It’s possible, Fort Myers Beach might see some commercial development growth over the next 5 to 10 years. Yes, commercial buildings are gone, but proposals that are coming forward are bigger than what sat on those properties before Hurricane Ian. Can the town’s infrastructure handle that?
There’s always a chance that Fort Myers Beach elected officials could reject development that results in bigger structures with more density, more traffic, more waste and the infrastructure needed to maintain all of those services. But, what if a Town Council decides to allow those larger developments? Who’s going to pay for the extra burden placed on the infrastructure, the pipe, as Mayor Dan Allers always refers to it.
At an upcoming meeting the Town Council will most likely approve a contract with Axis Infrastructure, a company the town already uses for contract work. That contract will be to produce an impact fee study. The goal would be to impose impact fees on new development (both commercial and residential) to make sure the town’s infrastructure can adequately handle the growth.
The study would take 4 to 12 months and cost $85,000. The scope of work would include two public presentations to elected officials (one work session and one public meeting for action to implement the impact fees). Tasks would include: collecting data, projecting future development, update infrastructure standards, identify capital improvements needed to accommodate growth, calculate and prepare an impact fee schedule,
Public hearings would have to be held if this process does move forward. If the Town Council does decide to pass a new impact fee ordinance, and a new development is already permitted and underway, the town cannot retroactively charge that property owner any impact fees, according to the Town Attorney.
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