Mound Key still on Councilman radar
One Town of Fort Myers Beach official is still pushing for Town annexation of an island that is believed to have been the ceremonial center of the Calusa Indians when the Spaniards first attempted to colonize Southwest Florida in 1566.
Beach Councilman Alan Mandel has re-pitched a proposal to fellow council members to seek annexation of Mound Key, a 100-acre island within Estero Bay nestled between the Estero River and Big Carlos Pass, and smaller surrounding islands. Mound Key holds 10 parcels, nine of which are owned by the state of Florida and the remaining parcel owned by the McGee family since 1914.
While the plan is still contingent upon state purchase, Mandel would like to see a passive park on the island that would include a “ecological bathroom facility” for boaters or paddlers who access the key. He also believes it is important to have a historic connection between the island and Mound House, Estero Island’s oldest standing structure that is known to sit on an ancient Calusa Indian Mound. Council consensus gave Mandel approval to move forward.
“Mound Key is an archeological link to Mound House. There is no question in my mind,” said Mandel.
“There is nothing definitive. We have had conversations with various people who are on the board of the TDC (Lee County Tourist Development Council) and staff members of the VCB (Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau). There was support for the concept of a passive park as a rest area along the (Great Calusa) Blueway (Paddling Trail).”
The process for such annexation would involve Town lobbyist Keith Arnold petitioning state officials to seek a current appraisal of the McGee parcel now that the economy has rebounded somewhat.
“The state has had interest in purchasing that property. They have done two appraisals over the years,” said Mandel. “We talked about working with our attorneys up in Tallahassee to approach the state again to ask them to do a current appraisal.”
Mandel stated state appraisals have ranged from $600,000 the first time to $400,000. The McGee family has stated it is looking for something closer to $2.5 million in past discussions.
“Property values have, certainly on the Beach, gone up over the last two years,” Mandel said. “I think it would be appropriate to do a current appraisal to see what the property is worth.”
Mandel said the idea is for the town to annex the island and the state to own the property. Before making the pitch to fellow council members about Mound Key last week, Mandel made it clear that there would be no transfer of development rights in the proposal put forth.
“The state does not want development out there. It assures there would be no development and only a passive park out there. The town would have an operating agreement with the state for the use of the park and maintain the park. That is where a partnership with the TDC in the maintenance would come into play,” he said.
It is the Town’s responsibility to request funds from the TDC for construction of the passive park and the maintenance of beach and shorelines of the park. The solicitation would not be something new between the two entities.
“There is a history of the VCB helping the town purchase the comfort stations (currently positioned at Crescent Beach Family Park and specific beach accesses),” Mandel said. “That is basically what is needed out there.”
There is also an existing “partnership” between the Town and the state of Florida. Mandel pointed out the accreted land within the Little Estero Critical Wildlife Area is state owned.
“This is not a new concept to have a state-owned property within the Town of Fort Myers Beach,” he said.
During previous talks with Town officials, the McGees made it clear that if a sale did happen, they would like to have the park named for a distant family relative – Hanson. Todd McGee confirmed that, while he doesn’t anticipate a sale in the near future, the lineage includes Dr. William Hanson (wife Julia), who was the first non-military surgeon in Fort Myers and donator of the initial land where Lee Memorial Hospital now sits on US 41. W. Stanley Hanson, son of William and Julia, was known as the “white medicine man” and was the first white person to be invited into the Green Corn Dance with the Seminole Indian tribe.
“They don’t appear to be dedicated to this,” said Todd McGee about a potential sale with state officials.
If the parcel was purchased and a passive park was built, an existing dock currently on the McGee parcel could be of use to boaters and/or paddlers.
Mandel first brought up the proposal a year ago. At the time, a big reason for the push was for reasons pertaining to the community rating system. Securing property rights was first suspected of helping the Town and, consequently, Beach residents to save money with regards to lowering Estero Island’s FEMA rates. However, the savings were found to be not as substantial as first thought.
While not significant, the FEMA rating would provide the Beach with positive points in the open category in the points system of the Community Rating System program. On a scale of 1-10, the No. 1 class is the best rating to possess within the FEMA rating system, which has a 500-point threshold for each class. The Town currently sits in the classification of 7, and is close to improving to a 6.
According to Town CRS Coordinator Josh Overmyer, the Beach is close to the end of its 5-year CRS cycle review. He said Town officials are “hopeful that the information we have provided to the ISO/CRS specialist will earn at least 2,000 points and reach class 6.” He did point out that each step up in class represents a 5 percent savings, per year, on an individual flood insurance policy premium.
“By achieving class 6, all flood insurance properties within the Town of Fort Myers Beach will save 20 percent per year on their premiums,” Overmyer said.
There are hopes all parties come together and make the idea a reality, though Beach Mayor Anita Cereceda is curious about “the liability attached to Fort Myers Beach and the municipal boundary.” Town attorney Derek Rooney will look into that issue, but stated the state would likely keep the transfer of development rights.
“Those are assets that go on the state books, and it helps the state bond and to get lending authority,” he said.
Mound Key history
According to history records, it has been more than 500 years since the 1513 encounter of Juan Ponce de Leon with Calusa indians near Matanzas Pass.
Archaeologist Theresa Schober has referred to Mound Key as “the capital of the Calusa Indians by the time of Spanish contact and the most significant archaeological site in Lee County.” A few years back, she stated Mound Key “may well be the only identifiable location along the Gulf Coast of Florida that Ponce de Leon visited.”