And it ended in a dud after years of battling between Estero Boulevard homeowners Eddie Rood and Kurt Kroemer and a small group of people on Fort Myers Beach that tried to deny the two residents a walkover to the beach from their homes.
Back in April of 2023, The Florida Audubon Society filed a lawsuit against the Town of Fort Myers Beach and Fort Myers Beach homeowners Eddie Rood and Kurt Kroemer, in an attempt to stop the construction of the dune walkover behind their homes. The Audubon alleged that the Town Council ignored its own staff and did not follow the rules of its own charter by approving the walkover.
The Fort Myers Beach Town Council accepted the settlement agreement Monday.
In the lawsuit the Florida Audubon alleged “the proposed bridge/dune walkover will significantly harm imperiled listed species of migratory and nesting shore and seabirds, and their habitats, which are adjacent and near to this proposed structure.”
At every stop along the way, the Florida Audubon lost on this issue. Every single step.
When the current Town Council came into office, Rood and Kroemer were granted a special exception to build the walkover after claiming they lost access to the beach as the Critical Wildlife Area continued to shift and move, eventually blocking their access.
The walkover has been up for two months and appears to fit right in with the surrounding critical wildlife area.
Here are the most important details from the settlement
Rood & Kroemer agree that the walkover will be closed to pedestrian traffic if the homeowners receive notice from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission during bird nesting season that a nest of an imperiled bird species including birds
listed as threatened or endangered by state or federal wildlife agencies, has been
identified within a 150-foot radius. Rood and Kroemer The walkover will remain closed until Rood and Kroemer are notified that chicks in the nest have hatched and fledged, or the nest has been destroyed or abandoned. Bird nesting season is February 15 to September 1st.
The bottom line is FWC will monitor the area during bird nesting season, something Rood and Kroemer were always will to commit to.
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