×
×
homepage logo
STORE

Civic & Community Corner: Democratic grassroots effort at its finest

By Staff | Apr 1, 2015

The Community Planning Panel’s Annual Town Hall Meeting took place on Tuesday, March 24, evening at the Recreation Center. Last year’s THM was well attended and resulted in many positive things for this community, and this year’s promises to produce even better long-range positive results. Yours truly, as chair of the Community Planning Panel, served as master of ceremonies and started the proceedings with a little song parody entitled “Where Have Many Merchants Gone In North Fort Myers”.

The keynote speaker was County Commissioner Frank Mann whose jurisdiction includes parts of North Fort Myers and he weighed in on the same economics theme to improve North Fort Myers.

The Agenda also included: 1.) An update on the progress being made by the Library Task Force towards realizing a new NFM Regional Library. Linda Yorde, president of the Friends of the Library, gave the report including an analysis of their recent Town Hall Meeting; the meetings they have had since with each of the five county commissioners to present their results; the survey they intend to do shortly on the makeup of the library-users and the mode of transportation they used to get to the library; and their plans for proceeding further with their thorough and energetic quest for a badly-needed new library for North Fort Myers and the region.

2.) Lee County Senior Planners Sharon Jenkins-Owens and Anthony Palermo reviewed the updates to the Land Development Code and how they affect North Fort Myers.

3.) Awards were presented for “Project of the Year” to Love’s Truck Stop which recently opened at the intersection of Bayshore Road and I-75 complete with gas pumps and a bustling retail store, a Wendy’s and a Subway and “Renovation of the Year” to Majestic Enterprises, Inc. which purchased a long vacant and derelict building on Business 41 and Powell and turned it into a beautiful and functional black and white landmark for the building contractor. Its employees helped the NFM Planning Panel, Civic Association and New Business 41 Merchants Association clean up the roadways alongside Business 41 in September. Its principal, Jesse DiCicco, brought his wife and several kids to the podium to accept the award.

4.) Bobby Stewart, Housing Authority, explained his duties and his limitations, and how he is going about his job of curing the blight along our major arteries. In particular he described Code Enforcement’s detailed efforts along Business 41 and Pondella. Bobby and Code Enforcement have been diligent, effective and energetic.

4.) Glen Salyer, head of the County’s Office of Economic Development, discussed the Economic Development’s role in Lee County and included a few North Fort Myers points.

5.) The highlight of the evening was a panel discussion featuring Patrick T. Crissy, Business Consultant; John Talmage, an expert on economic development; Ben Smith of LaRue Planners; Kevin Mulhearn, President of The New Business 41 Merchants Association and owner of Prosperity Pointe Marina; and Christopher D. Lally, President and CEO of Parker House Properties, which owns three commercial properties along Business 41. The topic was “How To Reverse The Economic Plight of North Fort Myers.” The panel represented a nice mixture of backgrounds and viewpoints. Mr. Talmage stated that NFM was “the coolest part of the county” and that we should emphasize our strengths and differences, which are a.) our small farms, one of the fastest-growing segments of the economy and we could become the bread basket of Florida and an extension of the restaurant capital in Punta Gorda, perhaps utilizing packing or canning operations, and b.) our scenic riverfront, where he envisioned more restaurants and even a resort. Mr. Smith pointed out how the NFM Land Development Code provided incentives for developers to build more intensely and with more density in the corridors and neighborhood centers. Mr. Crissy felt that good economic changes were coming because of the cold winters and high taxes up north, and it was our responsibility to give people a reason to come to NFM. Restaurants should develop “a special dish” and business owners should make their businesses better. Fifty percent of businesses fail in the first five years and they could be saved except for ego and business blinders. Failure of business owners to educate themselves on all aspects of running a business, or obtain the guidance of others that they need, and failure to see the bigger picture of what is going on in their neighborhoods or industry, can be recognized and cured. Mr. Lally explained his formula of catering to the housing needs of the lower income population, and how his company converts hotels into rental apartments and that he attracts tenants by including the cost of all utilities in a flat rental price. Mr. Mulhearn, whose business is at the foot of the bridge from Fort Myers, explained how he cleaned up his businesses’ appearance and removed loiterers with the assistance of County Code Enforcement. This was followed by audience participation and questions on this subject only. Rudy Berndlmaier was of the opinion that NFM needs to establish a reputation as a “destination,” not a “passthrough” or a bedroom community where residents go elsewhere for their purchases, and that we could do this by encouraging our farms to create “pick your own businesses,” orchards, wineries, pumpkin patches, hayride facilities and picturesque restaurants. Carole and John Lightbody felt that getting a casino would be a major lift to our economy.

6.) The final item on the agenda was audience participation and questions by the audience on any local or county issue. The evening was concluded by a pledge to continue pursuing and following up on many of the suggestions brought forward by the speakers, the panelists and the audience – not once a year at a Town Hall Meeting, but periodically on a more frequent basis.

This wide-ranging program was democratic grassroots at its finest! It was of interest and beneficial to every resident and merchant. The Community Planning Panel and the Design Review Panel meet jointly the first Tuesday of each month, 6 to 9 p.m. at the Recreation Center. The public is invited to attend and participate. If you would like to join either or both panels (no fee or dues) please contact me before the next meeting.

Gregg Makepeace was selected by the Lee County Board of Commissioners as “Citizen of the Year for 2014” for “providing outstanding civic contributions to Lee County government.” Gregg prevailed over six other nominees including another North Fort Myers resident, environmentalist/conservationist Janet Bunch. Gregg has been a determined, soft-spoken advocate for the people of North Fort Myers, volunteering more than 40 hours a week for the last dozen years. Gregg has served as president of the North Fort Myers Civic Association for the last 10 years, selecting to not run for reelection after turning 80, but he will continue to serve on its Board of Directors. He has served as President of the Navy Fleet Reserve Group 118 for two years and was instrumental in the creation of the North Fort Myers Community Planning Panel and the Design Review Panel, and continues to serve on both panels since their creation nine years ago. He is also a member of the North Fort Myers Library Task Force. Makepeace was a leading campaigner over many years for the construction of the $9 million North Fort Myers Recreation Center completed last year. He has been a mainstay at county commission meetings, committee and sub-committee meetings, neighborhood community meetings, budget meetings, fire district meetings and anywhere that he felt that he could be of help, – often in his green North Fort Myers Civic Association T-shirt. It was touching to see this former Marine break down and cry with happiness during his speeches at the groundbreaking and dedication services. This man has been an inspiration to me and many others and if ever an award was well deserved it was this one.

Congratulations and enjoy, Gregg!

The North Fort Myers Civic Association held its elections on March 10. Larry D. Murphy was elected as a member of the Board of Directors, and the following officers were elected unanimously: President-Mike Land, Vice Presidents-Al Giacolone and Frank Barrett, and Secretary/Treasurer-Lee Cummins. They meet the second Tuesday of every month from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Rec Center. Come participate with this civic group, which has been a major force for good in the community since 1999. Annual dues are only ten bucks cheap and this organization does many wonderful and unheralded things for the community.

“Public Apathy is the Plague of the 21st Century!” Yes, YOU Can Make A Difference. Come to one of these meetings and see.

For questions, comments, details or news of any civic or community events or plans that you want published in this column contact me at mike-land@live.com or call 239-823-3631.