Thousands of homes being built in SW Florida. What's happening in Fort Myers, Lee County
A total of 1,514 permits for single-family home construction were issued in Southwest Florida in April, the latest month for which information is available, according to Florida Gulf Coast University Regional Economic Research Institute.
Thousands of homes, single-family and multi-family, have been approved, are in the planning stages or are under construction throughout the county, in cities including Cape Coral, Fort Myers and Estero, as well as in unincorporated areas.
As many as 10,000 homes have been approved for Cameratta Companies' Kingston development on 6,702 acres of former farmland located in unincorporated Lee County off of Corkscrew Road and State Road 82 on the border with Collier County.
Verdana Village, another Cameratta community in unincorporated Lee near the Village of Estero, has been approved for 2,400 units, and phase 1 is under construction for 600 units on a 710-acre site. The Shoppes at Verdana Village, with 78,000 square feet of total shopping space, is open with a Publix anchoring it.
Babcock Ranch, a mega community mostly in Charlotte County, proposed an increase in its Lee County residential units to 2,078 from 1,630. The Lee County Babcock land is east of State Road 31 and north of North River Road in north Olga. The proposal also would cut the number of approved hotel rooms from to 250 from 600 and expand an on-site preservation area to 2,613 acres from 2,379 acres. The change also would shrink the size of the development by 154 acres to be transferred to the state for rebuilding State Road 31.
In Alva, residents filed a legal zoning appeal on April 5 to a 788-acre development in nearby Olga where zoning was approved by Lee County commissioners. The community was approved for 1,099 homes on about half the acreage, with 420 acres preserved under conservation easements.
In the Village of Estero, Coconut Pointe Residences is a planned 137-unit apartment complex to take the place of a long-closed Winn-Dixie grocery store near The Brooks, a 2,492-acre master-planned development..
Woodfield Estero received Village of Estero Planning, Zoning and Design approved in February for 538 multi-family units; 58 townhomes; 28,000 square feet of residential amenities; 20,000 square feet of medical space; 22,000 square feet of office space; 82,000 square feet of retail and dining; 3,000 square feet of civic space; 200,000 square feet of hotel space with 260 rooms; and four parking garages with 2,036 spaces. The property is a 45.6-acre site on the northwest corner of US 41 and Coconut Road, across from Coconut Point Mall.
In Cape Coral, a 1,745-acre stretch of raw land known as Hudson Creek is approved and soon to start construction for up to 3,500 homes and as much as 425,000 square feet of shops and restaurants, along with other commercial uses, including a 500-room hotel. Located east of Burnt Store Road and northwest of Wilmington Parkway, the planned community abuts the Yucca Pens Preserve in northwest Cape Coral.
Also in Cape Coral, a 350-acre parcel south of Rotary Park called Redfish Pointe is planned for 800 residential units, a 300-bed resort hotel and 38,000 to 50,000 square feet of commercial space. Still in the approval stages, Cape Coral staff are recommending denial, saying the proposal is "wholly incompatible with the protection and conservation of nearby wetlands.
In Fort Myers Beach, Town Council recently approved Moss Marina entertainment complex and hotel called Arches Bayfront. Changing several zoned residential properties to commercial as part of adding to the marina, the latest plans call for a 263-room hotel and other structures rising to about 100 feet featuring dining, bars and retail along a bayfront promenade wedged between Old San Carlos Boulevard and a neighborhood.
In Fort Myers, Royal Palm Square has been demolished to make way for 300-400 residential units off the Midpoint Bridge from Cape Coral.
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Fort Myers, Lee County, FL: What new communities being built, planned?
