The bait and switch
To the editor:
The city has lost sight of what the northwest Cape is and its obligations to the residents who live there.
When looking for a place to live or visit, people look at the zoning and character of a neighborhood. If you are into fine dining, shopping, entertainment and the bright light nightlife you look toward the downtown area. If you are more into the slower moving quite, open spaces you look at the suburbs. That is the idea behind zoning. It gives people a map of how an area is going to develop so they know what to expect. It gives people a choice of where they want to live and raise their kids.
The city is trying to pull a major bait and switch on the residents of the northwest Cape with a zoning change in the 7 Islands area. Most of us would never have bought here if we thought we were going to have high-rise condos, bright lights, parking lots and traffic jams in our back yard. It is the exact opposite of why the northwest Cape has become so popular as a place to live and visit. What the city is proposing for the 7 Islands belongs in the city, not the suburbs.
The city claims they want to make the 7 Islands a destination area. well, it already is. It is a destination area because of what it currently is. The 7 Islands and the northwest Cape are a residential boating and fishing community. That is the draw to the northwest Cape – boating, fishing and open space. The city has advertised it as such by zoning it residential and leaving it that way even after purchasing the 7 Islands. They had years and years to change the zoning after purchase and they did not. They left it residential, leading everyone to believe they were buying into a suburban residential area,
People do not come to the northwest Cape to dine or see shows or shop. People bought and visit this area because of its suburban character, the fishing, boating and solitude of the canal along the 7 Islands. Sirenia Vista Park is nothing but a parking lot with rocks along its banks without the 7 Island area. Most people visiting Sirenia Vista launch their kayaks and small boats to paddle and fish along the 7 Islands because it is suburban and park like.
The city’s Comprehensive Plan states its Goals are to “Promote new land uses “WHICH CREATE THE LEAST POSSIBLE DISRUPTION TO EXISTING USES.” The city’s plans for the 7 Islands will greatly disrupt the existing land use and character of the neighborhood as well as Sirenia Vista Park. This is strictly a money play for the city and the city is ignoring its obligation to its residents and the goal of the Comprehensive Plan for the sake of money, not the “improvement” of the area.
Everyone who lives on the eastern side (behind) the 7 Islands will watch their sunset views become obstructed by high rise and light pollution, crime, traffic and noise levels will increase greatly as well. This is no small amount of people, the 7 Islands stretch along these neighborhoods for 1 mile. Remember these people bought here to avoid all that. They chose to live in the suburbs in an area the city said was going to be residential. They bought here to enjoy the slower pace and open spaces, not high rises, parking lots and lights. The city’s plans deny the right to the enjoyment of their property as they know it and bought it for. It is in fact a major “disruption to the existing use” of their property and neighborhood.
There is no hard ship for the city in leaving the zoning as it is. The 7 Islands are not in need of a zoning change to sell quickly and at very good profit. The neighborhoods around the 7 Islands are developing quickly and nicely on their own.
It is not simply necessary to blow up the character of this neighborhood, its land use, or the property rights and values of those who live around the 7 Islands. The current zoning and undeveloped areas of the northwest Cape has more than ample space for expansion of multi housing, restaurants, and shops.
If the city feels the need to “improve” the land use around the 7 Islands then stop the modular home building and expand Sirenia Vista Park into the 7 Islands.
This is not the mile wide Caloosahatchee River in the downtown area. It is never going to compete with Fort Myers Beach or other water front properties along the river. This is a 140-foot wide canal in a residential suburb that will become and look like a drainage ditch with lights if the city goes forward with a zoning change and the massive overbuild.
It is quite obvious from the input at public meetings that the vast majority of those who live in and use this area are against any zoning change for the 7 Islands. Out of the hundreds who came to the last meeting no one spoke in favor of zoning change. Watching this preserve area build up with single family will be shame enough but high density mix use is simply wrong and way out of character for this neighborhood.
The residents of any neighborhood when deciding where to live have no choice but to put their faith in City Government to protect their way of life, their property values and the character of their neighborhood. Anyone who is familiar with how planed development and zoning should work is well aware that spot zoning of this nature is to be avoided at all costs for that reason.
If the city tries to move forward with any zoning change it will just become one more example of Big Government run amuck wasting tax dollars and going against the will of the little people. Do the right thing for a changeNO Zoning change for the 7 Islands!
The only thing the city appears to have right about the 7 Islands. They are indeed a “Gem in the rough.” The problem is the city does not understand the “Gem” is the rough!
Emilio J. LeDonne
Cape Coral