is the the compliance with the LDC and the CPD criteria and how we meet it So one of the things that you do
have is you have a detailed staff report staff did a great job Staff walked through through all the criteria I think they concur with us on all points except two So uh if if I'm not qualifying it
the right way and I'll be happy to address that but if again if you look in your packet for each of the criteria we have a long paragraph just defining and explaining it don't want to walk don't want to go
through that in detail but um I want to talk about where we differ in opinion Uh again deviation number eight we talked about that that's the parking deviation Okay So what we've got there our
position is that doesn't seem to us that they they have a problem with the reduction And I think they have a problem with the assertion that we're providing 96 park overflow parking spots Again by all
means discount it as you see fit Okay Then um the the requirement to comply with various uh elements of our comp plan and LDC So uh when it says on page 229 of
your report complies with this chapter this entire chapter um staff's uh comment is the proposed uses comply with this chapter except in regards to deviation in number eight Um
but otherwise we agree with them We believe we comply with that completely And then it talks about any other applicable town ordinances and code the proposed request complies with the town ordinances and codes except in regards to deviations So again we completely
agree with that we concur Um so I think when it comes to those the criteria if you guys want to look at any of of those individually happy to address those but
otherwise I think our written submitt um does a good job addressing that Um so a lot of this stuff I've covered as I went through the renderings so I'll go through very quickly Okay So from a location site design and compatibility
standpoint you guys have heard how we've designed this and why So I just want to reiterate we think that the downtown core is an ideal location for such a resort We think it promotes walkability We think it's an ideal
location to minimize and mitigate traffic impacts for the entire island So again if we were somewhere mid island we all know as you're driving south and you're peak season Any additional trips there will contribute to that congestion
How much we have different opinions about that but it I I I can agree that there it does contribute to that Whereas if you're downtown and you're right by the ramps easy on easy off Um also um we are
providing public access to the bay in our coastal waters Uh we have a beautiful design and um we are promoting um kind of the the the one the park one strategy
that was put out there uh back in 1999 Um more on the on the design uh structures are resilient hardened structures Uh right now we've got an older marina that was put in place when
there were no regulations when it came to drainage They are going to have to go through uh a drainage plan They're going to have to meet today's strict requirements You're going to have an improvement when it comes to drainage versus what's there today which is really a pave marina with just uh sheet
flow to the neighbors Um it's going to provide unparalleled public benefits uh creates and enhances public spaces Again we understand that this is a private resort but I think we have to
acknowledge that this is creating public spaces that we never have and it it's going to create an attraction a sense of place and something that a visitor will want to see Um we we in our design we've enhanced compatibility aspects including setbacks
buffers massing height view sheds view corridors access and we've included multiple conditions to mitigate any potential impacts And u as you'll see when I get to those slides um I think we provide
unparalleled economic benefits uh greater than any uh development on this island today So when it comes to density uh always a major issue we understand that I just want to explain to you how we got
there So um we are asking for 263 lodging units Previous ask was for 400 logic That's a 34% reduction So how we calculate the the density We start with our acreage of
4.98 The base density with the pedestrian commercial is six units per acre That gives us 29 units That would be units by right And then you you look at you you can convert those residential
units into lodging units And The code allows us when under exceptional circumstances and when providing public benefit to ask for a multiplier greater than what's uh in the table So we are asking for a 9.1
multiplier So you take 29 * 9.1 you get 263 So that request is the exact same multiplier as Marggo And I point that out because every time I go on social media I hear people pointing to to
Margaritavville as being a great example of what we should allow That's what happens with the passage of time Yes Because that's not how they felt on day one And I was here and and so was I And and so so again keep that in mind Uh
it's not because it was granted to one project it should be granted to another That's not what we're alluding to whatsoever what we're saying is it's a perfect example that you need to consider So from a an intensity standpoint F again we can ask for up to
2.5 We're asking for uh an F of two right now This is a breakdown of every story and each building and our total gross square footage which would be a total gross square footage of 4 uh
417879 that is 1.93 as I mentioned that's our concept plan today we want a little leeway and we're asking for a F of two to give us that leeway Uh when it comes to transportation again I don't like discussing this issue I think
there's a lot of differing opinions Uh I think I' I've explained to you how I feel about it and that it was existing It's going to keep existing u and we have to find ways to mitigate for it We're not going to solve it Uh but the
TIS conclusion by our expert concludes that and I'll just read the part in green will not place an undue burden on the adjacent roadway network The level of service information for the surrounding roadway network and
intersections shows that the Eterero Boulevard is already over capacity during season based on data collected prior to the hurricane So what this explains is we've got a congestion problem Okay our location and our amount
of traffic And again when we look at traffic it's important to to note that we don't start we don't look at all the traffic that we are generating with this resort We look at the delta between the marina that exists today and what is being proposed That's the additional
traffic that marina already generates a bunch of traffic that's already on our streets Um the parking issue we've looked at that slide Uh we've explained why we think uh we are eligible for the 50% but again discount our our benefit
as you'd like Um so traffic mitigation as I mentioned we got we got a pro we got a congestion issue Now how do we try to mitigate and solve this issue How do we improve
conditions So from a mitigation standpoint I think this is an ideal location Um the mix of uses this is a true mixuse project that also is significant enough that I think if someone comes here and
wants to park once and wants to be entertained and be able to dine and be able to walk around this is the place So I think that can take trips off the road Um the ferry water taxi to me that's that's the biggest
game changer when it comes to uh the traffic on Fort Myers Beach And uh I live on the south end I could tell you in season I'd love to be taking the ferry downtown Um bicycle for gas you know that that's a small incremental thing but I think it it helps Bicycle
parking more than happy to provide that Uh designated golf cart parking same thing small incremental but I think it's an alternative mode and we're promoting that Happy to provide that parking Um designated transit we can talk about the location but I think again that's
helping transit it's helping ride sharing It it just promotes alternative modes Uh pedestrian connectivity throughout the entire design Um again creating a walkable downtown Patrick can I stop here for a second Um Judith is
this list a good list of what you're referring to as not um quantifiable or should be part of Jim's memorialized um action list or agreement in between
the parties because zoning isn't going to fix any of this Correct This this is a good example I've been taking notes as we're going of which things should go in which bucket and certainly we can meet with applicant Yep Um following this and and kind of determine which should go where for example very clear on that
like the bicycle parking that's going to be on the site plan They're going to show us where they're going to put that providing bicycles for guests that's not going to be on the site plan They're going to have to if that's a commitment that they're making then that it goes on the other list Okay Sorry to inter that
would be true with the executive summary most of those public benefits that are listed there as well Yes I think if you look at our conditions we we've tried to actually um write the condition in such a way
that there's a hook that it's actually it's not just we we'll try or we'll do this No that wasn't a criticism at all Patrick No I agree But I I want to want you to understand our effort So so the the the water ferry and taxi I talked about putting a building there in a
terminal and having that capital improvement is is that way where we wanted to demonstrate the commitment and a way where we think that that condition should be in the ordinance and and we've talked about this also is we're more than happy to have a separate agreement
but we think that all these commitments should be in the ordinance because if you're the public and you want to say what did they promise Yeah And I want to go back and I want to look at it You you want that in there If there might be a reference to another document there might be an easement or there might be a
separate agreement but we want it all centralized because we want people 5 10 years from now to say what did they promise and did they provide it We're fine with that Okay Okay Sorry We we can talk about this later or it sense but we've had these kind of uh
meetings internally about this Um there was a particular situation where a certain resort promised a discount to residents They had said that in a meeting um and then complained to the town and then the town was in a position of how do we enforce a private um
operator to giving a a discount and that's kind of an uncomfortable place for I just I only brought that up so because I clearly understand the delineation now Okay Okay Thank you Thank you Uh where was I Yeah Don't rent
the car program shuttle service uh public parking kayak parking boat drop off and pick up day docking Again th those are all traffic mitigation measures Uh hopefully those are great
things for the town and hopefully they they benefit the resort also You know we we want people to come to this resort We want it to be successful Uh man public benefits So this is not just traffic mitigation it's all the public
benefits Um you guys want me to go through this I I think read you you've all read it Okay Yeah So so it's it's there It's part of our slideshow It's part of the record Um hopefully everybody can take a look uh at our
package if they want to see exactly what it is But I think I think these uh when it comes to and I want to talk about the basket of of benefits Okay I would like to add though those 20 extra boat slips because I don't see that on any of this Appreciate that Yeah
we we uh we just knew that we were going to provide the marina and and the request and what we're moving forward with and different agencies take care of the water side of things but we uh the currently there's 55 slips and the the
the request and the the the applications they're going to be submitting with the state and everything is for 75 slips So there would be an expansion So that'll be easy to check Yeah Okay So one of the things that I'm happy to um address though is besides Snug Harbor
and the Marina Village area and the marina that boat ramp that Judith mentioned and it's full of debris now after the hurricane and it's falling apart So the issue is is our rules say
that we're not going to create more seaw walls We don't really see this as more seaw wall We see it as it's an infill You've got a ramp that's defunct That's not working I think that's very clear Yeah Yeah we got it So the good news is we got our state permits State state
agrees we can fill that problem That's good news Um so again long list of public benefits Um you've seen it you've read them Happy to answer any questions Um proposed conditions and
commitments Again you've seen them That's where if you want to pull any one of these out and talk about the language we're happy to do so But I I I just want you guys to appreciate how we've tried to memorialize all our commitments
through a condition or commitment And I think that's where the teeth comes in or if there's a need for a separate agreement that's where it would go is is in those conditions commitments Again just the general categories traffic
mitigation Um we've got the marina use and design We've got the public spaces We've got the design of the of the resort And we've got kind of the miscellaneous um supporting the school
uh schedule you know flexible schedule hours that type of thing that fall into that So you guys are happy with that you have you have it in your packet You've seen it No need to go over it Um when it comes to um on the cop hours of operation
amplified sound hours of um for for all of those places There's no times in here Uh so we have them here on hours of operation So we we deal with coop and hours of operation separately So so coop
is just identify the areas that would have the coop So uh I think where we dis we disagree with next slide Yeah So where we disagree with staff um is staff
um would rather not see uh the coop applied to building E again to apply to what the building E in the private pool that last building by by the bayfront and I think I've explained to you what that is It's it's it's not open to all
the guests of the resort It's it's again having the ability for a hotel guest um that wants to have a drink and have a maybe there's a compromise that there's se that you can consume there but there's no bar there Yeah perhaps And if it's if it's kind of the we have it
inside and like I said in some of these resorts you've got that cooler whatever you can grab it you can go outside I think would that would that work for you guys or you want to how would you work if if we didn't have an outdoor bar but we still have the cop
for building E because the only people that can get inside are the ones that belong inside Exactly That's right So I think Ben nodded that write that down He would be willing to accept that Okay Okay Well then since we're on that could I just suggest something else Ben will you come
