Lee County and Captiva: Oil and water
To the editor:
This week (Feb. 20-21 at 9 a.m.), Lee County will continue its public hearings on South Seas’ application to dramatically enlarge the Captiva resort. The new owners seek to build 628 new units, increasing the total number of units within the resort to 1,268.
The elephant in the living room is that just two weeks ago the 20th Circuit Court ruled that the resort can never have more than 912 units. That limit was established by a settlement agreement between the Captiva Civic Association (CCA) and the county, which the court confirmed on Feb. 5 is “valid and binding.” Its Final Declaratory Judgment states that ” … no building permits may be issued by Lee County, Florida that will cause the number of dwelling units within the 304-acre property known as South Seas Resort to exceed 912 dwelling units at any time.”
One might ask how the county can lawfully consider an application that would add 356 more units than the court order allows. First, Lee County and South Seas are expected to appeal the judgment. Since the judgment specifies ‘building permits,” one possible workaround is for the county to give tentative planning approval to the application, with final planning approval contingent upon its prevailing in appellate court and overturning the 912-unit cap. If the county managed to reverse the circuit court’s judgment, then it could grant final approval and proceed to issue building permits.
A more extreme tactic the county might employ is to persist in the contention that the 912-unit buildout limit never included hotel rooms. The problem with this gambit is that it is easily refuted. The county’s governing document for South Seas twice lists the 912 units, each time unmistakably including all the hotel rooms in the count. Earlier this month, a state administrative judge acknowledged the obvious, that hotel rooms have always been fully included in the total unit count for the resort.
If the county continues to contend that hotel rooms don’t count toward the 912-unit limit, and approves South Seas’ application on that basis, the CCA will no doubt return to circuit court for an injunction. The final judgment emphasized that it ” … retains jurisdiction to enter further orders and grant supplemental relief … as may be necessary or proper to give full effect to this Final Judgment.”
Whatever happens at this week’s hearings, participants will likely witness that the county is as determined as ever to hyperdevelop South Seas, one way or another. For almost two years, the county has made little attempt to conceal its disregard for the community of Captiva, alongside an equally undisguised allegiance to South Seas’ business interests. Its 2023 enabling ordinance singled out the resort for special density and building height exemptions available to no other Captiva properties, while county counsel assured the public that “The density at South Seas is still going to be at one to three units per acre,” and “The hotel cap in Captiva remains the same.”
Since then, the county and South Seas have been joined at the hip in defending the hyperdevelopment scheme in two protracted legal cases. It remains unclear why the county adopted South Seas as its de facto client, dedicating untold personnel hours and taxpayer dollars to the economic benefit of a single property owner.
One matter has become crystal-clear, however. Captivans are now facing the undeniable fact that they will never be governed properly or fairly by the county. Fortunately, there is a way to escape the county’s maw once and for all: Captiva can combine with Sanibel to create one municipality across the two connected neighbor islands.
One of the unforeseen consequences of the county’s attempt to hyperdevelop South Seas has been bringing Captiva and Sanibel closer together than ever before. The Sanibel City Council unanimously condemned the county’s efforts from the outset, directing its legal counsel to participate in the CCA’s campaign opposing the county. It is very telling that a half-century ago Sanibel incorporated in order to permanently escape the county’s hyperdevelopment plans for the island during that era. Now Captiva needs the same protection, and for the same reason.
The first step is for Captivans to address Sanibel’s city council, and state that they want to unite and become one municipality, as the islands are in fact one community. Captivans and Sanibelians meet every day, at island stores, restaurants, schools, churches, events, rec center, parks, beaches, everywhere. It is fitting that the two islands, already one tightknit community, should become one united political entity. Who will best carry Captiva’s message of unity to Sanibel?
The CCA has protected the interests of Captiva for almost a century. Supported by hundreds of local donors, it is spending the better part of a million dollars opposing the county’s hyperdevelopment of the island. The CCA is the ideal legacy group to lead Captivans to request that Sanibel’s city council, as soon as possible, schedule a referendum for Captiva to join Sanibel. The bottom-line reason? The county’s treatment of Captiva has been intolerable.
The annexation process requires that Sanibel hold two public meetings on the subject before balloting the referendum for the next regular election date. The issue is decided solely by Captiva’s registered voters, a simple majority determining the outcome.
Captiva’s perennial problems with the county are the predictable result of trying to fit a square peg into a round hole, where inlanders have a history of misgoverning islanders. All islanders know in their hearts how blessed they are, but also that their circumstances and needs are unique, and not easily understood by those who do not live the island life. Inlanders are always most welcome to visit and enjoy a taste of the islands, but wherever possible, they should not govern them.
Don Bacon
Montara, California