New construction boosts overall tax valuation in North Fort Myers
Property values throughout Florida have tended downward the past couple years, which would usually be bad news for any municipality or other taxing district.
However, in the North Fort Myers and Bayshore fire taxing districts, while property values have been declining, the volume of new homes being built has far outweighed the decreases.
Overall valuation affects revenue for both districts.
Bayshore Fire District saw total property valuation in the district increase 9.97 percent according to the preliminary 2026 Lee County tax rolls. Meanwhile, North Fort Myers is looking at an increase of 6.51 percent from last year.
In both cases, the numbers were bolstered by the increase in new properties built rather than an overall increase in property valuation for existing properties, which has fallen from its 2022 peak.
Bayshore saw overall valuation rise from $847,211,114 in 2025 to $931,689,541 in preliminary value this year. That was an increase of $84,478,427.
Bayshore Fire Chief Doug Underwood said that while the value of existing homes has, overall, remained flat, the volume of new homes was the main driver of the higher taxable valuation.
The increase will mean about $315,000 more for the district’s coffers for the 2026-27 fiscal year budget, Underwood said. The district got help to staff the stations through federal grants until 2023.
With Bayshore being a one-station department and having to service the Lee County side of Babcock Ranch, Underwood said there will be a need for another station in the coming years as that area also grows.
That station would be built by Lee County and would house EMS staff along with Bayshore Fire in a joint venture. Underwood expects the station to open in the next two or three years.
“We would like to have a station out on Route 31 along with Lee County where we can have a station we can staff,” Underwood said. “We can increase our staffing in preparation for when Station 2 is built.”
In the North Fort Myers taxing district, the valuation increased from $4,714,647,460 in 2025 to $5,021,601,593 in preliminary values in 2026. That’s an increase of $306,954,133.
North Fort Myers fire chief Jeremy Dunn said it has also been the new growth that has helped the fire district continue to grow.
“We’ve had a lot of new growth come into the district the last few years. Around the county the existing homes and businesses didn’t go up a whole lot, so I’m attributing this to the new growth,” Dunn said.
Dunn said he expects to see around $1 million added to the district coffers. This is key because the district has been discussing adding a fourth station, which was lost during the last downturn in 2010.
“We lost a station and several firefighter positions. Now, we’ve been planning over the last couple years to try to acquire a piece of property for an additional station,” Dunn said. “We’re trying to design a fourth station.”
TRIM notices will go out around Aug. 25. The districts will approve their budgets before Oct. 1 when the new fiscal year begins.
Tax bills will be sent sometime in early November.