up here for a second I think one of the things that uh um in my opinion impacts the neighborhood dramatically is the the um the deck on the hotel that's like right on top of uh
those houses Sunset deck Okay So if that sunset deck was a quiet spot like Patrick described the one on the front end which really should be a loud spot because it's on the front end It's where all the action is If that was a quiet spot where
somebody went just to where there wasn't a bar where somebody just went to have a cocktail have a glass of wine that they brought up from their room and it was just a nice chill zone instead of a party a potential party zone It would minimize the impact on the
neighborhood dramatically Well it's for hotel guests only It's for hotel guests only So we already have that restriction in there So the it couldn't be become a party zone I guess they have to how they would get together But
there's a bar there Yes So it's basically an outside bar on a deck overlooking that neighborhood right And it would just be ideal if it wasn't a bar there If it was just an area like
Patrick described look you know everybody's going to start asking for what they'd really like And I have really given a lot of thought to how can you minimize the impact on that neighborhood And if I lived at Chris Mysterio's house I would hate that deck because to me somebody's going to stand out there They're gonna you know have I
mean whoever it is whoever's staying at the hotel they're going to have order some drinks and they're going to start hanging out there at the deck and before I know it I've got a party on top of my house that I'm not a part of And it just seems it seems to me the most obtrusive element of the project is that deck
You just think about it I'm just telling you now Think about it for a few minutes Thank you Yeah Um I think a good example to think of is is we we've got a brand new hotel in the Luminary I don't know if they've changed names downtown Fort Myers Um I don't
know if any of you have been there Different scenario Patrick but there is a but there is a deck up there and I' I've been there and and it's this is not it's not a party deck No it's not But there's also not a neighborhood there So if there was a party there Understood The the other thing also that I'd like
to point out is in the packet that we gave you um Ben's team had done a survey and one of the top requests for the design what people wanted to see was
a sunset deck Okay Yes it's a sunset deck It's just not a bar Mhm I I just it just it just But maybe I'm the only one that feels that way So you know I'm thinking that the difference is not so much whether or not you can consume
alcohol there The difference is the level of entertainment and volume of music that's there Sure Music band you're talking about that's what I'm talking about That's I didn't hear anything about that I think that's what would make a space
more obtrusive different You put chill music up there people will be chill You put rowdy music up there people will be rowdy Um and the amount of serving you do obviously I think factors into it but understood Something something to
contemplate in the next hour or two Understood We'll uh we'll certainly discuss that and be happy to do so Um again what I've highlighted um on this on this page is again where staff
um staff noted in their report that building Eid they would recommend no um no music uh along the pool or was it no or or just different hours I believe uh yeah I think they were saying 10 to six
perhaps rather than um 10 to 1 hour after sunset U again what I want to point out is we're not talking about a live band We are talking about ambient music So I I see this as no different than the right
that we all have in our backyards to have a little radio playing and some background music I think that's that's the intent It's not a band It's not live music It's ambient music only and 10 The
idea was we we said 10 again you might have people that are up and going at 7 but we figured 10 is a good time It doesn't necessarily bring you the day and and 1 hour after sunset you know when we get to summertime the the the
days are much longer and I think there's going to be people that want to hang out at the pool And if we say six it it really doesn't kind of acknowledge the fact that our days are much longer during the summer So that that's really what our intent was with the one hour
after sunset But again if those were the points of contention and and were being recommended denial over those issues you know certainly happy to address those Did council yesterday on
the food truck on the ambient music put a decibel level Yes it was a voluntary reduction in the noise ordinance Yeah 60 Yeah And that was voluntary on the behalf about a policing nightmare on the
behalf of the uh the applicant Hydrophones Okay All right What else Patrick Uh you've got this in your packet No need to go through that Um deviations justifications Uh the only
thing I I wanted to highlight I think they're pretty self-explanatory The first one um is the setbacks and it's really reducing the setbacks to bring the building So so the funny thing is if you're doing a CPD for a resort you have to abide by the
CR zoning regulations But you're downtown where we have build two lines We're trying to put the buildings at the build two lines like the downtown calls for but we have to ask for a deviation for it So just just
to note when we update our LDC we might look at that Okay Um for air ratio we talked about that Uh number three is um the conversion um ratio We talked about that
Um one of the the issues that we we can talk about right now I think it's worth discussing because I know we've had a comment from the public on that is we are creating this um linear park memorial garden and we want to have
beautiful landscaping there Okay What the co the code calls for is a masonry wall to the neighbors and the landscaping on the outside part of the wall Outside meaning your side No
on the neighbor's side Obviously we're not going to plant in their property and take their property So we would build that into our property But what happens is now you got maintenance guys that need access to their property to maintain our
landscaping What we think instead of a masonry wall because we think the the the real buffering is the vegetation and not the wall And and sometimes these masonry wall to me looks darker and it's more attractive to see nice vegetation We were envisioning a part masonry wall
with nice decorative fence So you got the columns that are masonry the base nice decorative fence You got the landscaping on our side and they can maintain that on a daily basis They don't have to go onto the neighbor's property That was the reason for it Okay
So I know it's going to come up and and that that's our reason We're happy to discuss it Um uh the seaw wall issue we talked about that Um we're we got permission We can we can um we can fill in that that
little ramp but unfortunately that's a that's a deviation So we're asking for that deviation to make it happen Um 30 ft Um so the deviation six is the height We talked about the height Uh again we we we think it's in keeping and complimentary to the area and the
adjacent um mariner village Um number seven uh it's it's the setback lines Um we talked about that Number
eight is the parking deviation We've also talked about that Um okay about to wrap wrap this up Okay Economic impacts
Um we um we know um that this are estimates Um the same methodology was presented to you when we did the Neptune Yep And it was I I think also utilized
by uh Seagate possibly they were asked to use the same methodology So what this table shows you is two different methodologies are used Um and bear with me here I'm trying to can't read the slide from here That's
the problem I I hate to admit it but I I need to find my page Okay So um what what this is is two methodologies are used Um one is
where we look at how much people spend for the rooms and then we uh we have a multiplier for every guest On average per day they spend x amount more and we come up with a total impact
of 132,979,000 So so roughly 133 million Then the other methodology that was used is looking at the visitor and convention bureau data for Lee County as a whole And what they do is they look at
all the economic impacts um to the county and then they have a number for how many visitors we have per year So you take that total number you divide it by the number of visitors and then you take that number and you say how many visitors are coming to the arches And
when we use that methodology we come up with a much bigger number of roughly 321 million Okay we understand there's a big divide between the two of those So we think we probably fall somewhere in
between So the um visitor impact we believe would be over 300 $133 million per year and probably less than the $320 million per
year Uh we've also looked at and and that's what you have on the first line up there Well on that Patrick the the economic impact what they're doing is the moment they touch down Yeah All the way through till they leave So it's the indirect
spend throughout the entire We're obviously interested on circulatory system here Yeah Fort Myers Beach So I think your number is more accurate and more applicable than Fort Myers area just because if they're coming here as a destination the spend around the greater area isn't concentrated like it would be if they're coming Fort Myers Beach Yeah
So that's the arguable one in my mind And that's it We and and we acknowledge that and that's why we provide the range Um we um then we looked at u you know sales tax bet tax payroll tax
adorum and um as you recall last time there's been discussions of how much stays uh and stays with the town and it it's not a big amount You know it's 6.2 of those taxes but it's it's not just the town It's it's it's it's it's
geographically where it stays And FMB library gets a portion of that FM mosquito control gets a portion of that FMB fire gets a portion of that So in the end of all those taxes we retain about 27% And that's on a yearly basis and
that's that's a little more than half half a million dollars every year Um permanent jobs So um Thomas and Ben have worked on coming up with estimates of FTEES of what they think uh would be
needed for the resort and the various businesses They come out with uh 227 uh full-time equivalents uh for those who have worked in corporate positions and have to deal with FTEES How does that compare to today's payroll
uh staffing I I don't We have 12 today You have 12 Oh okay Yeah Ben just said we have 12 We have 12 today Just for the record Yeah So so so I think the comparison was how many employees at Moss Marina today
versus uh what is is anticipated in the future Um and then we're looking at uh coming up with a an impact fee ordinance and and having impact fees Again that is not drafted The methodology that was
used here was let's use u Lee County impact fees as a proxy It could be a little more a little less Don't know And also the only thing that I wanted to point out is uh you've got Lee County does impact fees for roads parks fire
EMS and they don't have an impact fee for water and sewer They call it a connection fee But to my mind those are all impact fees And those are one time fees And um when we look at the potential costs for this resort we're
looking at over $4 million in impact fees So um as you can see that is more than any other project that has come before you today Um when it comes to uh this slide I I
just want again to look at 30,000 ft where we were and where we are today This is the latest information from um the visitor and convention bureau Um with Margaritavville included
in there uh we only have 48% of our lodging rooms back online So again we're asking for 263 It improves things but it's it's it's you know it's just a drop in the
bucket versus the deficit that we currently have Um so I'm wrapping it up right now Okay So staff report and I'm simplifying it I know they talked about general
conditions and general compata compatibility I think we've addressed compatibility but what they point out clearly in the report is they point out the parking reduction that we're asking that they do not agree with us They do not concur and that's one of the
reasons for their denial Um and then they clearly point out how we treat building E when it comes to COP and music I think we've made our points on that
Again we do not believe those are reasons for denial Um I think there are ways to address these compatibility issues that we have tried to do so
extensively Um but again I if if we need to talk about hours of operation and and sound we're happy to talk about that and if that will relieve concerns we can certainly consider how we can make adjustments
So with that said I know you don't want to let it go do you We we support staff's recommendation except for their treatment of the coop ambient sound and building E Um and
in my professional planning opinion and the opinion of my entire team with uh multiple experts we believe that we are propo that our proposed CPD is consistent with the comp plan as amended
and as will be amended as will be amended and that we meet or exceed LDC requirements and that based on our expert testimony and all the evidence that has been submitted to the town and
provided to you we respectfully request a recommendation for approval So with that said that's very good Patrick Happy to take a break Less than three hours Good job Right Less than um any questions for Patrick at the moment because we'll still let him come back up
Mr Freeland you have any comments you still want to add You're okay Thank you sir Okay Um Judith could I ask the public to speak before you give a wrap up because they've been sitting so patiently So I'm gonna open public comment Is anybody who raised their hand
Oh Amy's got Amy's got a list And anybody want to take a break No let's just keep going Come on go Okay First up will be uh Chris Smith After Chris is Linda Miller Chicken fingers for dinner We know that Good
afternoon Chris Smutz On behalf of London Bay Development Group developers of Outrigger Charlie Sandpiper we greatly appreciate your dedication to Fort Myers Beach As Fort Myers Beach stakeholders
stakeholders we encourage you to consider the islandwide economic impacts of the Arches Bayfront Resort proposal Large-scale projects like this are key to restarting the economic engine of Fort Myers Beach
This project and a handful of others like it not only have obvious economic impact related to permit fees and impact fees that Pat just went over but also to increase property values and property taxes sales taxes job
