Lee County zoning board approves Pine Island Road commercial and Cypress Manor developments

The Lee County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) convened on February 5, 2025, for a zoning comprehensive hearing, focusing on two significant development cases. The meeting commenced with the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by an introduction from Principal Planner Beth Workman, who presented the first case.

The initial agenda item was the Pine Island Road commercial plan development (Case Number DCI202300015). The applicant sought to rezone a 9.7-acre property from agricultural and commercial to commercial plan development. This change would permit the establishment of 21,800 square feet of commercial space, including convenience stores and 16 fueling pumps. The site is located in North Fort Myers and falls within the outlying suburban area and intensive development future land use category. The hearing examiner had recommended approval of the project, and no public comments were received. Following a brief discussion, the motion to approve the rezoning was made and seconded, passing without objection.

The second case presented was the Cypress Manor Residential Plan Development (Case Number DCI20242027), introduced by Senior Planner Mary Sue Graft. This proposal involved the rezoning of 28.03 acres to allow for the development of 168 multi-family or townhome units at 18831 State Road 82 in Lehigh Acres. The property is currently zoned AG-2 and is situated within the urban community and wetlands future land use categories. The hearing examiner also recommended approval of this request, which included certain conditions. After confirming there were no further questions or public comments, a motion to approve the Cypress Manor development was made and seconded, also passing without objection.

The meeting concluded with procedural clarifications regarding the next steps for the cases discussed. Overall, both development proposals received unanimous support from the commissioners, indicating a positive outlook for growth in the respective areas of North Fort Myers and Lehigh Acres.