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Residents tell Naples council driveway and development rules need attention; one raises approval‑to‑employment conflict claim
Summary
During public comment at the Jan. 20 joint council‑PAB workshop, a resident asked the city to adjust driveway setback rules for a cul‑de‑sac; another speaker urged revisiting the 2019 vision statement, suggested funding options and alleged a potential conflict involving a site‑plan approver who later worked for a developer.
Two public commenters took the podium at the start of the Jan. 20 joint workshop.
Keith Choff, who identified his address as 576 14th Street North, told the city council his cul‑de‑sac’s geometry makes standard driveway setbacks impractical for several homes and said recent city work on his driveway has left it "missing by this much" at a corner. He asked whether staff could expedite a solution or consider code adjustments specific to cul‑de‑sac configurations, and offered to provide photographs and meet with staff to seek a remedy.
Renee Lewin, who identified herself as president of the Gulf Shore Property Owners Association and of the Sonseeah Condominium Association, urged the council and the Planning Advisory Board to review the 2019 vision statement and to focus on highest‑ranked items from the city’s Critical Facilities Adoption Plan. She suggested funding options — reviewing current spending, revisiting impact fees, targeted tourist or parking fees and public approval before considering a bond or property‑tax increases — and recommended stronger resident engagement on big projects.
Lewin also raised a conflict‑of‑interest concern during her remarks, saying that an individual who approved a site plan later took a job with a developer and that the approved plan included development features she described as inappropriate for the city’s character. The claim was raised in public comment and was not substantiated or directly rebutted during the meeting.
Mayor Heitman and planning staff thanked both speakers and asked staff to coordinate follow‑up: staff invited Choff to give photos to the clerk and meet with city staff about the driveway, and Lewin was told the council and consultants would consider her comments as part of the comp‑plan outreach and policy refinement.
The council did not take formal action on the public comments during the workshop, but staff recorded the concerns for follow‑up as part of the comp‑plan process.