creation and islandwide commerce All a cascading economic impact for Fort Myers Beach today and for generations to come It's been two years since Ian And although Build Back exists it's not enough The island is struggling to
return to the thriving community it once was Last year's storm season reminds us that Hurricane Ian wasn't a one-time event highlighting the need to build resiliently to current Florida Building Code FEMA and FD
code The Arches Bayfront Resort proposal is well balanced It may very well turn a disorganized marine industrial area into a premier mixeduse northn Bayside destination They offer a variety of public
benefits including a bayfront prominade and plaza with dining shopping and entertainment from the Bayfront Park North landscaping and shade buffers with existing neighborhoods a linear park and memorial garden resilient structures
updated infrastructure coastal architecture a diverse hotel offering public parking hosting public events airport shuttles participation in DRA flexible work schedules to support
attendance at the beach school a large-scale marina with fueling services for long-term or short-term use and taking the initiative to provide the infrastructure and operational expertise to serve as the founding partner of the
Fort Myers Beach public water taxi By recommending approval of this project today you're sending a message that Fort Meyers LPA is committed to rebuilding for future generations Thanks for your consideration Thank you very much Chris Who's next Amy Linda Miller Linda Miller
Sorry After Linda will be Chris Mero Okay Chris get ready You're going to be up next Go ahead Linda Pull that microphone down would you You're little Good afternoon And uh my name is Linda Miller and I run the farmers markets on
Fort Myers Beach which is about 90% of my income which suffered greatly during um Hurricane Ian and Milton and so on Um but what really I bring to the table to you all is that I spend about 40 hours a
week in the trenches with tourists residents um vendors who own businesses here and um and a lot of social media I'm on social media probably another 50 hours a
week And what I'm hearing from a lot of people um what well what I like about the Arches that answers the the public comments that I hear a lot is that um the Arches Bayfront replaces industrial
looking boat barns with a beautiful structure adding to the esteem of Fort Myers Beach that you can actually see from the bridge when you enter So it's going to be like the gem of Fort Myers Beach Uh just like Fort Meyers has their
downtown now corridor of shopping and art walk now we would have something beautiful like that Just like Naples has Fifth Avenue we would have something beautiful like this walking district that has gorgeous architecture and I don't think anyone has presented
anything so beautiful to come to our beach to replace industrial boat barns So um the focus also on uh park once and having a walking district Um it reminds me a lot of um Key West where you walk
you you park once and you walk through all of downtown and you support all the businesses and all the restaurants And I think that's a benefit uh to reducing traffic that that those 300 people that comes to stay there uh have one place to
to park and then they they just walk the rest of the time We're seeing more of that now that we have uh the little farmers market on Third Street and um Old San Carlos uh that that all the people I mean I'd swear I swear it's
about maybe 30 people park all day long and they come and go and they park and they leave Uh but I would say 90% of our customers at 401 uh Third Street uh are walking and a few are biking but it primarily they're
walking from Snug Harbor Uh they're walking from Marina Village They're mo walking from a Kansas um and they're going to all the restaurants and that's what we need to support and build up downtown because right now uh we just
don't have enough hotels downtown Uh I know that sounds like we're just adding more traffic to it but I've seen over the last I've I've been in business down here on Fort Myers Beach for 11 years and I've seen a decline since Hurricane Ian Actually it was kind of a boost We
had a lot of support after Ian but then we had this um this decline this year and maybe it's an election year but I think that this uh this would really boost the economy and not only do we need it but we need it yesterday Thank you Linda very much Thank you Appreciate
your comments Chris Chris after Chris will be Robin Atwood Robin Atwood Good good afternoon everyone Um my name is Chris Mastero My property is 923rd Street Basically my backyard is Moss Marina Um but as a neighbor planning on
being on being in this area for the next 30 or 40 years when I first heard Arches was resubmitting their plans I got excited Maybe they were going to listen to neighbors Maybe the plan would be would be much more reasonable for the location and limited access And then I
saw the plans and I was confused It didn't look like much of a change There are still four massive buildings These buildings are even taller Where are the public benefits the resort amenities and the cost of doing business Nothing
residents spoke up about regarding size access balconies facing our homes and buffers were addressed I guess they removed the parking garage Lee County denied the expansion of the marina in 1985 because there was no good access to this site The freelance applied for a
variance which was later granted And I have a letter from Mink Engineering in 1989 that says the access variance was granted to allow for commercial development after the re relocation of the Matanis Pass Bridge The access to this site is planned along the
southeasterly boundary at the existing gate off old San Carlos Boulevard The vehicular traffic is to be encouraged to use this access That's the the gate in front of Snug Harbor Today there's a
gate blocking this access and all marina traffic is coming through our neighborhood They've created these trips through our neighborhood There should be zero They should all be using that gate Why have they stopped using this Why did they do this Because it's not a
good spot for vehicles to come through There was no access for a small marina expansion in 1989 The roads have not gotten any bigger There's no good access for this size development today What they are calling a linear park is laughable The requ it's a required
buffer which is be going to become a pedestrian highway in our backyards What's currently a quiet enclosed boat shed 25 ft from my house is going to be balconies and gathering places and basically the same building footprint The proposed bus buffer is 30 feet
That's a 5-ft difference a 5ft increase This buffer should not be a minimum It should be exceeded It should be a 25 ft buffer with a park that's double or triple that for their pedestrian highway A much larger amount of green space might be a public benefit downtown but
not this You know we talk a lot on the beach about buildings Do we like buildings like this or do we like buildings like this Um I did tell the freelance personally I'd be okay with one taller building closer to downtown pushed away from our houses if that's
what it takes for a revitalization project to like this to happen But what they're not proposing is this or this It's this four of these massive structures I ask for your denial today on this project as it currently stands
It's still too big with little thoughtfulness to the neighbors and public benefit Thank you Thank you Chris Robin After Robin will be Jay Bonma Hi Robin I'm Robin Atwood Um I'm at 7:35 Matanzas
just right across Um and would like to point out that as the homeowner there we have never been contacted by Mr Freeland Never asked a single question never surveyed nothing crickets Um I have some concerns that
are not only just for me for my property but for the traffic coming off the island There's still one exit We all come the same way Pink Shells already down there We have all that traffic but then you're going to turn
and come up old San Carlos You're going to have all those vehicles There will be parking but that is also very much a pedestrian pathway to have that much traffic in that small area Traffic traffic traffic just it's crazy down
here the way it is and increasing it seems wrong to me Um the other thing uh they pointed out was their uh I had to write this down um the focal
point their views going out My view is of a marina For 30 years it's been our view And now it's going to be of people looking back at us and into our homes on building E Building E is a huge pro
problem I would like to see it disappear actually Uh and they if there is a bar there is a party You all know that saying that it's going to be people's maybe it's going to be condos or it'll be resident you know we're implying it's
going to be residents It's like a kiss and a promise It is not Uh it is hotel guests And where there is a bar and people are vacationing there is a party There is a loud party And as far as I can see there is no buffering between
us between us There's a pool where we're going to serve drinks and and do those things and that that those two things do not connect in my brain When you vacation you're out for the good time right And uh I don't care how much money you have and that this is an exclusive
building You're still there to have a party and a good time Um again it's the buffer I ask that you not do do this This is so nerve-wracking standing in front of Yeah Don't Don't let it be Don't let it be Uh I ask that
you deny this as it sits I think it's beautiful I think it is welldesigned The the pictures are gorgeous You can't argue with any of those things But again on our side we are not buffered There's is basically a pool and a party going to
happen there Uh and balconies looking into our homes We bought this as residential property If we'd wanted to live downtown where that was happening it would have been bought We would have bought downtown not on a nice quiet canal and culde-sac Uh and uh that's
what we do is we set out we sit outside That's where we live in Florida is outside So again I would like to ask that you not approve this the way it stands Thank you Robin You did a fine job Okay who's next Jay Bonmo Jono After
Jay will be Dale Benema Okay that's all I have signed up after Dale Okay Um good afternoon Um I'm Jay Bonma Uh we live in 725 Madas Court So our house is directly across Moss Marina So
I I prepared something but um I think I gota like um adjust a little bit based on what we've heard this afternoon So I agree with everything that Robin said So I've seen the the building A with the
poll and I I I don't see any buffer at all So I you probably remember us attending all the meetings with what we've experienced with the root shrimp So we don't want to leave that nightmare
again And so we we highly request that you follow the recommendation for the COP removed from that area and the amplified music removed from that area
So we all know that the canal between us it carries the sound and no matter what what they do you know we will still here in that area So I watched the town
council meeting yesterday and I felt very sad that you know these residents tried to to tell the council and that these developments are going to intrude
on their their space their residence and now here we are with the arches project So I'd be honest I've looked at the marina for a very long time since I arrived in the US and generally it's very quiet and I
don't mind seeing the marina for many more years and um it's a big benefit for the town We need a marina that service that can service a
boat can repair a boat And I believe based on what was um presented today that that part of service servicing the boat will be gone once this is changed So and I I know that's a big benefit for
us being an island right So I respectfully request that you um deny the request and if if we are since this is a hotel
resort and building E the it's 80 ft So it's going to be towering over our single family residence which is I don't know 30 feet or so So if we are forced to live next to this
resort it should be restricted to the same height as our houses And it should face the canal not I mean it should face the bay not the canal I think that's it Thank you so much Thank you Jay
Dale Dale do you want to speak Leah Okay you can come after Dale I'm sorry I have to be signed in Hey you have to be signed in and sworn in Uh Dale Bonama Dale Bonama 725 mandis court Um we've talked about a lot of
details today the the whole presentation And but I think that the huge issue is that Moss Marina over the years over the decades has
consumed approximately 10 single family residential lots And when you think about that that that's the definition of intrusion That's why we have zoning laws and a comp plan And the their latest
acquisition is the two single family cottage lots right on the canal And so now we're faced with Yeah an 80 foot building right there and uh gobbling up all these single family homes
and enlarging the marina operations That's one thing But now it's not just going to be marina operations It's going to be a hotel It's and this is not the this is not the core area I know we want to pull the core area different direction The core area is Time Square
and Old San Carlos It the core area should not go into our residential areas And so this uh you know compare Margaritaville Margaritavville occupies land that was
commercial It was a McDonald's with a drive-thru It was a liquor store It was a bar It was the mermaid lounge So I'm I'm really amazed when we look at the big picture and not all the details is if we can't say no to
this what's the point of a comp plan I mean this is the definition And when we're we're considering the town granting the zoning change of single several of these single family residential lots and awarding them with
with this intense use hotel use That's like giving them tens of millions of dollars of profits over the decades at our expense At our expense because our property value is going to decline from this I don't think anybody would
question that Everybody's gonna make money The Freelands are the the Lee County uh the tourist tech everybody the shops the rest everybody's going to make money
But we're taking a hit It's a big hit It's probably 30% because our whole property there it's a beautiful property right on it's it's going to be balconies It's going to
be a a a bar It's going to be noisy We're not going to see the sun till afternoon That's just the reality of this I don't know why that building has to be 80 feet high It should be limited Those are residential lots Any building on a residential lot should be limited
to the residential height 30 feet whatever it is not 80 feet 80 feet is very intrusive and it's like I say it's all about the money and uh we're just we're dying here I mean
