Lee County board approves Luckett Road industrial rezoning after stormwater discussion

The Lee County zoning board on Nov. 19 voted to approve the Luckett Road industrial planned development rezone (DCI 202400039), allowing roughly 6.35 acres to change from commercial planned development to industrial planned development.

At the public hearing, Ted Nicholas, an adjacent property owner who said he operates a 55-and-older mobile home and RV community and owns 27 acres next to the site, told the board the proposed change was "detrimental" to his business and warned the master plan contained "a lot of holes" that would cause flooding onto his property. Nicholas asked whether the developer had submitted a stormwater report and said he had previously pumped nearby lakes to keep his residences dry.

Staff responded that a surface water management plan is required as part of the rezoning process but that it is a narrative describing current and post-construction water flow; detailed engineered stormwater calculations are not submitted at zoning stage and instead are required at the development order stage. Staff also noted conditions addressing lake excavation, compensation and filling to ensure pre- and post-construction off-site effects are not negative.

Josh Philpott, representing the applicant, introduced their engineer, Joel Blixtead, who said the applicant had provided a high-level ("3,000 level") overview of stormwater management at zoning. Blixtead described a plan to capture on-site runoff via inlets or by directing water to two private detention areas before ultimate discharge into an on-site lake. He said the project would improve the existing lake outfall to the Luckett Road system, which he said should remove the need for private pumping of those lakes and would require permits from the South Florida Water Management District and Lee County.

During board questions, Blixtead explained that the site would be elevated and a berm constructed to retain and direct runoff into a managed stormwater system, and that any off-site discharge would be limited to a small area outside of the berm, in accordance with modeling and permit requirements. Board members pressed on how elevation and berms would keep water on-site and how runoff would be treated.

Staff also clarified that the property currently had approvals compatible with RV sales under the existing commercial planned development and that the industrial plan development concept had a similar footprint. To improve compatibility with nearby residences, staff said they requested additional buffering and an 8-foot wall that is not otherwise required by code, plus screening around display areas.

Board members asked whether full vehicle repair would be allowed; staff said vehicle and equipment dealer use allows ancillary repair but not full heavy repair, and the applicant said machines needing extensive repair would be shipped off-site.

After discussion, an unidentified board member moved to approve the hearing examiner's recommendation subject to conditions and deviations; with a second and no objections, the Chair announced the motion carried and the rezoning was approved.

The decision allows the rezoning to proceed to later development stages, at which point the applicant must submit detailed engineering and obtain required district and county permits for stormwater management.