Over the decades, as the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) widened roads to accommodate increased traffic volume, a redevelopment issue was created his created for smaller commercial parcels. As a result of street widening, these smaller properties now lack the depth to both redevelop the property for use and create an onsite stormwater treatment facility now required by code. 

When the CRA heard that the City of Fort Myers was planning to redesign the Fort Myers Country Club golf course, the CRA asked to partner with the City so that additional stormwater treatment and volume could be built into the existing system. This creates a stormwater “mitigation” bank that can be used to incentivize redevelopment along Cleveland Avenue/U.S. 41. In exchange for offsite stormwater credits, the Fort Myers Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) contributed $1.3 million to build additional water quality treatment above what was required at the City’s golf course.

By using the CRA’s offsite stormwater credits, a developer can maximize the build out of the entire site since the burden of onsite water quality treatment will no longer apply to the project.

This program attracts innovative development projects through more flexible negotiating and predictable permitting—plus this nutrient-removal system actually improves the impaired water body it feeds, the Caloosahatchee River. What really sets this system apart from other local government stormwater projects is that it removes excess nutrients when treating runoff, thereby making the water better.