Hurricane Ian an act of God but we're still trying to recover physically emotionally financially Hurricane Helen act of God Hurricane Milton act of God Well this arches it's an act of greed
and we're paying the price Everybody's gonna make money but our properties that are right there Okay Thank you Dale I appreciate your time Um is anybody else going to want to speak that Terry like like to also speak
Anybody else want to speak That Yes ma'am Okay So would you all stand up because um uh Amy's going to swear you in Were you sworn in at the beginning If if you were sworn in at the beginning you don't need to do it again
Okay Go ahead Amy Do you solemnly swear and affirm that the testimony that you're about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth Yes Okay Okay Leah you're first Okay Good morning I know Good evening Almost
Good afternoon Hello Leah Greg Bonita Street So um keep in mind when I decided to purchase uh my home on Bonita Street it was and still is in a a residential neighborhood with a zoned operating marina close by There were no commercial
properties anywhere in sight I'm not totally opposed to this project but I would like to address a few concerns So first I I believe honesty integrity should be at the center of everything we do We all know how badly the Freelands
want this project approved and I could see where they're coming from and I thank them for scaling it back a bit But I also asked them to be honest and not implement tactics such as they did May 2nd of last year by sending a blank email blanket email to who knows how
many people asking these people to sign a letter urging the LPA and council to support this endeavor and to share this letter with their friends and family Although the email showed Ben Freeland as the sender when you clicked on Ben's name the name in the from section was a
marketing firm So that that was a little deceitful I thought that was a a little a little deceitful Um and the marketing firm you know there was I I asked who was it sent to How many people was it sent this to Uh Fort Myers Beach residents the state this who knows So it
could have went out to everyone in the country possibly you know in the world just to solicit that type of information Um so you know I just asked them to just be honest have integrity with this process I'm sure it'll go your way if you do the right thing We all want
growth on this island The second thing is um the neighborhood is very small So for example Bonita Street where my home is there's three homes on the street So when I come to speak that's 33% of my my my street coming in speaking on behalf of of this project So during the one LPA
meetings uh last year for this project Patrick Venise who at the time was an LPA member he made the comment that there wasn't much opposition to the project based on the number of people who spoke during public comments So he approved it I had to remind Patrick that there's less than 15 homes in this whole
entire neighborhood three on my street five on Harbor Court It's tiny So you know you really can't take a few people coming in and completely throw that out the window when there's a very few people that live in that community that are affected Um I also uh so again I
asked Patrick too don't don't mislead the public Have integrity have honesty just be honest Um third I wanted to address the county owned Bonita Street and Harbor Court two very short very tiny streets that if you continue driving down these streets you would end
up in the bay Uh they're essentially deadend streets The staff report states that the owner will provide an accessible stabilized surface for the area between Harbor Court that has five homes and Bonita Street that has three homes for emergency vehicles and access
points at Harbor Court So my if I could just say one more thing So emergency and limited access only Limited access is defined as intended to allow vehicles that have unintentionally driven down Harbor Quart or Bonita Street So
temporary access uh to the turnaround area and and then they have to literally maneuver through the um through the uh resort and then exit back out on Bonita Street or Harbor Court It just sounds cumbersome Mount Lache all these other small towns where they have streets that
are dead end that are narrow the the fire trucks the emergency vehicles the trash vehicles they back in and then they simply pull out from what staff wrote I got to stop you All right I'll let you go Thank you You're welcome Thank you Nice to see you Nice to see you Anita You too Terry Terry
and I'm sorry I don't know your name but you you'll be next You're welcome Good afternoon Pull the mic up just a little bit Thank you We're off There you go Thank you Good afternoon
LPA members My name is uh Terry Prasad I'm a resident of Fort Myers Beach I also own a property in Time Square which was the old and former Sunset Beach Grill Um I'm looking at the Freeman's project It's a beautiful project It's what we need for the rebuild of t
downtown Uh as we work with our tank square project you know we're having a difficult time coming up with ideas and how to rebuild our town or our downtown because of the costs and we need larger scale projects to bring more people to
the island that will support the small businesses on the island and that will create the vibe that we all so much want Um as you know after Hurricane Ion we lost majority of our business in the downtown and Time Square area And this
is going to be the first project that will come back and will be a great catalyst to helping us restore downtown and motivate people to come into Times Square area also and rebuild So I I urge you to approve this project and let us
get the rebuild started back in downtown Time Square Thank you Thank you Terry Madam come tell us your name Good afternoon My name is Janet Garza of Lee County Nice to meet you Nice to meet you So for the record uh Lee County
resident here and I want to thank you guys for all you do This is a labor of love Um and you'd be happy to know I'm not on social media I'm taking a fast from Lent so I'm missing all that social media action Blessings honey Good timing right Anita
Um but I am proud to call Fort Myers Beach my family's home beach um for my entire existence Um and I stand before you not as an expert but as a former Fort Myers Beach kid And now I'm a mom of little Fort Myers Beach Kids In fact in fact I just found glittery toothbrushing money in my purse to prove
that I am a mom As if they just didn't show you enough Um but when I think about Fort Myers Beach I think about the words community and collaboration It's what I've seen especially since the hurricane And when I think about the Freeland family those same words come to mind They were quick to respond to Ian with the assistance with the US Coast
Guard which is when they really first caught my ear my eye Um I even finally stalked Mr Freeland um at that quick response and might have sent him an email um just expressing my gratitude for really working with not just the town but with the US Coast Guard to help
resolve some of our issues here They've continuously listened to the community through various public forums local leaders asked for public input and not just listen but they've woven in those points to their plan Um as Mr Vanasi um I think I pronounced your name right
sorry Um so thoroughly explained today which I enjoyed listening to and reading It's been great to watch the evolution of the Arches Bayfront project and I do hope to see it move forward with uncertainty of tariffs and escalation and costs coupled with the roadblocks
they've already faced Um you know my fear is that development in the area is really going to slow down and time is of the essence to get our island back in action before my littles are too big to enjoy the splash pad Um and an needed station I must say I do hope they're granted permission to move forward with
this vital project And while I know that change is sometimes hard to to digest I'm a firm believer that residents and businesses can coexist in harmony and I appreciate your consideration for approval Thank you What a lovely person you are Thank you That was very very
nice Collaboration and what did you say is Fort Meyer speech Collaboration community Collaboration I think that's lovely Thank you Have a good Thank you for coming in Okay Was very nice Yes Are you Did you Did you swear Yes Good Come on Come do it in
front of us Hey Nick are you going to speak also Okay He's Nick's Nick's going to be next Come on Oh yeah Uh yes Good afternoon everyone I'm Dennis Wagamman and uh I'm a realtor here on Fort Myers Beach
Um want to also mention there's no conflict of interest uh with the uh lucky you with the Arches project Although I am here in support of the arches project uh for a number of number of reasons Um you know it it represents something more
than just a building It represents uh an opportunity for the town to rise up again Um I think as some other folks have mentioned it's it's a pivotal project pivotal opportunity And uh when we look back at the island's history um south end of the island um used to be
preserved down there Florida preserve And along came a guy someone you might have heard of Mr Santini bought a little bit of land down there And he built a Leonardo Arms I think was the first condo on the island that he built Then he built this place called Santini Plaza And what a anchor that's become to the
south end to the island It's you know I miss uh the South Beach Grill My wife's my favorite restaurant was down there So it was a wonderful place We hope it comes back Um and you know Ian changed everything for all of us We all know that it took away more than buildings It
took away took away our our our rhythm It took away our vibe for now You know for now And u I think the arches I I think Pat's presentation the thought I'm sitting there I'm a detail oriented guy I'm that type A obsessive guy and
everything The amount of detail that Pat threw at us today like amazing amazing the care and thought that went into this Is it perfect No But they're here I believe wholeheartedly with open arms open minds uh to to do what they need to do to make
it as great as possible for everyone I firmly believe that Uh we all know Pat we know all know his abilities and his his heart and also the Freelands as well So um I think it's a wonderful thing that they're doing Uh and also just
everything at one spot you know the traffic Yes we're an island in the Gulf of America So um in the Gulf how's that Okay Uh we're an island in the Gulf and um yeah people are going to come want to see us and and as Pat rightfully
mentioned we're never going to eliminate we just have to mitigate it And so I think with a number of of thoughtful things uh being a destination it's going to limit the amount of traffic water taxis etc etc I think there's a lot of great thought that went into this entire project Um and I think it's I think it's
wonderful to have everything You know we've lost a lot of the old places Every corner every street brings back a memory to folks right We've got to look forward and what are we going to leave behind to people going to come behind us and after us So um you know we need to start
creating new spots new places for destinations for enjoyment and for having a wonderful evening and remembering it you know when we took our kids there we took our grandkids there The legacy So thank you all very much and I I ask that you uh move forward and
approve this project Thank you Dennis Nick Hello my name is Nick Roland I'm uh one of the owners of uh Snug Harbor restaurant and lived here for quite some time 40 some years I guess Anyways uh and we are neighbors to
the Freelands and the project and I've watched that project for many many years Uh it's kind of a went from the a gambling boat on it So it's had some density and intensity on that property before and and which fit in well with the community
Then I would uh and the reduction in the size of the project was the right move and what it will add to the community I think it there's not much question there I would ask if you would um please consider this
project move forward Thank you Thank you very much Danny Is there anybody else who would like to speak Okay seeing seeing no I thought you were going to raise your hand Seeing no we'll close the public comment and let's take a um let's take a break
How long Uh seven minutes 10 minutes I just Okay it is 4:42 and we're back on track If everybody could just calm down for a
minute We're back on track So where we are right now is Judith Judith um why don't we do this Why don't um unless there's something you feel you need to put on the record why don't we see who's got some questions for you or
would you like to do you need to say something Well so I was going to summarize a little bit I think that there was some um confusion or or things that were unclear about exactly why staff has
recommended to denial So I was going to go over that and then um just for the record I have to go through the findings and conclusions Um and then we have the deviations uh the deviations and the um if you were to recommend approval then
there are staff suggested conditions that would go along with that So those are the things that I need to get to Well then before you do that let me see who's got any questions for you so you could address them We could do we could do a big wrapup Okay Uh Don you got any questions for us Um just you covering
the reasons for denial again versus what was represented That's what I want to hear So okay Other than that good Uh no questions I'd like to hear what she has to say No questions No questions I'm wrong Okay
Go ahead That was easy Um so first up I wanted to address deviation 8 and the the situation with the parking Um the applicant
there uncomfortably close Um the the project would require a deviation even if they were only asking for a 33% reduction I was suggesting that the 33% reduction would be the appropriate
reduction to ask for not the 50% Um only the portion on Old San Carlos is in the downtown uh zoning district Now uh I did want to clarify a little bit Sometimes we say the downtown as a general area Um
but when we're talking about downtown in this case we're talking about what is zoned for downtown So there are three zoning districts now for the parcels that we're discussing There's the marina zoning there's the residential and then there's the downtown zoning So in
discussing this with the applicant if they wanted that 50% reduction for that old San Carlos parcel that would be appropriate The remainder of the property um is neither now on in
downtown or is um proposed to be in downtown because when you create the commercial plan development you're charged with using the commercial resort zoning not the downtown zoning So it's a little bit of of uh charged by logistics
