Downtown ad hoc committee appointed
Five community members and one liaison have been appointed to serve on an ad hoc committee for issues relating to the downtown zoning district of Fort Myers Beach.
LPA Chairman Hank Zuba, Public Safety Committee Chairman Bruce Butcher, Smokin’ Oyster Brewery owner Bill Freeman and Beach residents Tracey Gore and John Pohland were selected. Mayor Anita Cereceda was chosen to serve in the liaison capacity.
Leaning on the advice of Zuba, the Fort Myers Beach Town Council agreed to appoint the board to discuss issues within the defined area between DiamondHead Resort and Lynn Hall Park. The region includes Old San Carlos Boulevard and what was formally known as Seafarer’s Mall and Helmerich Plaza.
High priority of the ad hoc committee will be discussing CRAs. In fact, that particular task will be the only matter on the group’s agenda until further notice. Town officials would like to establish a set of particulars prior to development at the plaza sites so that proper taxes can be collected.
“That really should be in place long before we hear about Seafarer’s might be,” said Councilman Alan Mandel.
Council expects to sunset the group on the community redevelopment issues than apply possible extensions on other matters. A time frame of one to two months has been set.
Once the CRA discussion is over, the downtown ad hoc committee may discuss FEMA issues, pedestrian traffic, the impact of pedestrians on traffic and related input for any development that may occur at Seafarer’s and Helmerich plazas in the future.
Vehicle traffic was not directly on the list of issues, but could be discussed in indirect fashion.
“I think that traffic is so intertwined with the whole planning process going on. It can’t be ignored as part of their charge,” said Councilwoman Rexann Hosafros. “Traffic is tied to the FEMA issue.”
While Florida Department of Transportation and Lee County have the final say in their respective development areas from Matanzas Bridge to Estero Boulevard and part of the plaza, Mandel agreed suggestions can be made.
“We can make recommendations as to how we want pedestrians to act on the island and what we do to control that,” he said.
During Council’s morning workshop, it was determined that the five fact-finders will be subject to the Sunshine Law, thus they will be unable to discuss the issues amongst each other and will only be able to conduct site visits on an individual basis.
The membership will be contacted, and a meeting date and time will be selected as soon as all members agree on one. During a first meeting, a chairperson is expected to be chosen and more concrete dates and times for subsequent meetings will be set.
Town Manager Don Stilwell will select a staff liaison to attend meetings. Newly hired Administrative Services Director Maureen Rischitelli’s name was thrown around to perhaps fit that role.
The group was originally proposed to be comprised of one Council member, one Town Public Safety Committee member for traffic and safety aspects, a member of the Local Planning Agency for planning and zoning issues, a Times Square business person for local area impact decisions and a resident in the downtown zoning district. But, after Council decided its involvement should be only in a facilitating role, it “re-advertised” the committee positions by requesting letters of interest for a second resident instead.
Councilwoman Summer Stockton thought a Council member would act best as a liaison and not an actual member of the ad hoc team. Zuba, who brought forth the ad hoc committee suggestion, and Butcher were chosen by their respective boards and were considered locks prior to the “re-advertisement.”
“Unfortunately, not everybody can be a member of a committee, but I would hope that we would be completely open in a workshop style to people that would come in to offer both advice as well as expertise in relation to the tasks that we are looking for with no interest self-generated by ownership of the parcels or relationship with any developers,” said Zuba during a past meeting. “We want the conflicts of interest to be left at the door. Anything the ad hoc committee does should be for the benefit of the community.”
Prior to finalizing the group, at its 10 a.m. work session Monday, Council worked on the specifics that the committee would be tasked with and a possible timeline for clear direction. CRA appeared to be the consensual No. 1 task.
Council appoints committee members
The Fort Myers Beach Town Council selected three community members to serve in voluntary capacity on four advisory boards. There are still vacancies to be filled. If interested, call 765-0202.
On the Anchorage Advisory Committee, William Kubicek III and Greg Holmes fill the two unoccupied seats.
On the Bay Oaks Recreational Campus Advisory Board, Janna Holmes fills one of the two unoccupied seats.
On the Marine Resources Task Force, Greg Holmes fills the unoccupied seat.