Sights on Broadway Avenue in Midtown, Fort Myers.
Evan Williams
Fort Myers City Council and Indiana-based developer Card & Associates are moving forward with the planning stages of a sports complex and community center in Midtown. It would sit along Broadway Street, on and around the site of the City of Palms stadium, which the city is preparing for demolition.
Card’s Vice President of Real Estate Scott Richardson and Florida consultant Cole Peacock briefed city council members on the project’s status at a special meeting held June 24 to discuss Midtown and citywide planning.
After a $356,180 study by Points Consulting found that social and economic demands exist for the community sports complex — and Peacock held meetings with a wide variety of stakeholders to gain their feedback — the developer plans to pursue the next phase of the project.
The study found that the sports complex would be a regional hub for local and traveling athletes, generating $62.7 million in economic output annually at full operation and boosting property, sales and tourist taxes.
“As Cole mentioned, we want to get this thing going ASAP,” Richardson said.
That includes creating detailed, schematic plans that more precisely define the size, layout, uses, parking needs and other elements of the development that Card & Associates has proposed. The company expects to provide an update on the plan this fall.
“It’s going to continue to evolve but what we’re trying to do now is determine the pieces,” Richardson said.
While the city funded the Points study, the developer has pledged to pay back the amount in full if the project comes to fruition.
Sights on Broadway Avenue in Midtown, Fort Myers.
Evan WIlliams
Council members and city planners, including the Community Redevelopment Agency, are considering the sports complex proposal as a potential anchor in a larger makeover of the city’s 243-acre Midtown district and its surrounding areas, from downtown to the Edison Mall.
Card & Associates plan to hold charettes or community workshops as they continue to refine their plans, Peacock said, and begin to coordinate with Fort Myers city staff, which is in the midst of Midtown improvement efforts.
The City Council in March authorized a contract with AIM Construction Contracting for a Phase 1, $29.5 million Midtown Streetscape and Utility Replacement Project that includes new underground utilities and drainage along with roadway, sidewalk, streetlight, landscaping, signage and other improvements in the northeast quadrant of Midtown.
Planning for phases 2 and 3 of the Midtown streetscape, an area that includes the potential sports complex site, is underway.
One of the sports park proposal’s key elements is an indoor field house and community center of 140,000 to 200,000 square feet or more that caters to a variety of sports with hard courts and turf.
The developers also discussed building a linear park, townhomes, multifamily apartments sitting above retail shops, a hotel, restaurant, brewery and parking lots surrounding the indoor facility. Richardson said he is open to both renting or selling residential real estate that is built on the site.
Fort Myers City Council special meeting June 24.
Evan Williams
Final plans may be determined by a combination of community input, economic viability and ultimately, Richardson said, what fits within the site’s road network.
Card & Associates does not yet have an estimated budget for the development.
Peacock said he held about 40 meetings on the proposal with community stakeholders that include the nonprofit, hospitality, education, health care and private business sectors, in addition to meetings with the City Council.
“I don’t want to name drop but they are very influential groups inside the community that will have a massive impact and be a partner with it,” he said.
Peacock said they offered strong opinions on the site plan and its uses, including the amount of green space, the types of sports available and myriad community events, such as graduation ceremonies, that might be held at the field house. He added that nearly everyone he met with wants a linear park included in the final project.
Card & Associates is also in conversation with Dover, Kohl & Partners, the Miami-based urban planning firm that the city picked to lead Midtown revitalization, to coordinate their plans for the sports complex.
Sights on Broadway Avenue in Midtown, Fort Myers.
Evan Williams
Dover, Kohl is creating urban design standards tailored to Midtown, said Josh Frank, the firm’s senior project director. For example, the firm proposed creating a special Midtown Edge zoning district that could help blend Midtown development with its bordering districts along Fowler Street and Cleveland Avenue.
Frank told City Council that Midtown’s potential lies in its large amount of open space, a unique opportunity to incorporate green space into development plans. The firm also advised the city to plant more trees in Midtown.
Frank said that Midtown’s streets represent the “number one tool” for the city to effect change in Midtown. Of those, Dover, Kohl planners view Broadway Avenue as the district’s most prominent corridor, running through the River District and Midtown, past the City of Palms park site, through residential neighborhoods and delivering travelers to the Edison Mall and larger Fort Myers area.
“It has such amazing opportunity not just for Midtown but for the entire city,” Frank said.