Collier approves Corkscrew Grove East Village plan

Despite opposition from conservationists, county commissioners approved Corkscrew Grove East Village, a proposed development of up to 4,502 homes on former citrus groves and farmland in eastern Collier County. 

The village, which will include shops and businesses, will feature more than 63.63 acres of public benefits, including at least 362 affordable workforce housing units, a public school, a fire station and a sheriff’s substation. The affordable units will be sold or rented to families earning 100% of the area median income, $113,600. 

It is planned on both sides of Corkscrew Road and along State Road 82, land east of Golden Gate Estates that surrounds Immokalee and borders Lee and Hendry counties. Construction is expected in 2028 or 2029, depending on approvals, and future plans call for Corkscrew Grove West Village, with about 4,500 homes and commercial uses. 

Although 23 speakers and environmental groups from as far as Broward County lined up to voice concerns April 28, most citing loss of habitat and increased traffic, what helped tip the scales for commissioners were two of the county’s strongest environmental opponents, which worked with Alico Inc. for more than a year to mitigate concerns: Audubon Florida and Audubon Western Everglades. 

“While we do not support or advocate new development, we acknowledge that people keep moving here — wish they wouldn’t, but they do,” Brad Cornell, Audubon Western Everglades’ policy director, told commissioners. “But what we do support is the mechanism that the Rural-Land Stewardship program lays out for protecting Panther habitat and wetlands and farms. 

Cornell said the 1,200-acre stewardship sending area is a key component designed to protect movement corridors for the Florida panther and other large mammals along the eastern portion of the project, while improving connectivity with a pathway extending to the Caloosahatchee River — a critical strategy. 

Commissioners voted unanimously to allow Fort Myers-based Alico Inc. to create a 1,446.5-acre stewardship receiving area on land it harvested oranges on until deciding to end production in 2025, and to designate 1,295.5 acres as a sending area. Sending areas preserve high-quality habitat, while receiving areas are suitable for development. 

It is one of nine applications submitted under the Rural Lands Stewardship Area program, with eight already approved: the villages of Hyde Park, Rivergrass, Bellmar, Brightshore, Collier Rod and Gun Club and Horse Trials, and the towns of Big Cypress and Ave Maria. 

The vote, which came after Planning Commission and staff recommendations, was part of a lengthy process that also requires state and federal approvals, including South Florida Water Management District, the Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

Collier County’s RLSA program was approved in 2002 and spans about 185,000 acres in eastern Collier. The independent Corkscrew Grove Stewardship District was created last June, when Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation allowing up to 9,000 homes across two villages. 

The RLSA was adopted to protect agricultural areas, natural habitats, wetlands and flowways while directing growth away from those areas. It was created in response to a 1999 state mandate requiring long-term protection of environmentally sensitive land and prevention of urban sprawl. 

Alico Executive Vice President Mitch Hutchcraft cited Alico’s “legacy of community involvement and conservation,” noting it donated 760 acres for what is now Florida Gulf Coast University. Since 2017, he told commissioners, Alico has sold more than 40,000 acres to the state to further conservation goals and recently put five properties into consideration for the Florida Rural Land Protection Program. 

“We have contributed land throughout the state … and we have also sold land in those areas that have now become part of what we all recognize as significant natural resources,” Hutchcraft said of Okaloacoochee Slough State Forest, Devil’s Garden and other lands. 

Planning & Zoning Director Mike Bosi called the RLSA program and village an attribute for Golden Gate Estates residents, noting new jobs and businesses will be provided in the east, reducing westbound traffic and providing Estates residents with options for goods and services closer to home. 

Alico’s land-use attorney, Rich Yovanovich, countered opponents’ concerns with expert speakers and data, assuring commissioners the SSA and SRA programs are working. 

“They have other opportunities,” Yovanovich said. “They could go attack this project at the Army Corps of Engineers level or the water management level if they really believe that they’re right on the environment and water management. We meet your criteria.” 

Plans show village density will be about 3.11 units per acre, and senior housing, including assisted living and continuing-care facilities, is capped at 300 units. There will be 8.5 acres of neighborhood amenities, more than 516 acres of open space and up to 238,606 square feet of commercial space within a nearly 170-acre village center. That area could include retail, offices, civic uses and up to 100,000 square feet of indoor self-storage. 

Engineer Bob Mulhere, of Bowman, said SRAs are required to encourage pedestrian and bicycle circulation through interconnected 5-foot-wide sidewalks and 10-foot multiuse pathways. The village is designed to reduce long commutes westward by providing housing near jobs and offering services such as grocery stores, restaurants, offices and public facilities. 

Before approval, commissioners spent time questioning project team experts, Audubon and others about data and concerns. 

Vice Chair Bill McDaniel Jr., who made the motion for approval, noted many panther traffic concerns will be alleviated with a new wildlife underpass beneath State Road 82, ongoing road improvements, and State Road 82, which will access the development, is being widened from two to four lanes. 

Commissioner Chris Hall, who seconded the motion, commended the project team for providing data to show Alico put “great thought” into protecting the environment, panthers and other species, an emotional issue for speakers. 

“The data removes all of the emotion for me,” Hall said. 

Others on the project team include J.R. Evans Engineering; economic and real estate analyst Development Financing & Planning Group Inc.; traffic engineering firm Trebilcock Consulting Solutions Inc.; and ecological and environmental consultant Passarella & Associates Inc.