Developers Grand Resorts-Fort Myers Beach unveiled a proposal Monday for a major redevelopment on Fort Myers Beach that would drastically change the area near the Matanzas Pass Bridge - the gateway to the island beach community. The plans would include four new hotels, a pedestrian mall and boardwalk on the beach.
Several businesses on the beach side of Estero Boulevard would be torn down to make room for the redevelopment.
"It's a fun beach...it's a funky beach," said Nikki Wilson of Island Sol, a t-shirt shop that would be razed to make way for new multi-level hotels. "It would be nice for it to stay that way."
"I'm not thrilled with the whole idea of the high-rises, because I think that's one of the special things about Fort Myers Beach," Wilson added. "You come off the bridge and you see that vista, the beautiful Gulf of Mexico."
The vision of a future Fort Myers Beach by the developers involves four hotels, nine new restaurants, a boardwalk with seawall and more parking. Tom Torgerson of Grand Resorts-Fort Myers Beach said that it's an opportunity to change the island for the better without eliminating the feel of the small beach community.
"The district deserves some quality, and and quality doesn't change the small town feel in and of itself," Torgerson said.
"We like it the way it is," said one beach visitor named Tex. "It's nice - a good vacation spot."
Maggie Rodocker of Bonita Springs said she prefers Fort Myers Beach to beaches closer to home, but welcomes the idea of a facelift for the area.
"I drive here to Fort Myers Beach because there's more going on, and that would bring more happenings to Fort Myers (Beach,)" Rodocker said.
The redevelopment is still in the early stages, and no plans have been finalized. A meeting to address questions from the public will be held on December 14 at 5:30 p.m. at the Chapel By The Sea in Fort Myers Beach.
Artist renderings of how the new project would look, if approved, are available for viewing at GrandResortsFMB.com
