close

Town council denies appeal by Lani Kai for landmark sign

2 min read

Members of the Fort Myers Beach Town Council agreed with an Local Planning Agency decision to deny landmark designation for four signs located at the Lani Kai Island Resort.

The LPA approved a landmark designation for the Holiday Inn last year but denied the Lani Kai’s request.

In a quasi-judicial procedure lasting more than three hours, council members voted 4 to 1 to deny an appeal to the 2007 decision with vice mayor Herb Acken the only dissenter.

The Lani Kai was represented by Cape Coral attorney and Beach resident Robert Burandt, who argued that the LPA shouldn’t have made the decision in the first place.

“You are the elected officials here,” he said.

Burandt also said during the hearing that his client, Bob Conidaris, could appeal council’s decision to state court.

Attorney Denise Wheeler, who represented the town, told council members not to consider whether or not the Lani Kai itself could be considered a landmark when making their decision.

“The question is not whether the Lani Kai is a landmark,” she said. “The question is whether the sign is a landmark.”

After the preceding, Ken Conidaris, son of Bob Conidaris, said a decision whether to appeal the decision would be determined later.

“It’s up to my dad,” he said. “He said he’ll probably take them to court so we’ll just wait and see.”