So the uh land development code says that when you're doing a CPD you have to use the commercial um commercial resort zoning So when you're considering um what your regulations are that's where you have to look And so if you need a deviation it would be from those
regulations So we're not comparing it to downtown They're suggesting I think that the downtown would be an appropriate um guide in this case because it is adjacent to downtown It is not in the downtown zoning district but is in what
you may think of as a general downtown area So I just wanted to clarify those two things They would need a deviation in any case because they are not providing 100% of the required uh parking what would be required What I'm
saying that they do provide is they provide enough to meet that 33% reduction and that was my suggestion that that was the appropriate deviation to ask for I am not recommending denial because of the parking count Okay Um I
was only suggesting that when in considering the approval or denial of the project that that deviation could be um perhaps addressed individually and it does speak to the the um the public benefit or what we're counting as a public benefit because if they do not
have sufficient parking to offer commercial parking then that would not be in general a benefit to the public Um and what I did say is that once they're in operation then they will have a much
clearer idea of exactly how the parking will all be used Um and whether or not they will need it And I think adding that as a condition um what gives them that flexibility once they're up and running of saying look we did a study we had somebody in here you
know providing the count we know exactly where things are going and it turns out we don't need all of this parking for the resort So I added that in as a potential option and something that you could add as a condition if you wanted to Okay I think is everybody clear on
the totally clear move on Okay Um the applicant did a good job of explaining the difference or the the um the story or the development of the I the proposal They showed a comparison between what they had previously proposed and what
they're proposing now And I do agree that they've done a lot of work trying to refine the proposal and get to something that would be more compatible with the um the neighboring conditions When I'm looking at it I'm comparing the
existing um to what the proposed is The existing includes that marina zoning It includes the residential zoning as well as the downtown zoning So in thinking of what the impacts or what the potential
because mostly we're trying to mitigate any negative impacts um that's what we're taking into consideration what's there now in terms of zoning and what could be there um in the future So I I wanted to clarify that
also um and to summarize that um when I talk about neighborhood compatibility uh the project is compatible with the old San Carlos and that zoning um category there Um it you know clearly
works with those commercial uses with the restaurants the shops Um it provides um an anchor point I believe that's the word that they used on that end of the island on the bay bay island um the bay
end of the island and um anybody visiting that property would have to walk through the um downtown district which is certainly a benefit to those businesses um in order to get to the the beach My concern is and why we ended up
recommending denial is because of the potential for nuisance impacts and um uh long-term changes to the single family neighborhoods There's two particular single family neighborhoods
The area with Bonita Harbor um south or so and then on the other side of the canal canal the Matanzis court Um the marina zoning while being
commercial provided a buffer between the downtown zoning and those neighborhoods It's a commercial but it was a kind of a low impact commercial in terms of nuisances to the neighbors So that's a
was a big part of our um uh consideration Um and in looking at the the comp plan um there's elements of the project that go along with the vision of the comp plan I don't disagree with the applicant in
that um the the bayfront access the views of the bay the prominade that that public space um is certainly part of what I see also in the the comp plan as as a general goal But on the reverse
side then we're weighing that against the single family neighborhood and the the intrusions um there So that's kind of my summary of of where we stood as staff and why we got to that recommendation what I'm going to do
now Oh I did want to make one more point about the um the transportation impact study Um uh because Patrick brought it up It is in your packet Um we did send
it out to an independent reviewer for comments Um those are not in your packet Um he had several comments Generally he felt that the the transportation studies conclusions were correct but he had some
points about the the references and the appendix and sources and things like that But he felt by the time this would move forward if it does move forward to town council that they would be able to address those and move that forward and that he didn't see any um uh reason to
to slow down the project because of the traffic impact uh study So I did want to say that Um and the other comment I just wanted I I don't know if you want to talk about that the stabilized area um that's on the master concept plan that's
really for emergency access Um we in thinking about this um we want uh fire trucks which are the largest of the emergency vehicles to be able to access all of the buildings We've asked them those uh walkovers that they have to keep them up high enough so that a fire
truck could pass under them And in terms of stabilized so some of them are shown as grassy areas um and you can um grow grass but have a stabilized foundation underneath So it looks presents as green space but then fire trucks can still drive onto it So that was the intent
there Um okay So I think those are the main things So if we're okay with that I'm going to go into the findings and conclusions Thank you Okay Were you raising your hand No No Okay
Okay Starting with land development code section 34-85B In reaching its decision the town council shall consider the following whenever applicable One whether there exists an error or ambiguity which must be corrected No errors or ambiguities
exist whether there exists changed or changing conditions which make approval of the request appropriate Um the site as existing is damaged and in need of repair or redevelopment due to the destruction caused by Hurricane Ian To
be clear it could be you know redeveloped as a marina or something else Uh the impact of a proposed change on the intent of the chapter The proposed change will not have any impact on the intent of this chapter of the land development code The CPD resoning
will allow for the redevelopment of the damaged moss marina structures and the adjoining properties The testimony of any applicant which you've heard the recommendations of staff and the local planning agency the testimony of the public which you have heard whether the
request is consistent with the goals objectives policies and intent and with the densities intensities and general uses as set forth in the Fort Meyers speech comprehensive plan So as we discussed in the beginning the comprehensive plan amendment would need
to be approved in order for this to be consistent with that Um so may I ask you a question And we spoke about this earlier We did um depending on who makes the motion If
someone's making a motion to deny obviously we still have to hear the um the future land use map possible changes Uh if someone makes a motion to approve do they they need to include in that uh
contingency or something provided What what would the word a condition a condition that a smallcale amendment be approved um changing the future land use from um one to the other Yep Okay I just
wanted to pedestrian Yes Okay Got it Okay Um so where it's asking about densities and intensities that all points back to the comprehensive plan When the request meets or exceeds whether the request meets or exceeds all performance and locationational
standards for the proposed use the proposed use will be required to meet performance standards set forth in 34-2031 and 34-2032 whether urban services are or will be available and adequate to serve
a proposed land use change The urban services exist in this location Whether the request will protect conserve or preserve environmentally critical areas and natural resources The proposed redevelopment is located on a previously developed site which does not contain
any environmentally critical areas or natural resources Um and as the applicant said they already got state approval for that uh boat slip removal um which otherwise uh might be a concern Whether the request will be compatible with existing or planned uses and not
cause damage hazard nuisance or other detriment to persons or property The request is compatible with existing or known planned commercial and civic uses adjacent to the subject redevelopment and will likely not cause damage hazard nuisance or other
detriment to the commercial or civic property uses of Fort Myers Beach It is less clear whether the proposed development will cause a nuisance to the abuing single family residences The property was previously a working marina without buffers and adequate landscaping
and the proposed development will create additional open space and buffering to enhance the visual aesthetics of the area whether the location of the request places an undue burden upon existing transportation or other services and
facilities and will be served by streets with the capacity to carry traffic generated by the development The location of the proposed development immediately adjacent to the Matanzis Pass Bridge and the old San Carlos downtown area will contain any traffic
impacts to the vicinity of the development The addition of 236 lodging units will likely impact the flow of traffic in the downtown area through guests arrivals and departures Once guests are parked there would not
be a need to move their vehicles until departure unless they have a planned excursion as beach restaurant bars and other amenities would be easily accessible on foot staff has concerns regarding the sufficiency of parking provided for
commercial shared parking lots So that's what we've already discussed about the parking Um but we are in agreement with the uh park once concept that a visitor could come to this area and access everything that they um they might need on
foot Um for planned development resonings see section 34216 So we'll get there in a moment uh land development code section 3485C Before granting any reszoning the town council shall find that the requested zoning district complies with
the Fort Myers Beach Comprehensive Plan The concurrent CPA application to amend the future land use category must be approved So um I would amend that to say instead of must be approved must be a condition of approval in this situation
Um to comply the the approval of the CPD application should have a condition of approval um for the amendment of the comprehensive plan in order to comply the comprehensive plan Nancy had a better wording for that but um uh
complies with this chapter the proposed use complies with this chapter except in regard to deviations and um Pat pointed that out in the discussion This is a typical statement that we make It means mainly that
they've addressed any possible inconsistencies with the commercial resort zoning So any place where we think that they might be um deviate where deviations come from with the commercial resort requirements um they
have provided for So that's really all this sentence is saying Uh it's saying it is approvable should you so desire to to go that route Um any other applicable town ordinances or codes The proposed request complies with the town
ordinances and codes except in regards to the deviations because that's the place where you're deviating from the code section For plan development resoning see section 34216 of this chapter for additional findings The recommendation made to the
town council must be supported by the guidelines set forth 3485 which we covered In addition the findings must address whether the following criteria can be satisfied The proposed use or mix of uses is appropriate at the subject
location Staff is response is that the proposed mix of uses lodging commercial restaurant is appropriate in this location in general However the cop area of building E and the request for ambient noise at that location may
create a nuisance for the single family uh homes across the canal I would also um ask that you consider the impact of the uh the sunset deck as well as you brought up um their impact on the neighbors to the
south Sufficient safeguards to the public interest are provided by the recommended special conditions to the concept plan or by other applicable regulations The linear park buffer the bayfront public access the view corridors from the neighborhood separation between
buildings acts as safeguards to the public interest The applicant is proposing signage to reduce resort vehicles um accessing that neighborhood Um and the the abuing single family neighborhood may be impacted by noise
and increased traffic The applicant is uh proposing signage and also recirculation to train people away from that single family neighborhood but we can't say for certain that there's going to be zero um intrusion Um and the
impact of noise is also a consideration here All recommended special conditions are reasonably related to the impact on the public's interest created by or expected from the proposed development All recommended conditions are related
to the public interest Um this is here again when we're thinking about those proposed conditions Um thinking about the the public interest and how we're we're meeting that the proposed use meets all specific requirements of the
comprehensive plan that are relevant to the requested plan development The comp plan amendment application to amend the future land use category has to be a condition of approval for this
CPD application in order for us to be to state that the comprehensive that the project the proposal is in compliance with the comprehensive plan I think we we all understand that at this point Land Development Code section 34-216A4 requires that the local
planning agency's recommendation must approve with modification or reject each requested deviation based upon the finding that So I'm not going to go through each deviation one by one I'm just going to tell you where we where staff disagrees each item enhances the
achievement of the objectives of the plan development Um staff concurs except for deviation eight The general intent of this chapter to protect the public health safety and welfare will be preserved and promoted Um staff concurs