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
High St. housing development moving forward after Augusta supervisor vote
VERONA – An 8.9-acre development off High Street in Stuarts Draft is moving forward after the Augusta County Board of Supervisors approved revised terms on the project. The property is owned by EJ'S LLC. The current project documents show that 20 homes are being developed on the land in two cul-de-sacs. The development raised questions with the supervisors. Supervisor Carolyn Bragg said she's individually spoken to many of the project's neighbors and heard concerns from everyone she's spoken to. The property is zoned single-family residential, allowing for development. The project was not up for approval by the board, but instead up for a proffer consideration. Previously, the project's minimum square foot requirement for a single-family dwelling was 1,800. On July 23, the board was considering a reduction to 1,400 square feet per dwelling. 'This property was rezoned 22 years ago,' said Bragg. 'So, by right, it can be built on.' Several supervisors noted the by-right development could bring 26 homes to the property, rather than the currently expected 20. At the public hearing last month, several residents of the area raised concerns over an increase in traffic and having less land available to absorb water when it rains. The increased potential for flooding was a common complaint with the project. Bragg attempted to address the complaint, but the item up for a vote on July 23 was solely the minimum dwelling size. 'Everyone is concerned about the water and the runoff,' Bragg said. 'When you're building in Stuarts Draft and you say, Stuarts Draft construction, your third word will always be water because we have to do something with it. Everyone, to a person, is concerned about that. Then lastly, everyone is concerned about traffic, to a person. Are there going to be changes? Absolutely. Are you going to see more traffic? Absolutely, going down High Street to try to get to 608, where, in the evenings, they park on both sides, that's an issue. But that's going to be the same issue, whether it's 1,400 square feet or 1,800 square feet.' Both Augusta County staff and the Augusta County Planning Commission recommended approval of the project. 'Staff does not find any concerns with the request but do note that there are significant drainage issues occurring along Wayne Avenue to the south of the property,' reads the staff report. 'Therefore, any development of the property should utilize stormwater management practices that mitigate the furtherance of localized flooding.' Despite the concerns, the project moved forward on July 23 as the supervisors approved the proffer amendment in a 6-1 vote, with Supervisor Michael Shull voting against. 'There are times that decisions are brought before this board that are just simply not black and white,' Bragg said. 'Sometimes there's a lot more involved in it than meets the eye. This is one of those.' More: Project GROWS' youth leadership program has been 'heart changing' for some area teens More: Shelter-in-place order issued in Harrisonburg after random knife attack injures woman Lyra Bordelon (she/her) is the public transparency and justice reporter at The News Leader. Do you have a story tip or feedback? It's welcome through email to lbordelon@ Subscribe to us at This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: High St. housing development moving forward after Augusta supervisor vote Solve the daily Crossword
Washington Post
7 days ago
- Washington Post
Montgomery County Council passes ‘missing middle' housing plan
The Montgomery County Council voted Tuesday to enable multiunit homes to be built on certain lots previously zoned for single-family homes, an effort to address a 'missing middle' housing shortage for middle-income residents in the wealthy Maryland county. The zoning change, part of a larger package of bills known as More Housing NOW (New Options for Workers), will allow for duplexes, triplexes, townhouses and small apartments along certain corridors. The change is intended to amp up Montgomery's supply of housing units, particularly for residents — such as firefighters, nurses and teachers — who can't otherwise afford to live in the county that is lined with spacious mansions in some parts. Home to 1 million residents, Montgomery is one of the nation's 30 wealthiest counties in the country, according to a Stanford University database. The average price for a single family detached home in the county last year was $1.02 million, according to a letter the bill's sponsors wrote to their colleagues in January, making homeownership out of reach for even relatively well-off professionals. The bill's sponsors, Andrew Friedson (D-District 1) and Natali Fani-González (D-District 6), included a provision in the zoning change that requires triplexes to include at least one unit affordable for people earning up to 120 percent of the area's median income, which is $157,500 for a family of two and $196,500 for a family of four as of April, according to a county report. For properties with more units, at least 15 percent of those homes must be affordable for that bracket of earners. Duplexes are exempt from the requirement, the sponsors said. Before a jeering audience, where some residents held signs depicting the council members with wrecking balls over their heads, the council members who supported the legislation said it's an important step toward creating more places to live that are accessible to more residents in Montgomery. 