FORT MYERS, Fla – On Tuesday, Lee County is expected to enter into negotiations with the City of Fort Myers who wants the county to return City of Palms Park. Over a year ago, the city requested that the county return the park for its Midtown Development Project.
The park is currently used for amateur sports and other local use. It’s been the home of Florida SouthWestern sports for years. However, that's not the reason Lee County first took over the park.
In 2003, the county took it over from the city to maintain the stadium for Boston Red Sox spring training and other events. However, the Red Sox moved to its new spring training facility in 2012. The original deed transfer said that if the county did not use the stadium for Major League Baseball for two years, the city could request it back which it did on August 5, 2019.
City of Palms Park would likely become a new park under the city’s Midtown Development Project plan, which would redevelop the area from Cleveland Avenue to Evans Avenue and Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard to Edison Avenue. The plan could bring in more business, residential and commercial areas as well.
If the county does end up giving the park back, the city has is requesting that it first demolish the stadium, practice fields, and training facility located at the property.
