After a 6 hour public hearing last month, and another 6-hour public hearing Monday, the Fort Myers Beach Town Council approved a proposed food truck entertainment venue at 2500-2510 Estero Boulevard.
Fort Myers Beach residents Debbie and Jamie Hotka own the property and Dan Myers will run the venue. The plan is to have 5 food truck pads, outdoor seating including right on Estero Boulevard, bike racks, restrooms open to the public during operating business hours (including showers), a paid parking lot with 45 spaces open to the public during operating business hours, a 3000 square foot 2-floor main building that serves beer and wine on the first floor with offices and storage on the 2nd floor. Live music will be in the main open structure which has three sides and faces Estero Boulevard to try to deflect the sound from the neighbors as much as possible.
In February the LPA approved the proposal in a 4-3 vote. Myers told Beach Talk Radio after the Town Council meeting that permitting should take 3-6 months with construction taking up to a year. The goal is to be open in September of 2026.
The approval comes with several conditions, the biggest involved the music. Myers agreed to limit amplified live music to 3 days per week, with only a solo or duo act, for up to four hours per day between the hours of Noon and 8PM. There is no restriction on ambient background music. On a 4th day Myers can have other types of entertainment such as bingo or karoke.
The proposed venue was opposed by neighboring residents and owners at Pelican Watch condo building.
Homeowners and Pelican Watch condo owners behind the proposed project came out in opposition at the LPA meeting and both Town Council public hearings. They were granted intervener status by the Town Council so they could argue their case. During his time at the podium Chapel Street resident David Tezak threatened to sue the town if the project was approved and referred to Jamie Hotka as a scumbag during public comment. Representatives from other neighbors would also not rule out a lawsuit against the town for approving the project.
The neighbors are concerned about loud music, the smell of food and garbage, people parading through their neighborhood to use the public restrooms, traffic going up and down their street and drivers parking on their property. They are not opposed to redeveloping that land, they just believe an open air business like this one does not fit on that spot. They would be in favor of another completely closed in restaurant building like it had been in years past.
Pelican Watch owners were hoping, if approved, the Town Council would include a security gate that the Hotka’s would pay for to help keep customer traffic from trespassing on their property. The Town Council shot that down because they determined that problem exists now and should be addressed by the condo association and not the Hotka’s as a result of their project.
The final vote to approve was 5-0.
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Turtles Hate Food Trucks
TLM = Turtle Lives Matter
Has the town council made any decisions since Ian/rebuilding that actually will increase the value of our homes? This is downright embarrassing. I am sure the homeless will love this area. Maybe we can get someone to build a liquor store in the vicinity??? That could really top off the new carnivalesque venue.
One Bad decision one after another. It seems to me our city council is batting 1000. Can someone tell me who they are representing?
There is plenty of open space in Times Square. Why not put a food truck park down there instead of on top of a private residence?
Lots of open space in Times Square. Why not put a food truck park there instead of in front of someone’s private residence???
Nothing shocking here. More bad decisions by a collective that seems to be fueled by the same magic fuel the Lee County commission feeds on when they fold unanimously to a project. Lawsuits? Right right. A lawsuit on the municipality that makes your rules and regulations. You’d be sure to toss your money in the fire and get the same return on your investment. Keep it up FMB, my predictions are doing a lot better than the current stock market.
Town council needs to have their contact info public so they can deal with the constant violations from their decision.
The contact info IS public; you can easily find it on the town’s website.
I agree with Barbara. The city needs to clean up the garbage on the beach when people carry food out there. The city council went along with everything the developer had asked for. This developer has been sued by his tenants in Indiana as being a slum landlord. Not the kind of neighbor you want to have. Why don’t you move it next to your home city council. And we vote. You folks must not want to be elected. Good luck in your retirement!
Can we get a count on the number of times the town of FMB has been sued and the results…say over the last 10 years? Is the town willing to publish this list without anyone having to file a FOIA? Or better yet, not having to be sued for it?