and that's with the deviations that each deviation operates to the benefit or at least not to the detriment of the public interest Staff concurs Each deviation is consistent with the Fort Myers Beach Comprehensive Plan See above
Uh if the local planning agency concludes that the application omits necessary deviations it may include the necessary deviations in its recommendation without an additional hearing Okay So now we get to recommendations Uh staff finds that the
CPD with deviations does not meet the criteria set forth in section 3485B and C and 34262 of the land development code and recommends denial of CPD 2023151 a request for a CPD with
deviations if the town's LPA recommends approval for the for the CPD application Um staff recommends the following conditions of approval Um also in listening I may want to think
about adding some things to that Um the applicant is correct that I did suggest on here um removal of the coop from that building E I also suggested reducing the hours for ambient noise as well Um the
other point I um disagreed with their recommended conditions is that that ride hailing spot while I think it's a good idea it should not be the same location as the Lee Trans stop Um and mostly that's because uh I don't think that Lee Tran is going to be in agreement with
that They don't like to have other things in the impeding their um transit because if the Uber driver happens to be there at the same time as the tram needs to stop then it provides a conflict Um and so I think that that should be a separate location Um okay So I'm going to go
through those conditions now Um owner will provide an accessible stabilized surface for the area between Harbor Court and Bonita Street for emergency personnel vehicles This is on site not on the the public street The
master concept plan indicates the access points at Harbor Court and Bonita Street provide for emergency limited access only Limited access is intended to allow vehicles that have unintentionally driven down Harbor Court or Bonita Street to temporarily access the Arches
Arches property maneuver through the turnaround area and then exit the property The intent of this is as um Pat said is to not provide gates um to have that kind of open access into the property from the the neighborhood Um if
you put a gate there that impedes your views of the water Um it also makes it a little bit less friendly And then allowing those vehicles to turn around on the property instead of having to turn around on the the street That's the idea there Um all walkover pedestrian
bridges will be constructed at a height to permit fire and other emergency vehicles to pass underneath Uh night controlled access will be a system of gated sections with keypad or scanning capabilities to only allow employees current registered owners guests of the property and emergency personnel to
enter and exit the property from these locations during the night Um this came up during the discussions with staff We want to make sure it's safe Sometimes when you have a a narrow space with a whole lot of um shrubbery and it's can
you know it can be a place for uh unwanted activities let's put it that way Um and so by having that security they kind of close that off in the evening so you're not you know opening yourself up to things you don't uh want Access to the Arches Resort through
the easement number um on First Street shall be limited to vehic vehicular travel Um I would like to see some agreement there for that easement I think pedestrians probably will use it just because that's how
people are They're going to look for the shortest distance between A and B It's not set up now for pedestrian There's no sidewalk There's not really lighting there Um uh so I would like to see the applicant kind of attempt to work with the other the neighboring property
owners there um and come up with some kind of improvement It's not on their property Um the other thing I would suggest is is uh putting some kind of plantings or something on their side of the property to discourage people from walking through there
Um so that's that Uh detailed landscaping plan showing the location and type of all plantings must be provided with the development order Um they've already shown you a significant amount of landscaping This would cover the specific species um and
locations Vehicular access to the resort will be directed to Arches Way Local traffic only No through traffic signage will be placed immediately west of the intersection of third and arches to be to minimize vehicular trips within that neighborhood Um they will have to work
with town staff Um and we may want to add that as a condition you know that they work with town staff on the location um and you know standardized uh signage uh ride hailing spot must be a separate spot from the lead stop location Um I've
added that in I would also like to add in now with uh sufficient lighting just for safety if it's not going to be because we've talked about maybe moving its current location to a different spot if it's it may need additional lighting as well
Okay applicant shall remove the coop location at the 100 level amenity deck of building E from the master concept plan Again that's where I differ from the uh the applicant Um hours of operation the Arches Gateway
Restaurant and rooftop deck at the corner of San Carlos Boulevard and Third Street will operate 7:00 a.m to midnight Amplified sound will be oriented away from adjacent residential properties Um sunset deck You may want to consider
these hours as well 7 a.m to midnight and amplified sound until 9:00 p.m Amplified sound will be oriented away from adjacent residential properties So maybe in thinking about how they're orienting the sound away you
know maybe that's the location of the speakers Speakers could be no closer than x number of feet from the edge of the deck Uh commercial plaza restaurant along the bayfront prominade 7 am to midnight Pool deck buildings B and C 7
a.m to midnight Pool deck building E 7 a.m to 1 hour after sunset And amplified sound ambient music only from 10:00 a.m to 6:00 p.m Amplified sound will be oriented away from adjacent
residential properties outdoor deck area by the events chapel and reception hall building D 7 a.m to midnight Um okay And I think that's where we where we are in in considering also the
building E The applicant has represented that this is going to be a hotel condo and that's going to have a different clientele for our purposes for zoning purposes it's a hotel Um and again this go back goes back to conditions of
approval Um we're going to treat it as a hotel Conditioning one building to be under a different ownership structure than another building I don't know that that makes sense in a zoning ordinance I don't know that it makes sense
necessarily at all because from a public standpoint we're treating it as a hotel I don't think it's appropriate to put code compliance in charge of going onto a private property and are you supposed to be here or are you not supposed to be here I think from a public standpoint
treating it all as as a hotel resort um from a zoning point of view makes the most sense and is cleanest for everybody um we don't necessarily want to be responsible for being involved in their operations and if certainly if that's what they want to do we don't have a
problem with it but in terms of a regulation and how we're going to treat this building different from the other building that's hard for us to they asking you to do that no well in their in what they're talking about is like the the I know the difference in the operation but is anything to do with
your zoning or tell me it doesn't Well the the the pool deck and the uses is and what they're saying is that it's going to be a different uh different clientele at that specific building other one for you Yes Okay we're good with that Yes Yeah We can
treat it just as we would either the sunset back or as Yes Because essentially we don't know whether somebody's going to be there for a month day Got it Okay Got it Um I did make some notes about this potential agreement and what can go in that I know
Patrick's not a fan of this Um but I do think that this is not a development agreement It is a resoning And so I think it's important to think about what's appropriate for zoning rules versus other kinds of agreements Um and I I I do think it's important to think
through how things get enforced because if there's no enforcement you know anybody can represent something as a benefit and then we have no way to check on it or enforce it in the long run Um but there are certain elements of what they're
saying that I think could be included into um the site plan itself So like as Patrick said they are committing to the capital improvement for the ferry terminal and so they would only be allowed to use it for that purpose and
if they needed change they would have to come back Um where are they putting the bicycles and the golf carts Um even if that's just a statement of they're going to put X number you know in the parking deck Um let's leave that let's leave
that basket aside for a minute Okay Just just for a minute Okay Does anybody have a question for Judith at this point John No Jim Jim Nobody Can I ask just a clarification question So um with the
condition of approval of the comprehensive plan it would be your opinion that the approval would be consistent with the comp plan as amended Yes Okay I just want to make that crystal clear because understand from
the beginning I I got it But um the primary role of the LPA is really a finding of consistency with the comprehensive plan So if she is recommending denial in in whatever fashion I want to make sure that the record reflects that the denial is based
on the land development code but that the proposal is consistent with the comp plan I think that's okay That that's all I was trying to make clear Just process question then Madam Chair Yeah Um I don't even know how to think about a
motion with this level of detail that we're being exposed to and recommended to be included seems very different than what we would normally do our master concept plans etc So at some point Judith if you're going to guide us to
that um the basket is huge right now It's different on two sides Some are zoning some is forceful some isn't etc So before you leave I'd like to hear what you need from us specifically and what a motion would have to what level of granularity a
motion have to go down to to be legitimate in your mind that it represents an approval or a denial And that could also be something Jim that is a recommendation from us that the council needs to handle at the other end so that it's not we're not I mean you
know your brains can only handle so much So um if there are no questions for Judith are there any questions for the applicant I Anita I have one more Okay Okay So as a possible condition something to the effect it's very general an agreement for benefits and
commitments that are not otherwise reflected on the site plan or the conditions because sometimes we put things or in the conditions Okay Does anybody have any questions for the applicant Jim No Uh Doug you have
any questions for the applicant No Jane no I have some discussion Okay You have any questions for the applicant No John I'd like to know whether or not the applicant would be open to modifying the amplified music on the sunset deck Yep
Me too So Ben could you come up because I I have I have three things I want to ask you for I'm in here too I'm not going to ask Patrick because I don't want a middleman Yeah I don't want a middleman John go ahead First uh my first question is are you
open to modifying the amplified music both ours and perhaps type of amplified music specifically on the sunset deck Uh we were just discussing that What I'd like to do is bring No no no This is not building This is the one that's facing
into the Yeah I think we'd like to uh put our a plan together and come back and counsel with it Okay Um for recommendations So we understand the concern and uh I don't know that I'm ready right now to commit what the right solution is but we know noise is an issue and we're willing to address it
It's a deal breaker for me Ben but we're going to address I'll tell you why So So you know there's three little things in the scheme of things for this monumental project okay that um uh that right now
uh I think are super important one that sunset deck needs to have only ambient music Okay And it probably doesn't need to have a bar but I'm going to leave the bar alone and I'm just going to stick with the ambient
music Okay That's number one Number two there needs to be some kind of buffering between the Matanza's houses Robins and the Bonamas house in that last building I didn't realize there was no buffering there It's like they have no buffering
Now maybe that's something you can think about But the last one is something that Judith brought up to me when I very first talked to her about this and it's come up several times now And that is that building E that that should only have ambient music as well It does at
the pool and then uh no COP at that particular location Not even indoors I thought we Oh no Indoors Indoors is fine It's outdoors We already agreed to that COP I thought they going to carry the drinks outside That's what they would do Yeah we already agreed to that So and I
Is there any issue with ambient music from the sunset No I think that's fine I'll agree to that Okay Anything else Good I'm going to think about it now since I'm on a roll See what else you Let me throw one more
out Give me a minute My apologies For the record if I get straight can we just get a little summary of what occurred So we have ambient music just so that we can keep it clear Ambient music only is
there too So ambient music only on the sunset deck Are we okay with the hours till midnight 7 a.m to 10 p.m to to midnight come up to to consistency an
hour after sunset since it's a sunset grill It takes up the daylight savings issue and all that Okay Because that's mentioned someplace else How's that for you Miss Strayhorn So I've heard I think a couple of different things So a request is ambient only on the sunset
deck deck which is in building E No Nope No Building B Sorry Building B I used the wrong letter In building now from 7 to 1 hour after sunset to 1 hour after sunset which is actually a new
element but currently 9:00 p.m 7 a.m to midnight is currently 7 a.m Midnight Correct So you wanted 1 hour No No The music The music There's two elements The music goes till 9 There's two elements So amplified
sound till 9 Well we're ambient Yes 1 hour after sunset I think if we put them Okay Wait You can't talk You can't talk off the uh off the ambient music until your proposal is until 1 hour after
