Beach Kiwanis move to new location
The Fort Myers Beach Kiwanis Thrift Shop has officially made its move from Miner’s Plaza at 15501-3 Old McGregor Blvd. to its new location at 11050 Summerlin Square Drive. The store open its doors at the corner of Summerlin Road and Pine Ridge Road on Friday, Oct. 16.
Hours of operation will remain the same -Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.- while drop-off times are still from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on those days.
The Beach Kiwanis went from office space renters to retail space owners after a steady increase in rent at Miner’s Plaza helped force the move. But, after purchasing their new property on May 1, there was a 5 1/2 month delay before moving in.
“Primarily, the delay was in not knowing how many things we needed to change, particularly the grounds,” said Beach resident Roger Welton, treasurer for the Beach Kiwanis. “We thought we were buying a building that was OK but, as far as the grounds were concerned, we had a tremendous amount of work to do to satisfy the County. We had to hire an engineer and lost six weeks removing Australian Pines and Brazilian Pepper trees and adding a buffer hedge along Summerlin and Pine Ridge.
“We’re switching from primarily an office type of building to a retail type building. We had to add 14 parking places to our parking lot. We also had to cough up money for impact fees because impact fees are greater for retail than they are for office. All these things made it more difficult.”
According to Welton, the building inspection occurred Monday, Oct. 12, and the Certificate of Occupancy was received a day later. The new location offers a smaller area for store usage with 8,000 square feet.
The local Kiwanis club, which has been active since May of 1968, moved to the Miner’s Plaza building in 1996. Before that, the thrift store was located in the commercial barn at the corner of Pine Ridge and San Carlos Boulevard to span a total of 16 years in the used item business.
“The rent was doubled over a two-year period over there,” said Welton of Miner’s Plaza. “It was a good opportunity to buy.”
According to Welton, the Beach Kiwanis Thrift Shop’s main reason is “to raise money primarily for children’s needs.” Their profits have been welcomed.
“We have given $1.5 million back to the community since we started doing this,” said Welton, a Kiwanis member since 1988. “A lot has gone to college scholarships, to the Children’s Hospital at Health Park to buy equipment and to children’s recreational and educational programs. The Kiwanis theme is ‘Young Children priority 1’.”
Welton said the Kiwanis have been paying for swimming lessons at the Fort Myers Beach Community Pool for quite a few years. The program is called “Every child is a swimmer.”
Before the move, the local Kiwanis had a sale on their thrift store items.
“We decreased our inventory considerably,” said Welton. “We’ve conceded to be more fussy about the items that we stock. We are very fortunate to have a service that comes and takes the clothes that we don’t put out on the floor. I’d say we put out only 25 percent than what we get in. So, 75 percent is sent elsewhere, usually to a service out of Sarasota who pays by the pound.”
Welton said the Kiwanis Thrift Stop truck picks up mostly furniture from resident and business donors on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. For more information, call 454-8090. The store’s number remains the same.
“Residents and businesses who are redecorating are our main source of supplies,” said Welton. “We really appreciate that. They have been a very good support along those lines over the years.”
The Beach Kiwanis expect to have a open house event to celebrate their thrift shop’s new location in November.