Protect Captiva provides update on legal efforts
A coalition seeking to maintain the longtime building height and density limitations on Captiva recently provided an update on its legal actions.
On Dec. 15, Protect Captiva reported that its efforts are coming to a head as the year comes to a close.
“The Captiva community is front and center in four legal proceedings — each of which will soon be decided after oral arguments, further motions and final briefs,” it shared.
The coalition provided the following summary on the pending litigation:
– Lee County and South Seas are appealing the Circuit Court decision limiting the resort to 912 units. Briefs have been filed and the parties are awaiting the scheduling of oral argument in the Sixth District Court of Appeal.
“South Seas and the county cannot request or approve building permits for condominiums or hotels on South Seas without providing the CCA (Captiva Civic Association) notice, so that it has sufficient time to enjoin development pending the appeal,” Protect Captiva added.
– The CCA, R.L.R. Investments and Royal Shell Vacations, 12 South Seas condominium associations, and eight South Seas timeshare associations have filed a petition for writ of certiorari seeking to invalidate the county’s decision to rezone South Seas to permit increased density and building heights. The parties are waiting for the court to review the petition and schedule dates for the county and resort to respond.
– The CCA and city of Sanibel have appealed the decision of an administrative law judge (ALJ) with the Florida Division of Administrative Hearings (DOAH). The parties are waiting for the Sixth District Court of Appeal to schedule oral argument.
“The ALJ was wrong in ruling that the Land Development Code amendments which exempted South Seas from Captiva’s hotel density and building height limits were consistent with the Lee Plan, which requires the county to ‘limit development to that which is in keeping with the historic development pattern on Captiva … including South Seas,'” it shared.
“If the court reverses the DOAH judge, everything the county has done for the new owners of South Seas during the past two years will be called into question,” the coalition added.
– The CCA continues to await the Circuit Court’s review of its motions for sanctions and attorneys fees against the resort and its attorney for filing a lawsuit claiming that the 912-unit limit in a 2003 settlement agreement between the CCA and county did not include hotel units.
“The evidence is overwhelming that the historic 912-unit limit at South Seas always included both residential and hotel units,” Protect Captiva shared.
Also in its update, the coalition noted that $1.5 million had been raised so far for the Protect Captiva legal fund from more than 1,600 donors, and legal fees and costs had reached $1.3 million. It projected that another $300,000 would need to be raised over the next few months to continue the legal efforts.
To reach TIFFANY REPECKI / trepecki@breezenewspapers.com, please email