sunset and it would make sense to be consistent that those are the hours of operation of that deck in my opinion consistent with so just continue it consistent with hours of operation Correct
So hours of operation Wait you're suggesting that the bar the the deck closes one hour after sunset No I don't I wouldn't agree with that Okay Here's here's to help the process Middleman's back
What I what I would suggest is you guys tell us exactly clearly what you want Yeah we're trying to and then you give us you give us some time to just give us a little recess so we can discuss We have another meeting back and forth like this This this is no good We're going to
go one by one So right now we're discussing the sunset deck building B ambient music only 7 a.m to 1 hour 1 hour after sunset But that doesn't mean that it has to close That's right Right
Hours of operation So in winter during season that's going to be really early just for the music Just for the music Just for the music It's just to keep sound What would the problem till 9:00 p.m be Because that's going to be an hour after sunset late in the in the summer In the summer but it's going to
give you the the season I just think that's okay I'm okay with nine What do you think Doug Yeah I'm okay with nine o'clock for music and midnight for being open Okay 9 o'clock You got nine o'clock I feel like I'm getting ready to sell
Sir if I could just read what's there now because it sounds like you're agreeing with what we already have So the hours for the sunset the sunset deck hours of operation we had 7 a.m to midnight with amplified music until
amplified or ambient Ambient music It says it says amplified So you ambient ambient music So no live Just to be clear I'm going to play no live music What No Only ambient
music No No live until 9:00 p.m or 1 hour after sunset whichever is longer Well right now it says it says we know what it says We're telling you what we want to say You want to say until 9 or 9 1 hour after sunset Just nine Just make it nine Period Nine Okay Nine That's it
Okay And on the number one Okay That's number one Building B That is building B No I mean building E Building E No cop outside and the that pool They can they
can con they can consume outside They can't have a bar outside That's the deal That's the deal And ambient music only And should that that clo that pool close one hour after sunset The pool Well that's what Margaritavville does
We just could you make them consistent so all the pools all all the ambient music stops at the same time It's not the It's not just the music it's the use of the pool Yeah Of the pool So there's not What time does the hotel pool close
In our um So in the application submitted we have the building E pool deck which 7 a.m to 1 hour after after sunset and the pool deck which it contained in building C and C B and C from 7 a.m to midnight So the internal
is a little bit longer than the building E which is right I think that's appropriate Right Good 1 hour after sunset for building So can you tell me what's the deal with the buffering uh on building E on the
building on the bay that there's no buffering for Robin Atwoods and the Bonama's house there For the record Patrick Vaness So so what we have is is we have 40 ft of separation We have a type A buffer which
is a minimal buffer by code Uh that's the vegetative portion of it You know a buffer So there's no wall there Yeah So so what we can do is we're happy to come back with enhanced plantings along there That's not a problem Um and we we can
again I think the intent is you're asking us to thicker plantings more lush kind of pro provide some screening I'm asking you to give them comfort Yeah We can come back at at council with a proposal on that Even if it's palm trees
to view away from their balconies and things like that would be we we can do that No problem Okay I don't want to block the view of the bay And how are you I don't You're good How How are you
on all of this now Doug I'm good Jane good Good John and and Judith how are you on all this I got your You got it Okay Okay And Nancy I'm fine You got it And Patrick
And how about you Miss Drehorn Satisfied Okay everyone's satisfied Okay who's going to make a motion I'd be glad to make a motion if I could get three co-writers to help include it We'll go right now I can try it You're going to try it I'm going to try to make them the
engineers test We'll test this out I uh make a motion to recommend approval of the CPD uh with conditions Uh the first conditions being a small comprehensive plan amendment gets
approved Uh the second condition is that we accept all of staff's recommended conditions of approval including the ones that we've just discussed that Judith added to her list as we were discussing and that we've discussed as a
group just now So I think the right word there is we've modified some of hers with some specificity So if you could just if that's what you're representing I think I'm in total agreement And then C uh a condition that uh we document we memorialize the
agreements of additional public benefits that are not shown on the site plan and some form of document and attach it to the second agreement Wait do what about the sunset deck and building That was included in my my condition B Okay Okay
So there's a motion by um by Doug and seconded by uh this Jim uh for approval Is there any discussion I'm going to discuss So Ben I called Bill Spicowski and I had a lovely conversation with them and which led me
to reading the old San Carlos plan reading sections of comprehensive plan and I know people criticize me because I'm always thinking about what we've done but it's important what we've done But what it made me recognize is that those neighborhoods uh the first neighborhood that really changed you'll
remember is when the swing bridge went down and the and the sky bridge came came over it changed everything in there I mean the Coler's whole life was cut in half So so it's changed dramatically Um Time Square when the town incorporated
changed dramatically There have been a lot of changes there and um and your project is also going to change things dramatically But I think that it does embody even with the the
the crazy things of you know it's high it's dense it's whatever I think it takes the spirit of what we were hoping for and uh makes it real and I appreciated the changes you made and I appreciate even more the ones you're making here on the fly to accommodate
that neighborhood because it is going to change their neighborhood and uh I hope in a way maybe it gives them some opportunities somewhere down the road Um I don't know but um but it was uh it was a difficult decision for me to come to I
really hated hated everyone assuming I was going to vote no because I was enthusiastic when you showed me this project I was happy about the changes you made and I really have flipped and flopped and flipped and flopped and today made all the difference in the world And um you know I thought about
Tracy Gorick during the Margaritavville case because she was so emotional and so stressed She wanted to vote yes but she knew all her neighbors would hate her over it And uh I just feel like people are going to think I'm not being true Uh
but I think I'm doing the right thing So congratulations Ben We're gonna call it We're gonna call it just a second Doug Doug your vote I Jim yes John hi
Anita's I Jane hi And Jim hi It passes unanimous Thank you very much Thank you Jim Thank you We have more Yes I know So now just hold tight Hold tight Hold tight Wait we've got to do a comp plan amendment That's what I'm saying Hold
tight Hold tight Okay So the next item is a comprehensive plan amendment Marina and mixed you and mixed residential FLU Future land use to pedestrian commercial FLU So you know it says it right there
You want me to still say it again You didn't read the entire title I'm I I read this highlighted part Now I'm gonna read the title Right Okay Arch's comprehensive plan amendment Hey Hey girlies Comply giries Compreh Arch's
comprehensive plan amendment An ordinance of the town of Fort Myers Beach Florida amending the town of Fort Myers Beach adopted future land use map dated January 1st 1999 for properties located at 450 445 441 and 436 Harbor
Court 435 and 438 Bonita Street also respectively identified as strap numbers 24462343002700 uh on the record here Do I really have to read them all Uh I I read them previously as stated in the stated in
the agenda Okay Um on Fort Meyers Beach from mixed residential and marina to pedestrian commercial providing for clarifications as necessary providing for conflicts of law scrier's errors severability and providing for an effective
date Okay Judith and Judith thank you very much for all the work you did You did a really good job Happy to do it Um so I would like to apologize There is a typo in here I forgot to take out Jim Inc.'s information He is no longer attached to the project It is being
applied for by the neighborhood company So um I apologize for that Uh the Freelland Florida Holding LLC owner of the subject property and the neighborhood company applicant for the owner are requesting a comprehensive plan future land use map amendment The
amendment requests a change of 3.53 acres of marina future land use known as Moss Marina and one acre of mixed residential future land use to pedestrian commercial There are no proposed text amendments to the comprehensive plan So this is means it's
a map change only We're not changing any of the content So everything is um will completely have to fall under uh pedestrian commercial and the number of properties some of the properties are already in pedestrian commercial So it's a different number of properties than we
previously talked about parcels Um as you know the applicant has also applied for a commercial plan development that encompasses the three additional properties that are already mapped as pedestrian commercial and do not need to be amended here Um that is
935 939 Third Street and 401 Old San Carlos Boulevard Uh the marina future land use uh is defined as designed for prime sites that can provide access to valuable waters around Fort Meyers Beach
Category provides services for recreational boating including related accessory uses provided that they don't displace recreational marina services Um it continues on from there but essentially it's for marinas and marina
and boat related things only Uh other land use designations allow for marinas to be contained within them but also allow for other uses as well The mixeduse residential future land use category is defined as designed for
older subdivisions with mixed housing types on smaller lots newer high-rise buildings and mobile homes which are not really any longer allowed and RV parks This category will ensure that Fort Myers Beach retains a variety of neighborhoods and housing types Uh for
new development the maximum density is six dwelling units per acre and that's uh typical in many uh future land use categories across the island Um the combined marina and mixed residential parcels could allow a total
of 295,990 square feet of floor area through a CPD The current zoning districts allow a lower square footage Um the proposed change to pedestrian commercial could allow a total of
493,317 square ft through a CPD Uh it's an increase of almost 200,000 square feet of development potential So you see in in changing the future land use you're also changing the potential of what can be built um and the value of that property because of the increased
um square footage that you have available to you Um in terms of ne neighborhood compatibility the current comprehensive plan refers to this area as the north end in one section and the core area in another section It describes that north
end area as follows The north end of the island retains its residential and resort identity Its motel rooms older cottages and highrises all benefit their proximity to Bowage Point and the downtown core area yet are comfortably removed from seasonal traffic congestion
and outdoor entertainment activities that many residents find intrusive Okay so if you take a look at the staff report it goes over where these um different designations are found Now
um I'm not going to go through all the infrastructure impacts Um they're provided in the the staff report Um overall impacts Um since the Fort Myers Beach Comprehensive Plan was approved in 1999 there have been changes in marina
operations The comprehensive plan specifically identifies four marinas Um Island Bay Marina which was relatively small was destroyed by Hurricane Ian um and has not yet be been rebuilt and we don't know whether it will be The Snookbite Marina appears to be now
located at the former Mid Island Marina as identified on the comp plan Uh and Fishtail Marina remains at the original location Uh neither of the two remaining marinas minus Moss Marina are located in close proximity to the downtown area
Although the proposed CPD would increase uh the wet slips the dry dock storage and servicing of boats would no longer be present Okay Findings and conclusions Proposals to amend the future land use map must meet comprehensive plan policy
Should I break and let them present before I get to findings Sorry I'm just kept going So she gave an introduction Do you want her to go ahead and just finish Sure Go ahead and finish
Um policy 4C10 for map amendments the intensity and density levels allowed by the future land use map may be increased through formal amendments which is this process to the plan if such increases are clearly in the public interest not just in the private interest of a
petitioning landowner Petitions from land owners will be accepted annually The town council may accept applications more frequently at its sole discretion The LPA must make a recommendation to town council based on whether the proposed comprehensive plan amendment is
in the best interest of the town of Fort Myers Beach Uh the following segments of the comprehensive plan may assist the LPA in determining that interest and impact Um but in general it comes back to clearly in the public interest is what you're
charged with uh determining here The marina future land use category limits the uses and therefore the potential economic impacts of the land Policy 4B7 marina in the comprehensive plan is designed to provide water access to the
water bodies around Fort Myers Beach All marina uses listed in 4B7 are permitted in the pedestrian commercial uh designation as well As Fort Meyers Beach is an island both visual and physical access to the water is an important
component The changes to the future land use category will not necessarily limit access to the water I would point out that they will be a different kind of access In the coastal management element the section on land use conflicts notes in a few cases marinas are completely
