Dennis Henderson and George Gala started Trico Shrimp Company together. Henderson is now the sole owner. The building and shrimp boat docks were badly damaged by Hurricane Ian. Lee County demolished the building. File photo
The Lee County Board of County Commissioners has voted to terminate its lease with Trico Shrimp Company at the county’s Main Street property on Fort Myers Beach.
The long-term lease, which has existed between the county and Trico since 1994, was broken by the county with cause after Lee County Attorney Richard Wesch said the shrimp company failed to maintain the property after Hurricane Ian. Lee County Assistant Manager Glen Salyer said the reason was also due to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s insistence that the county would need a submerged land lease agreement for work the county intends to do for dredging and other work the count is intending to do as part of a $7.5 million grant the county received in 2024 for the shrimp docks at the property.
The docks were destroyed by Hurricane Ian in 2022, as was the Trico shrimp building.
The $7.5 million grant was announced by Gov. Ron DeSantis in Fort Myers in 2024. According to DeSantis, the funds were to help rebuild the docks for shrimp boaters with a bulkhead, while also allowing the county to use it for disaster preparedness and emergency response.
DeSantis said at the time that the dual-purpose facility will serve as an emergency operations site to launch barges and provide a place for shrimp vessels to dock and transfer products to distribution trucks. He said there will be a bulkhead for barge operations, port improvements, mooring points and loading docks.
Lee County spokesperson Betsy Clayton said “The state has advised county staff that it is not able to enter into a new submerged land lease with the county unless the county formally terminates the lease or the county agrees to include Trico as a co-lessee on the new submerged land lease. Given the history of attempting to work with Trico, the latter option of including Trico as a co-lessee is untenable.”
Trico sued Lee County last year in Lee County Circuit Court, alleging that the county “has exhibited an oppressive, calculated and illicit scheme to interfere with Trico’s exclusive rights under the leases and to destroy Trico’s rights to quiet enjoyment.” Michael Kayusa, attorney for Trico, alleged that the Lee County Board of County Commissioners “refused to agree or consent to Trico’s proposed construction improvements, oppressively and in breach of the covenant of good faith
refused to allow the scope of Trico’s activities on site” and refused to recognize the company’s “sole and exclusive” right under the Leases to be the
provider of landing, packing and the sale of wild shrimp.
Kayusa and Trico alleged that the county commissioners “sought to unwind the controlling Lease provisions so that they could gain control and reap substantial profits for the county.”
The case was dismissed in January.
Wesch said the county has “attempted to work with Trico since April of 2024 to bring the property into compliance.” Wesch said “these discussions have proven unfruitful.”
The county demolished all of the structures on the property, according to Salyer.
In order to keep the project on schedule, Wesch advised the county commissioners to terminate the lease agreement.
“In addition to other actions we might reserve for ourselves in the defense of potential litigation, the primary cause is the tenant’s failure to maintain the property, secure the property and rebuild after Hurricane Ian,” Wesch said.
Lee County Board of County Commissioners Chairman Cecil Pendergrass was the lone vote against terminating the lease. He asked Wesch if the property will still be used for shrimping and fishing after the lease is terminated.
Salyer said the plan is to still use the property as a working waterfront for the shrimp industry, and as an emergency barge response and standard county operations for derelict vessel removal. Salyer said the county currently needs approvals from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to do minimal dredging. That review could take 18-24 months, he said.
Pendergrass asked if Trico could get its lease back through a future bidding process. Salyer said that would go out to bid.
Pendergrass said he believed that Trico’s lease was good through 2034. The lease dates back to 1994. can Trico get the lease back or go to bid again.
“The DEP told us we have to terminate the uplands lease that is currently in place,” Salyer said.
Kayusa said Trico has leased the property since 1994 and the lease is viable to 2034.
“My client has diligently made payments on the lease. It is a legal right eventually if you decide to terminate it. Essentially a third party will have to determine if that is a viable termination or not,” Kayusa said. “I believe there is room to resolve the problem without going forward without a termination.”
Kayusa said that if the county went out to bid, it would terminate his client’s rights.
“The county should be working with us, not trying to terminate us. You have already accepted a $7.5 million grant to assist the commercial fishing industry,” Kayusa said.
“We should be helping these folks, not terminating them.”
Lee County Commissioner David Mulicka said “the existing tenant has acted in bad faith since Hurricane Ian.”
Mulicka said he was “really disappointed to see the site conditions of that property” when he visited the property before the structures were demolished.
“That property was left untouched for three years,” he aid.
“When you talk about good faith. They didn’t clean anything up. They didn’t throw away trash. They left vessels in our way. There was no good faith effort. Everybody has to do their part. If they had tried to raise money, started a GoFund me account, or worked on weekends,” Mulicka said.
Kayusa did not return messages seeking comment as of press time.