Council Continues Burnt Store Road District Land‑Use Amendment After Residents, Owners Raise Property‑rights Concerns

City planners and property owners sparred openly over a proposed future‑land‑use change for roughly 1,141 acres along Burnt Store Road at the Jan. 8 Cape Coral City Council meeting. The council agreed to continue the ordinance’s consideration after multiple owners and residents asked that three inland parcels be excluded or that more detail be provided before transmittal to state agencies.

What was proposed: The city brought forward Ordinance 78‑24, a city‑initiated amendment converting multiple existing land‑use designations (commercial activity center, commercial professional, mixed use, multifamily, open space and public facilities) to a new Burnt Store Road District future‑land‑use designation over a broad swath in northwest Cape Coral. The change is intended to create a planned commercial/mixed‑use corridor similar to the city’s Pine Island Road district and to encourage nonresidential growth along the principal arterial leading to…