Applicant seeks rezoning of 17.96 acres in North Fort Myers; hearing record left open for conditions
June 11, 2026 | Lee County, Florida
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A Lee County hearing examiner heard sworn testimony June 11, 2026 on a request to rezone about 17.96 acres along US‑41/North Tamiami Trail in North Fort Myers (case DCI 2025000014) from general commercial and light industrial to a Mixed‑Use Plan Development that would allow up to 30,000 square feet of commercial uses and 120,000 square feet of light industrial uses.
The applicant, represented by attorney Richard Aken and project manager Brian Smith of Insight, told Hearing Examiner Amanda Rivera that the record includes corrected materials submitted in a 48‑hour letter: the property is 17.96 acres (correcting a staff report figure), the schedule of permitted uses was completed and the master concept plan (MCP) was revised to renumber deviations. The MCP shows commercial parcels along the US‑41 frontage with industrial uses central to the site, indigenous preservation and a stormwater lake at the rear to provide buffering from adjacent multifamily development known in the presentation as Porto Vista.
Why it matters: the proposal would change the zoning mix and allow light industrial uses closer to existing residential development; county staff and the applicant said proposed buffers, indigenous preservation and conditions would reduce potential impacts, and an amended traffic analysis provided by the applicant changed how staff will evaluate transportation effects.
Applicant case and exhibits
Brian Smith presented the MCP and said the project preserves roughly 3.46 acres of indigenous vegetation and provides 3.59 acres of open space, matching the code requirement. He described the stormwater approach — perimeter storage and pre‑treatment before discharge to a master lake and wetlands — and said an application has been filed with the South Florida Water Management District (application 260303‑62106). The applicant submitted a PowerPoint, the revised MCP, a complete schedule of uses and an updated traffic analysis as exhibits.
Environmental testimony and mitigation
Environmental witness Betsy Hyatt of Penoni Associates said the applicant’s team surveyed the site (surveys from 2023 through February 2026) and found heavy exotic vegetation, no documented protected species on site, and approximately 4–5 acres of jurisdictional wetlands verified by the South Florida Water Management District. Hyatt testified that the project will impact about 3.5 acres of lower‑quality wetlands; those impacts would be mitigated offsite at the Little Pine Island and Panther Island mitigation banks, and the applicant said mitigation would provide regionally significant restoration and foraging habitat.
Traffic analysis
The project’s transportation consultant presented a traffic impact statement for the proposed program (120,000 ft² industrial; 30,000 ft² commercial). He said the applicant’s original analysis relied on an earlier county concurrency report that showed US‑41 would operate at an unacceptable level of service (LOS F) with or without the project. After updating the analysis using a newly published county concurrency report, the consultant told the examiner the same corridor now projects to operate at LOS C; the updated analysis was accepted into the record as an applicant exhibit.
Requested deviations and staff concerns
The applicant requested deviations from the Land Development Code to allow: (1) a single FDOT access point on US‑41 (with a required right‑turn lane); (2) no southern parking‑lot interconnect due to existing adjacent improvements; (3) a reduced lake/excavation setback (30 ft rather than 50 ft) internal to the MPD; and (4) retention of one of six existing billboards on the property. Brian Smith said FDOT spacing prevents multiple median openings on US‑41 and showed a planned partial interconnect to the north via an existing off‑site access easement.
Staff (Planner Brianna Shrader and other zoning staff) generally agreed that the MCP aligns with Lee Plan policies for a Central Urban area and noted availability letters for potable water (Lee County Utilities) and sanitary sewer (FGUA). Staff recommended conditions addressing three implementation issues raised at the hearing: a clear condition or stub‑out to preserve a future northern interconnection, precise restoration/planting specifications if indigenous preserve is used as a buffer, and clearer language on the billboard condition so the remaining sign can occupy an appropriate location rather than being tied to a specific preexisting structure. On billboards, staff reported they could not locate permits establishing legal nonconforming status and therefore proposed a condition requiring removal of five of six existing billboards prior to a certificate of compliance, with one allowed to remain and be repaired or replaced under Chapter 30 regulations.
Examiner’s directions and next steps
Hearing Examiner Amanda Rivera asked the parties to work on three written conditions (western buffer language to replace deviation 4, clarified billboard language, and a standalone interconnection/stub‑out condition) and left the record open for written revisions and exhibits until the close of business on June 19, 2026. Rivera said she will make a recommendation to the Board, and that any Board hearing will be scheduled after its July recess.
Quotations from the record
“We are going to be impacting approximately three and a half acres of the lower grade wetlands on site and they will be entirely mitigated offsite at the Little Pine Island Mitigation Bank and the Panther Island Mitigation Bank,” said environmental witness Betsy Hyatt.
“Since that initial traffic report was completed, the county has published a new concurrency report … it shows US‑41 to actually operate level service C in this area,” the project transportation consultant told the examiner.
Administrative record and exhibits
The applicant provided a corrected 48‑hour submittal, a revised master concept plan, a complete schedule of uses, the environmental surveys and jurisdictional determination, the South Florida Water Management District application number (260303‑62106), and an updated traffic analysis (accepted as applicant exhibit six). Staff filed a staff report and a staff presentation; staff recommended conditions described above.
