Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Prima Luce Termination topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Fort Myers CRA votes to terminate Prima Luce agreement after investors plead for relief
Summary
After investor pleas, the Fort Myers Community Redevelopment Agency heard attorney advice that the original Prima Luce developer efault is uncurable and voted to send a notice of termination; staff said a new owner may submit a fresh application.
The Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) of the City of Fort Myers voted to send a formal notice of termination for the Prima Luce development agreement after public comment from investors and a legal assessment that the original developer efault cannot be cured.
Investor Jeff Davis told the board he and roughly 100 other Prima Luce purchasers had "invested everything" and faced possible financial ruin if the project is not built. "People's lives will be devastated," Davis said, describing retirees and workers who placed deposits on preconstruction units.
Attorney Clifford Shepherd, joining by video, told the board the original developer is in default and lacks site control, a condition that Shepherd described as "uncurable." Shepherd said the original agreement could not be resurrected under current law or under the CRA's existing program guidelines and that staff would not bring the same deal back to the board unless conditions materially change. "They wouldn't be able to get title to that property," Shepherd said, and a successor owner would need to submit a new application for CRA consideration.
A commissioner recommended issuing a notice of termination to close the old contract and prevent the matter from indefinitely returning to the board; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote with no recorded nays. Board members explicitly noted the CRA has no contractual obligation to the investors, who contracted with the original developer rather than with the CRA.
The board and legal counsel advised that a new owner could make a new application and, if it met program criteria and statutory limits for TIF-eligible expenditures, be considered on its merits. Staff committed to prepare a one-page brief summarizing the background and current status of the Prima Luce agreement for the board's files.
Next steps: the board authorized staff to issue the termination notice; investors and any prospective new owners were told a new application would be the path forward.
