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City staff briefs advisory board: Fort Myers is below parkland benchmark; GO bond facts for voters
Summary
Economic development director Steve Weathers provided factual materials on the proposed GO bond and emphasized the city's parkland deficit: Fort Myers is about 37% below the municipal benchmark of 12.4 acres per 1,000 residents, he said, and the city cannot legally advocate for ballot measures.
Steve Weathers, the city's economic development director, briefed the advisory board on the general obligation (GO) bond materials available on the City of Fort Myers website and explained staff limitations: city staff may present facts but cannot use city resources to advocate for or against ballot measures. He urged board members and residents to review the factual materials and maps posted online.
Weathers flagged what he described as a local parkland shortfall: "Fort Myers is 37% below the median municipal benchmark of 12.4 acres per thousand residents," he said, and noted the bond language on the ballot describes the categories of work the bond would fund. Weathers also offered to run a preliminary economic‑impact estimate based on figures provided during the meeting to help illustrate potential returns on investment.
Board members asked clarifying questions about where bond dollars would be spent and how the ballot language would appear. Weathers said he would coordinate a workshop schedule with the city manager and ensure the board receives notice of upcoming public meetings.