surrounded by residential dwellings and the only road access is by residential street thus limiting future expansion to potential future expansion potential to protect other existing uses This site currently falls into this
category The resoning proposal provides an alternate access road to the site that avoids use of the existing residential streets by the proposed development However this is not a restriction of the future land use category but is provided in the comprehensive plan development proposal
policy um 1B7 pedestrian commercial states that commercial activities must contribute to the pedestrianoriented public realm The proposed map amendment would allow further development to contribute to
this goal for old San Carlos and Times Square Any new development in this area would be required to be pedestrian oriented This land use category also encourages a mix of uses to contribute to the vibrancy of the
area Objective 3D Time Square is to stimulate the revitalization of the downtown core area near Time Square as the nucleus of commercial and tourist activities The enlargement of the pedestrian commercial
future land use would increase the number available the number of available land uses permitted at the site As stated by the applicant the old San Carlos Boulevard commercial corridor will benefit from the expansion of the pedestrian commercial designation and a
redevelopment project on the bay will complement the recently completed Margaritavville Resort and the proposed redevelopment of the Times Square on the Gulf side This creates two significant anchors and will encourage a vibrant and sustainable downtown district The old
Sanos San Carlos corridor has long been identified as an area where infill development should be encouraged Staff finds that the request to amend the future land use map to change 3.53 acres of marina future land
use and 1 acre of mixed residential future land use to pedestrian commercial future land use is not clearly in the public interest Creating additional commercial land adjacent to the existing downtown does not necessarily provide a
benefit to the town and will result in traffic and noise impacts to nearby residential uses through elimination of the buffer between the intense commercial districts and the neighborhood which could increase conflict Additionally the area lacks sufficient pedestrian and bicycle
infrastructure to support the proposed amendment which will increase density and intensity So you may have noticed I've pointed out places where I think that the the proposal um uh is in keeping
with the vision of the comprehensive plan and places where it also differs Um in our recommendation staff has reviewed the request for a comprehensive plan amendment and found that the comprehensive plan amendment request does not meet the requirements set forth in section
3492 and comprehensive plan policy 4C10 Therefore staff recommends denial of CPA 2023152 Um if the LPA finds that the concurrent CPD application for this area adequ ad
adequately demonstrates that the proposed development is clearly and in quotation marks because that's the language from the comp plan is clearly in the public interest not just in the private interest of a petitioning land owner approval could be granted Approval
of uh CPA 2023 0152 would be recommended if the CPD application is found by the LPA to sufficiently address policy 4 C10 Is there any questions on on that Thank you Judith Any questions for
Judith Nope Nope Okay Thank you Uh Patrick or yes me again Good afternoon For the record Megan Strahorn attorney for the applicant land owner Freeland for Freeland Hollings Florida LLC We are
here on the comprehensive plan amendment at this time Take this My apologies There are some items that we would like to enter into the evidentiary record This was entered into the evidentiary record for the CPD We're asking it for to be admitted into this
record As you all know and may remember this comprehensive plan amendment came before this board about a year ago Um this project has been working on by the owners uh since shortly after Ian So there is a lot of community outreach and
um public discussion about what the project would look like and that's what is contained in this um PowerPoint presentation We also ask for the records to include the hearing that took place on April 9th in
2024 Uh for the record my name is Megan Strayhorn and I already said that we are here for the comprehensive plan amendment and we have a full presentation that does not look like it's this presentation but we have a full
presentation if you all would like for us to go through it Sorry I'm just looking at this This looks like this is the old presentation for the comprehensive for the CPD resoning And while we're figuring that out I'll
just give a little brief introduction Uh thank you staff for explaining the comprehensive plan amendment request This is requesting to amend the future land use of seven of the parcels three of which are already designated pedestrian commercial So are asking to
utilize that and extended throughout the the rest of the project You all have heard the commercial plan development um which has been approved So by approving the commercial plan amendment one concern that was brought up a year ago was how do we know what's going to
happen with this project Well now we know So I will leave it Let's try this one This is the right one Okay Got it Okay So now we're here for the
comprehensive plan amendment request I've introduced the team We have Mr Patrick Bass who is a certified planner with the neighborhood company We have Ken Gallander with the neighborhood company as well as the owners Ben and Thomas Freland LPA Would you like for us to go through with the expert testimony Um do you have any questions at this
time Uh what's your pleasure No questions Questions No questions We ask that everything be submitted into the record Thank you very much So did you want to have any comment from your planner as to Judith's comments
Yes Um we're going to spare you this entire presentation and I'm going to skip directly Oh please to our conclusions again based on uh my professional planning experience All the
discussions uh we've had today uh the CPD and the safeguards in the CPD Um it is my expert opinion that um the proposed CPA is consistent with the intent and the vision of the comprehensive plan and that based on our
testimony submitted documents this presentation that should be in the record we respectfully request a recommendation for approval Thank you Thank you Patrick Mr Vest do you believe that the commercial plan development is clearly in the interest of the town Yes
Um I think the uh the CPD we've demonstrated that through the entire application uh provides um numerous benefits and we've put in the safeguards needed to mitigate for any potential impacts Thank you for questions Thank you very
much Mr Drehorn Any questions for the staff or for the applicant Any discussion No No Anyone want to make a motion Public comment Public comment Yes Gosh it's almost six o'clock Yes I
see him back there Dale come on up Anybody else want to make public comment on this Don't forget about us We're the only ones Um uh Dale Botama 725 at Kansas Court So uh you know I guess
we're we're on the losing end of this You know we can feel it I mean we're very disappointed that you do not want to follow the directives of your professional planners Don't understand that they're saying it doesn't meet the requirements
but not much we can do I guess it's very disappointing that uh having lived here through that whole Margaritaville battle which went on for years Um I can't understand why Arches
is going to be allowed to be over twice the height on residential properties when Margaritavville was on commercial properties And that that height thing just it just got hammered and hammered But I guess um it's a different time
Build build big and I don't it it'll probably be nicer than Lauderdale Um so another uh unrelated issue which I might as well bring up is
that we are going to lose potentially 30% of our property value And I think one issue with that is going to be we're right against the commercial And I just don't think that we should be
restricted going ahead with this 30-day rental And I know it has nothing to do with today but I'm bringing it up And uh this this whole short-term rental ordinance we just can't touch That's just like a holy document
But uh perhaps uh in the coming months and years um we're kind of getting out of renting our home Um but as far as the value of our property at some point I think we are going to want to ask to have our
zoning changed to allow for weekly rentals I think it's only fair we're we're against this huge uh resort and that would possibly give us 10% of our lost value back So I hope
when we come uh before this committee in the future that you'll take that into consideration to give us some relief from the changing uh neighborhood and dynamics
So thank you for listening to us and uh that is all Thank you Um Leah you said you had comments Does anybody else want to speak Good afternoon everyone Chris Master 923 Third Street Um I'll keep this short
because it's been a long afternoon and a longer day for y'all Um this is a big project and usually projects of this scale um offer a lot more public benefits and I just want to put out
there um and ask the applicants to dig a little bit deeper on these public benefits Um a really bad issue for our neighborhood is storm drainage Um Harbor Court floods every time it rains Third
Street floods every time it rains I have a letter from a previous utilities director that says the system that belongs to Moss Marina is what needs to be utilized to fix the flooding on your street Maybe the neighborhood could reach out to Moss Marina and ask for
assistance The town would be happy to put in pipes to the Moss Marina system etc etc We've asked them in the past They've said "No this is the time where y'all can dig a little bit deeper and help your neighbors and truly provide a bit a public benefit to something that's
going to drastically change our neighborhood." Thank you Thank you Chris Okay Uh Leah hi Leah Greg messing with this thing So uh a few more consideration points um just for the freelance here in closing So first congratulations You got your
first step accomplished Um so maneuvering as staff cla staff claims through the turnaround area and then exiting the property on Bonita Street or Harbor Court It just sounds like it's going to be so cumbersome and not efficient especially for an emergency vehicle I hate to do this to you but
this is about the comprehensive plan amendment Okay So so can I make I can I make any comments about the development in regard to that Finish Go ahead Go ahead Okay Go ahead Go ahead All right Go ahead I'm not sure what Gohead All right So I also want to ask um I just
want to make sure that it's safer if we need an emergency vehicle down these streets So in real short um I walk by Margaritavville parking lot almost every day and the beeps for the cars hitting the remotes Beep beep beep beep It's every time I walk by there all day So I
would just ask you please please please consider or not even consider but please soundproof the garages so we don't have to hear that sitting in our backyards Infrastructure if you're going to change this land development use from uh an operating marina to business is this
infrastructure there This is a huge huge compound Is the infrastructure there I could tell you Cape Coral if any of you have ever been up there they lose water quite frequently They turn on their shower nothing We don't want that to happen in the beach And I never heard anybody talking about infrastructure if
we change this land development use It's very important And to Chris's point proper drainage That neighborhood they never received drainage like the rest of the town did They don't have any of the big drains like I do on Polarmo Circle Um so again if this is approved please
please please make sure the proper drainage is in place so we don't get flooded with the slightest rainfall because it already happens there With your development it could be a lot worse So that's it And one last question So if a developer can ask for land develop or
land change usage can a residential as well can we come in and say "Hey I'd like to turn my house into a business." Is that an opportunity that we can do You can ask Thank you Yep Ask for anything Thank you Leah Anyone else Okay the public comment is closed Um any
other questions for the staff or the applicant And if not would someone like to make a motion I guess I could make a motion again It's your day Doug I uh would like uh to make a motion that we uh recommend approval of the
comprehensive plan amendment uh because that we did find that the concurrent CPD was in the public interest Second Any discussion on the motion All those in favor say I I Anyone opposed
Motion carries unanimously Congratulations folks Okay the next item on our agenda is we are recessing as the local planning agency and convening as the historic board to approve minutes So we are
recessing as the LPA at 555 Freshened up now Um so could we approve um the minutes of October 22nd 2024 which is simply that we we did just this Would somebody make a motion please
Thank you Jim Thank you Jim Any discussion All those in favor say I I We'll now adjourn as the historic Oh please Can you guys please hold it down Please hold it down Thank you Madam Chair Before you totally adjourn uh the
record should just reflect that Don Senith was not present at the uh historic preservation uh meeting And if you want to excuse him from that absence Yes Okay Okay Thank you Thank you So we'll now adjourn as the historic preservation board and reconvene as a
local planning agency LPA members items or reports Mr Dunlap anything Um Doug Uh I would just like to say that um Anita and I don't agree on things all the time probably only about half the time but I
have never felt that you were biased on any of your judgments And thank you Your comments I always found were uh insightful and uh heartfelt I appreciate that Doc Thank you very much
Jane anything Ditto on Doug's comments Nothing else Nothing Uh Jim anything at 556 No John anything I'm fine Thank you Uh I don't have anything either LPA attorneys anything We're going to try going forward You know we're always
trying to make improvements We're going to be a little bit more descriptive in some of our titles and uh we will start having um attachments to our ordinances with the various criteria um attached Thank you very much Format Community development Any issues
Anything Anything you need to say You can surprise us for anything up Could I have a motion please for adjournment Thank you It's 557 Thank you all for paying attention all day long Beat the council right now Stand Yes we're at