No final vote was taken at the hearing. The examiner left the record open through June 19 for the applicant and staff to submit revised conditions and any remaining exhibits; the hearing will advance to the Board after the county’s July break.
The applicant, represented by attorney Richard Aken and project manager Brian Smith of Insight, told Hearing Examiner Amanda Rivera that the record includes corrected materials submitted in a 48‑hour letter: the property is 17.96 acres (correcting a staff report figure), the schedule of permitted uses was completed and the master concept plan (MCP) was revised to renumber deviations. The MCP shows commercial parcels along the US‑41 frontage with industrial uses central to the site, indigenous preservation and a stormwater lake at the rear to provide buffering from adjacent multifamily development known in the presentation as Porto Vista.
Why it matters: the proposal would change the zoning mix and allow light industrial uses closer to existing residential development; county staff and the applicant said proposed buffers, indigenous preservation and conditions would reduce potential impacts, and an amended traffic analysis provided by the applicant changed how staff will evaluate transportation effects.
Applicant case and exhibits
Brian Smith presented the MCP and said the project preserves roughly 3.46 acres of indigenous vegetation and provides 3.59 acres of open space, matching the code requirement. He described the stormwater approach — perimeter storage and pre‑treatment before discharge to a master lake and wetlands — and said an application has been filed with the South Florida Water Management District (application 260303‑62106). The applicant submitted a PowerPoint, the revised MCP, a complete schedule of uses and an updated traffic analysis as exhibits.
Environmental testimony and mitigation
Environmental witness Betsy Hyatt of Penoni Associates said the applicant’s team surveyed the site (surveys from 2023 through February 2026) and found heavy exotic vegetation, no documented protected species on site, and approximately 4–5 acres of jurisdictional wetlands verified by the South Florida Water Management District. Hyatt testified that the project will impact about 3.5 acres of lower‑quality wetlands; those impacts would be mitigated offsite at the Little Pine Island and Panther Island mitigation banks, and the applicant said mitigation would provide regionally significant restoration and foraging habitat.
Traffic analysis
The project’s transportation consultant presented a traffic impact statement for the proposed program (120,000 ft² industrial; 30,000 ft² commercial). He said the applicant’s original analysis relied on an earlier county concurrency report that showed US‑41 would operate at an unacceptable level of service (LOS F) with or without the project. After updating the analysis using a newly published county concurrency report, the consultant told the examiner the same corridor now projects to operate at LOS C; the updated analysis was accepted into the record as an applicant exhibit.
Requested deviations and staff concerns
The applicant requested deviations from the Land Development Code to allow: (1) a single FDOT access point on US‑41 (with a required right‑turn lane); (2) no southern parking‑lot interconnect due to existing adjacent improvements; (3) a reduced lake/excavation setback (30 ft rather than 50 ft) internal to the MPD; and (4) retention of one of six existing billboards on the property. Brian Smith said FDOT spacing prevents multiple median openings on US‑41 and showed a planned partial interconnect to the north via an existing off‑site access easement.
Staff (Planner Brianna Shrader and other zoning staff) generally agreed that the MCP aligns with Lee Plan policies for a Central Urban area and noted availability letters for potable water (Lee County Utilities) and sanitary sewer (FGUA). Staff recommended conditions addressing three implementation issues raised at the hearing: a clear condition or stub‑out to preserve a future northern interconnection, precise restoration/planting specifications if indigenous preserve is used as a buffer, and clearer language on the billboard condition so the remaining sign can occupy an appropriate location rather than being tied to a specific preexisting structure. On billboards, staff reported they could not locate permits establishing legal nonconforming status and therefore proposed a condition requiring removal of five of six existing billboards prior to a certificate of compliance, with one allowed to remain and be repaired or replaced under Chapter 30 regulations.
Examiner’s directions and next steps
Hearing Examiner Amanda Rivera asked the parties to work on three written conditions (western buffer language to replace deviation 4, clarified billboard language, and a standalone interconnection/stub‑out condition) and left the record open for written revisions and exhibits until the close of business on June 19, 2026. Rivera said she will make a recommendation to the Board, and that any Board hearing will be scheduled after its July recess.
Quotations from the record
“We are going to be impacting approximately three and a half acres of the lower grade wetlands on site and they will be entirely mitigated offsite at the Little Pine Island Mitigation Bank and the Panther Island Mitigation Bank,” said environmental witness Betsy Hyatt.
“Since that initial traffic report was completed, the county has published a new concurrency report … it shows US‑41 to actually operate level service C in this area,” the project transportation consultant told the examiner.
Administrative record and exhibits
The applicant provided a corrected 48‑hour submittal, a revised master concept plan, a complete schedule of uses, the environmental surveys and jurisdictional determination, the South Florida Water Management District application number (260303‑62106), and an updated traffic analysis (accepted as applicant exhibit six). Staff filed a staff report and a staff presentation; staff recommended conditions described above.
No final vote was taken at the hearing. The examiner left the record open through June 19 for the applicant and staff to submit revised conditions and any remaining exhibits; the hearing will advance to the Board after the county’s July break.
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