{"id":383959,"date":"2026-08-28T22:18:25","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T22:18:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/383959\/"},"modified":"2026-08-28T22:18:25","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T22:18:25","slug":"fort-myers-beach-mosquito-control-district-under-threat-from-states-merger-bill-fort-myers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/383959\/","title":{"rendered":"Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District under threat from state\u2019s merger bill – FORT MYERS"},"content":{"rendered":"


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\n \/Fort Myers Beach News
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\n Property owners would have to pay higher millage rate if voters approve bill <\/p>\n

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Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District Spray Technician Chriss Brill checks on a drain for any mosquito activity. Photo by Nathan Mayberg<\/p>\n

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Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District Spray Technician Chriss Brill checks on a drain for any mosquito activity. Photo by Nathan Mayberg<\/p>\n

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Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District Spray Technician Chriss Brill checks on a drain in San Carlos Island for any mosquito activity. Photo by Nathan Mayberg<\/p>\n

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Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District Spray Technician Chriss Brill takes measurements at the district’ Lazy Way headquarters. If voters approve a merger between the Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District, the Fort Myers Beach headquarters at Lazy Way could be in jeopardy. <\/p>\n

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The Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District headquarters is located on Lazy Way next to the Sterling Avenue home of the Fort Myers Beach Woman’s Club. Photo by Nathan Mayberg<\/p>\n

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These rainy days and nights lately have meant one thing for the spray technicians of the Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District: little sleep.<\/p>\n

This kind of weather during the rainy season is the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes. Their eggs mostly hatch off the island, but are blown onto the island during storms and when winds pick up.<\/p>\n

Luckily for Fort Myers Beach, the staff of the Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District is able to respond quickly to the threat as they centrally located mid-island at Lazy Way next to the Sterling Avenue property of the Fort Myers Beach Women\u2019s Club. Their location helps them get to Fort Myers Beach properties in a hurry, responding to areas where standing water builds up or reports of mosquito activity surface. M<\/p>\n

That could change in an instant if Fort Myers Beach voters choose this November on a referendum to merge with the Lee County Mosquito Control District. <\/p>\n

The Lee County Mosquito Control District is based in Buckingham, which can be more than an hour\u2019s drive away.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow you are going to have to stand in line with Cape Coral, Sanibel, Captiva, Fort Myers\u201d for treatments and responses, Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District Commissioner Steve Johnson said. \u201cRight now, this district is our world.\u201d<\/p>\n

It would also be costly.<\/p>\n

The millage rate of the Lee County Mosquito Control District is nearly twice the rate of the Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District. Lee County\u2019s rate is .22 per thousand dollars of assessed value, while Fort Myers Beach has a rate of .1123.<\/p>\n

That means Fort Myers Beach property owners could not only lose local control of their mosquito control, but will also have to pay more to outsource the work to the county.<\/p>\n

The Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District has the lowest millage rate in the state of any mosquito control district, Johnson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe provide a concierge service tailored and customized to the needs of the town\u2019s property owners. We work to get them the service they need,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cWe do different things for different landowners. We are doing a custom treatment of the Mound House where there is standing water, using backpack sprayers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District Spray Technician Chriss Brill said Fort Myers Beach has special needs that require close attention since it is surrounded by the Estero Bay Preserve, which can\u2019t be treated due to state laws. Therefore, Brill and his team are on their toes this time of year responding quickly to any outbreaks that move off the marshland in the preserve. <\/p>\n

Much of his work is done identifying any potential larvae before they hatch, staying one step ahead of any problems. Brill regularly checks on drains and areas known in the past to be a problem or source for mosquito activity. He will spray where it is necessary, directing the district\u2019s resources to where they are needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith great power comes great responsibility,\u201d Brill said. \u201cWe have a big responsibility to be eco-friendly.\u201d Brill said the technicians are careful not to spray too many chemicals, and only apply them where necessary in order to avoid harming the town\u2019s water and ecosystem. \u201cEverything we treat, touches the water,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Each day, Brill goes and checks the drains around Fort Myers Beach, checking for hotspots and looking out for standing water. He studies the drains with specialized equipment to see if there is any sign of mosquito larvae activity. Brill and his crew have close relationships with property owners, condominium associations and local businessowners that enable them to keep a lid on mosquito activity taking root. <\/p>\n

Brill\u2019s best friends are the frogs and tadpoles which scoop up mosquitoes in and around drains and other water sources. Native grasses also limit the ability of mosquito populations to grow. \u201cThe tadpoles really take care of business,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Brill said he takes it \u201cpersonally\u201d to know that residents, businesses and visitors are being protected by the threat and harm of mosquitoes due to their personalized attention. \u201cWe want people to come to the beach and enjoy a lovely day without being bit by bugs,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Brill said Fort Myers Beach is fortunate to have the localized attention of the Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District. He fears that if the island were swallowed up by the Lee County Mosquito Control District, that personalized attention would be gone and instead the treatments would involve just the large-scale dumping of chemicals. <\/p>\n

Brill said it would be hard to replace the fast response times that the Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District employees. \u201cWe respond to every call within 24 hours or less,\u201d Brill said.<\/p>\n

The proposed merger was first advanced by State Rep. Adam Botana (R-Bonita Springs), whose district encompasses Fort Myers Beach in 2023. Botana proposed the measure against the wishes of the Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District commissioners and the former Town of Fort Myers Beach Council in 2023. That bill failed to advance. A new bill proposed last year by State Rep. Mike Giallombardo (R-Cape Coral), which requires both the voters in the Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District and the voters in the larger Lee County Mosquito Control District to approve the measure at referendum, passed last year \u2013 setting up this November\u2019s referendum.<\/p>\n

Voters in the Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District, which also includes San Carlos Island, will have to approve the merger for it to become law. In addition, Lee County voters outside the district will also have to vote to accept the Fort Myers Beach district.<\/p>\n

While the Town of Fort Myers Beach Council opposed Botana\u2019s legislation in 2023, they didn\u2019t write a letter of objection opposing last year\u2019s bill. The Council also did not send a letter opposing to the proposed merger of the Fort Myers Beach Fire Control District this year, which is also up for referendum in November. Likewise, the Town of Fort Myers Beach Council raised objections to the initial proposal to merge the Fort Myers Beach Fire Control District with the Iona-McGregor Fire District in 2023, but the Town Council has been silent this year on making any statements.<\/p>\n

Johnson said the state bill is a way of eliminating the home-rule of citizens.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are trying to take away our sovereignty,\u201d Johnson said.<\/p>\n

The Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District lost their pole barn and garage during Hurricane Ian. They are working on planning for a new office building, with a garage underneath. They have been working out of trailers since Hurricane Ian. The district utilizes two pickup trucks with low-volume sprayers to serve the seven-mile island.<\/p>\n

The Fort Myers Beach Control District dates back more than 75 years, having been created in 1949. Botana did not return a message seeking comment fot his article. Botana said in 2023, the last time he spoke to the Fort Myers Beach Observer about his proposed merger, that he was asked by his party\u2019s leadership to identify special districts that could be merged.<\/p>\n

Johnson said the Fort Myers Beach Mosquito Control District is about \u201cprotecting the public health.\u201d Johnson called it a \u201cpublic safety\u201d issue. Mosquitoes kill millions of people worldwide every year, more people than any other creature on earth.<\/p>\n

Neither Fort Myers Beach Mayor Dan Allers or Giallombardo returned a message seeking comment on the proposed merger bill.<\/p>\n


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