'The status quo isn't working for the workforce, for economic competitiveness or for fulfilling our values as an inclusive and welcoming community,' Friedson said, before the 8-3 vote. 'Progress doesn't require perfection, but it does require doing something, even when it's hard, especially when it's hard.' 'To say that we want more housing, and to say that we want more affordable housing, yet let's not do anything is not a solution,' Fani-González said. 'We are giving people choices.' Council members Will Jawando (D-At Large), Sidney Katz (D-District 3) and Kristin Mink (D-District 5) voted against the package. Policies geared toward creating more missing middle homes have grown in popularity across the country and, in the D.C. region, are part of a larger push to build 75,000 additional housing units by 2030 — a target laid out by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments. But the policies have also yielded strong opposition from homeowners concerned about how more residents in their suburban neighborhoods could change their character and strain local government resources like stormwater management, roads and schools. Missing middle housing policies introduced in both Arlington County and the city of Alexandria in 2023 have led to lengthy legal battles filed by homeowners opposed to those plans that are still ongoing. Montgomery County has explored the idea of allowing for higher density in areas zoned for single-family homes for years, meeting with opposition each time. The new zoning change, which goes into effect on Nov. 1, was born out of discussions involving the county's planning experts last year, Friedson and Fani-González said. The impacted corridors are mostly concentrated in the county's southeast quadrant around Bethesda, Silver Spring, Glenmont and Wheaton, according to a planning department map. A property owner must submit an application to the planning board to take advantage of the change so planners can assess the impacts on resources, Fani-González said. Jawando said he opposed the bill because of the public outcry and how high the financial bar still is for workforce housing, keeping these potential new units out of reach for some residents who still do not earn enough to afford those homes. 'I've listened intently to residents around the county and I've heard loud and clear,' Jawando said. 'Our residents have asked us to be more nuanced, more thoughtful and more diligent in the approach.' He noted that many of these affected lots are more modest properties facing busy streets and occupied by residents who are already struggling to keep up with rising taxes and other costs of living. Some residents against the plan launched an aggressive opposition campaign, passing out fliers, staging protests and speaking at meetings, where they argued that the zoning change would cause currently quiet streets to become overcrowded while not necessarily creating enough affordable housing for those who really need it. For Paula Bienenfeld, a homeowner in the Seven Oaks area of Silver Spring, the plan is simply unfair. The county's ritzy Potomac neighborhood is virtually unaffected, while the areas already responsible for bearing the brunt of the county's density will be tasked with handling more, Bienenfeld said after Tuesday's vote. 'All the high density development is being kettled down into the Silver Spring area and Wheaton,' she said. 'They talk about equity but this is like the opposite, it's all kettled into the areas that are already hyperdense. To me, that's a big concern. If you want equity, it should be spread over the whole county.' The plan drew support from some local nonprofits and affordable housing advocates, who described it as a potential lifeline for young professionals eager to graduate from apartment living but not yet wealthy enough to own single family homes. Many noted that any increase in the housing supply is a good thing for the market as it will help balance supply with demand. 'We are selling out our working families, the people who make this county run and the kids who taxpayers paid to educate, kids like me 20 years ago who can't afford to stay here anymore,' Dan Reed, Maryland policy director for Greater Greater Washington, a nonprofit focused on housing and transportation equity, said after the vote. 'The council took a brave step today, but it's a first step and we have a lot more work to do.'
Washington Post
18-07-2025
- Washington Post
In hearing, developer told to rework plans to downsize D.C. grocery store
D.C.'s Zoning Commission ended a Thursday night hearing by assigning developer Jair Lynch homework: By early next week, the developer needs to rethink its request to downsize a grocery store it plans to build in a new Northwest Washington neighborhood. That leaves the next step of the long-delayed Reservoir District development in limbo until at least July 31, when the commission may rehear Jair Lynch's case. If that fails, the developer may have to wait until September — when the commission returns from recess — for an answer.
