Timeshare building addressing turtle lighting ordinance violations after complaint
Amid the worst and most deadly disorientation of threatened loggerhead sea turtles on Fort Myers Beach since Turtle Time began tracking the protected species on the island in 1989, one of the most disheartening aspects of the crisis for Turtle Time founder Eve Haverfield has been how preventable the disorientations largely are.
Hundreds of dead hatchlings this year have been blamed by Turtle Time on lighting violations – which the conservation organization believes is due to a combination of new lighting plans that has introduced lighting in violation of the sea turtle ordinance, an ignoring of the town’s turtle lighting ordinance and the loss of buildings from Hurricane Ian leading to new light reaching the beach.
One glaring example of the new lighting violations the town and Turtle Time have cited is at 6550 Estero Boulevard at the Seawatch timeshare building. A complaint was made on May 13 for lighting violations at the property in a case that four months later technically remains under investigation though which the town’s environmental projects manager has acknowledged as being in violation of the town’s sea turtle lighting ordinance.
Until this week, the building was shining large blue lights all along the front facade of the building facing the street for at least the last four months even after being cited by the town, creating an aura of light that the town and Turtle Time say violate the town’s lighting ordinance.
Although the light is directed towards the street, Haverfield said the light reflects and can be seen from the beach. Haverfield said the lighting adds to “cumulative light” which is visible to sea turtle hatchlings. Haverfield said the lights should have never been allowed by the town.
The blue lights as well as white lights on the ground floor lobby entrance went up sometime in the past year when Seawatch reopened after Hurricane Ian.
Town of Fort Myers Beach Environmental Projects Manager Chadd Chustz said the violations are clear.
Yet despite a complaint being made in May and Chustz acknowledging the lights were in violation, it wasn’t until this week that Seawatch turned off the blue lighting after questions were raised to the property management and town about why the lighting remained on nearly four months after an investigation was launched into a complaint regarding the property. As of Friday, the white uplighting around the canopy for its entrance and the uplighting for its landscaping were still on at night.
Turtle Time volunteer Cindy Johnson said two deadly hatchling disorientations occurred around Seawatch this year, in which none of the hatchlings were recovered. Johnson said the hatchlings were attracted toward light at the property and went backwards from their nest, rather than into the Gulf.
Under the town’s turtle lighting ordinance, which runs from May 1 to Oct. 31, all curtains and shades must cover windows and screens from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m.
Chustz said a permit application for new exterior lighting was made though violations of the turtle lighting ordinance violations continued.
“Seawatch Resort’s management has been made aware of the lighting code violations,” Chustz said. “The blue LEDs down the façade of the building, and landscape uplights are not authorizable per The Town’s Sea Turtle Conservation Code.”
Johnson said the lighting issues began when Seawatch reopened this winter with new lighting. The timeshare building had been closed since Hurricane Ian.
Under the town’s turtle lighting ordinance, only downward-directed exterior LED lights which are shielded (which the lights at Seawatch deemed to be involved in is not) and are either red or amber are allowed at night.
The timeshare property at Seawatch is managed by Hilton Grand Vacations.
Elizabeth Rasmussen, a corporate communications specialist for Hilton Grand Vacations, said Tuesday “We are working closely with the city and our contractors to address this situation and have made several changes since this spring, including turning off select lights during turtle season and replacing other lighting fixtures. We also use turtle rated bulbs in the lobby area. We will continue working to address any issues needed to best protect the turtle habitat.”
Johnson said she blames the town more than Seawatch for not having acted quicker to put a stop to the lighting by turning off “non-essential, non-compliant lighting.”
“It’s unfortunate when a property is responsible for multiple disorientations,” Johnson said. “I know that Seawatch is willing to be sea turtle compliant.”
The question remains as to how the town cited the property just two weeks after nesting season began in May, yet was unable to put a stop to the lighting nearly four months later when nesting season is in full swing. Haverfield said that properties known to be in violation back in May should have been handled swiftly to prevent the disorientations which started occurring around the island when the nests started hatching in July. There have been 30 sea turtle hatchling disorientations this year, nearly double the record for the island. Turtle Time conservatively estimated the disorientations have led to hundreds of deaths.
There have been no fines issued against Seawatch.
“Seawatch Management submitted a permit application for exterior lighting for staff review,” Chustz said. “Seawatch Staff has indicated they are committed to coming into compliance with an approved exterior lighting plan.”
Haverfield said that if the property owners had originally submitted a lighting plan with the new blue lighting and white lighting to the town and it had been reviewed by town staff, it would have bever been accepted.
Despite longstanding educational and outreach efforts, the town has experienced a record number of sea turtle hatchling disorientations this year in a season when a large number of the town’s condo and timeshare buildings have not even reopened since Hurricane Ian, and several major resorts remain as vacant lots.
Chustz said all exterior lights that are directly or indirectly visible from the beach must be a long wavelength bulb (amber/red/>560nm LED). Fixtures should be downward directed and shield the light source. Examples of appropriate lighting can be found at: https://myfwc.com/conservation/you-conserve/lighting/criteria/certified/
The town’s response to turtle lighting violations has taken a reversal of a course since 2022, when the town issued 220 warnings for lighting violations. Of those violations, the town issued 44 citations with a total of $19,050 in fines.
Last year, there were only five lighting ordinance cases open by the town as the town operated under new management following Hurricane Ian.
As of last week, there were 44 open lighting cases in the town, according to Fort Myers Beach Manager Will McKannay. McKannay has vowed to take the turtle disorientations and lighting violations seriously and threatened harsher actions for properties that don’t comply. As of last week, no fines have been issued by the town this year for turtle lighting violations.
McKannay, who took office in May, said that going forward staff will be closely reviewing new lighting plans to ensure they are compliant with the town’s turtle lighting ordinance.
“The disorientations and hatchling losses are very unfortunate. It’s been a struggle not only for our residents but also for our wildlife as we continue to recover from Hurricane Ian,” Fort Myers Beach Mayor Dan Allers said.
“It’s important that we all do our part to help minimize these losses. We can make a difference through ongoing education and, if needed, increased enforcement. Together, we can work to protect our natural environment and support the recovery of our community.”
Fort Myers Beach Observer Editor Nathan Mayberg can be reached at Nmayberg@breezenewspapers.com