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Lee County approves rezoning for 1.3‑acre Modern Services site despite neighbor drainage concerns
Summary
Commissioners rezoned 1.3 acres on Palm Beach Boulevard from AG‑2 to CPD to allow a 16,000‑square‑foot business services facility; a neighboring auto‑repair owner warned existing drainage and fill placed for an FPL easement are causing standing water, while the applicant’s engineer said on‑site stormwater controls will reduce discharge rates.
LEE COUNTY, Fla. — The Lee County Board of County Commissioners on May 7 approved rezoning for a 1.3‑acre parcel at 11550 and 11570 Palm Beach Boulevard to allow a 16,000‑square‑foot business services development, after staff and the hearing examiner recommended approval and neighbors raised concerns about drainage.
Mary Sue Grama, senior planner with Lee County Zoning, presented the application (DCI2024‑16) and said the request would rezone the properties from AG‑2 (agriculture) to CPD (community planned development) to permit business services, accessory warehousing and a maximum building height of 35 feet. The parcels are in the suburban future land‑use category and the Caloosahatchee Shores Community Plan area. Grama said the hearing examiner recommended approval with conditions and that two members of the public attended the hearing.
A nearby business owner, Denise Seguera, who said she operates the auto‑repair shop adjacent to the site, urged commissioners to consider long‑standing drainage problems behind her property. "That's where the water is retaining and staying as well, and you can see it's not flowing anywhere. This has been a concern for us especially since all the storms have come through," Seguera said during public comment.
Alexis Crespo, vice president of planning for RBI representing the applicant, said the applicant is prepared to work with neighbors and proceed through the required permitting. Crespo introduced Stephanie Caldwell, a professional engineer with Greenside Engineering, who explained that state and local permits will require the developer to design a stormwater system that retains runoff on‑site.
"We are gonna have to have some kind of stormwater management mechanism in place to store and attenuate, treat and attenuate the runoff, and have water management firms that will essentially retain our runoff on‑site before it's discharged," Caldwell said. Caldwell added that preliminary plans expect discharge to the north and that "it will most certainly decrease that rate of discharge. So, it will be a lesser discharge rate in the proposed condition than what is happening right now."
Commissioner Mullica and other commissioners noted the 1.3‑acre site cannot by itself fix water issues across the larger Florida Power & Light (FPL) easement area; staff and the applicant said the development‑stage permitting (including an environmental resource permit and a local development order) will review stormwater management in detail. Grama said staff received no unresolved objections during the state review and reiterated the hearing examiner’s recommendation for approval with conditions.
Commissioners moved, seconded and carried the rezoning approval at the hearing. The transcript does not include a roll‑call vote or the full text of the hearing examiner’s conditions, which will be applied during development permitting.
Why it matters: The rezoning allows a small commercial development in a suburban area but also highlights how localized drainage and easement work (including fill placed for utility corridors) can generate neighborhood concerns; state and local permits will govern detailed stormwater solutions.
What to watch next: The applicant must secure the environmental and local development permits that will review the stormwater plan and verify how the project interfaces with any FPL easement or regional drainage features.
