Tim Aten Knows: Multifamily housing under construction in Lely Resort

Q: I know they’re building condos and townhouses across from Verona Walk, but the monstrosity that’s up there now can’t be condos because there are no windows on three sides. Any idea what it is? – Barbara Nizolak, Naples 

A: Several readers have inquired about the stark start of construction for Adonia, a Lely Resort multifamily project on the southwest corner of Collier Boulevard and Grand Lely Drive. Some have compared the initial three-story concrete structure to a prison or a bomb shelter, but this central section of the apartment complex will be hidden from view when the housing project is completed. 

“That’s the parking garage that’s going up at the moment. We just started first-floor block of the actual apartments,” said Kyle Osborne, project manager for Morrow Construction, which is part of Atlanta-based Davis Development, the general contractor for Adonia. “The section on Collier that’s visible will be wrapped with the apartments. The two long sides of the garage also will be wrapped.” 

Only the western-facing side will be open and feature the ramp for the 245-space garage. “It’s the width of the garage, not the length of it. So, it will be wrapped on three sides,” Osborne said. 

The luxury low-rise apartment complex will be a block and plank construction, combining concrete block walls with precast concrete planks for floors and ceilings. 

“It’s probably going to look more like condos. It’ll be a nice product,” Osborne said. 

One large three-story apartment building and five two-story buildings with townhomes are being built on 9 acres at 7665 Collier Blvd. in the Lely Resort planned unit development. Bordered on the west and south by Celeste Drive, the property mirrors the shape and size of the real estate across Grand Lely Drive to its north, where Stock Development built the Stock Plaza commercial center a decade ago. 

The new residences are expected to be completed by summer 2027. 

“I’m projecting like a March-April of next year,” Osborne said. “So, we’ll be in and out of there pretty quickly. It’s a rather small job; it’s only 184 units. That’s what I’m projecting right now, pending not hitting any serious rain delays or a hurricane or something this year.” 

In addition to a parking garage, the main, three-story Building 1000 will have a large courtyard. Building plans show a clubhouse area featuring a speakeasy, aqua lounge, fitness center, yoga/spin room, golf simulator, media room, cyber cafe, dog park, bike storage and guest suites, according to architectural plans by Atlanta-based Geheber Lewis Associates.  

Two-story townhomes are planned in five buildings that will line the western perimeter of the property. Architectural plans show 156 one- and two-bedroom apartment units in Building 1000; six townhome units each in buildings 100, 200 and 300; and five townhomes each in buildings 400 and 500. 

“The townhomes will be rentable. It will be just like you would rent a normal apartment. They won’t be for sale,” Osborne said. “They’ll just be rentable units for someone who may need a two-car garage. It’s kind of their own dedicated space.” 

Warming up the grill 

Q: Recently, there have been fencing and barriers erected in the southwest portion parking lot at Coastland Center mall, in the shadow of Macy’s. Do you know what it could be? With the recent closings of two restaurants on Coastland Center mall property, I hope it won’t be a restaurant that will fail. Thank you. – Philip W., Naples 

Q: Any news on the Brazilian steakhouse going in at Coastland mall? – Amy Miller, Naples 

A: Construction finally has begun on Oar & Iron Raw Bar & Grill in the southwest corner of Macy’s parking lot at Coastland Center mall in Naples. The original sign on that outparcel site announced, “Coming late 2025,” but the restaurant’s developers are hoping for late 2026 now. 

“[We] would love to be open by the end of 2026, but otherwise early 2027, based on construction,” said Rob Luzzi, senior director of marketing for RAVentures Hospitality Group, which owns and operates Oar & Iron. 

Oar & Iron is a modified version of the Northeast’s 110 Grill, named after Route 110 where it first opened in Massachusetts. To better reflect Florida, Oar & Iron features lighter, nautical colors, large outdoor dining spaces, a raw bar and a menu with more seafood and steaks. 

The future restaurant at 2094 Ninth St. N. in Naples will be the fifth location for Oar & Iron. The fourth location opened in early April in Babcock Ranch. The first restaurant launched in late 2023 in Founders Square at Collier Boulevard and Immokalee Road in North Naples. Two other locations opened last year near Topgolf in Fort Myers and in Parrish, near Bradenton. 

The Oar & Iron in Naples will have an interior space of 5,899 square feet with 1,833 square feet of outdoor patio with a firepit covered by a louvered pergola structure. The patio will be nearest the restaurant’s main entrance on the corner of Fleishmann Boulevard and U.S. 41.  

Oar & Iron will be the sixth hospitality chain outparcel built on the western end of Coastland Center. After the longtime success of the Cheesecake Factory, freestanding structures were built for CMX CinéBistro, Uncle Julio’s Mexican restaurant, Bahama Breeze Island Grille and Twin Peaks. Bahama Breeze and Uncle Julio’s both closed within the last year and remain vacant. 

Another restaurant chain, Rodizio Grill, also is expected to open in late 2026 or early 2027 on the northern edge of the mall. The Brazilian steakhouse is building out the expanded inline space that formerly was Aurelio’s Pizza, Pate’s House of Prime Rib and Ted’s Montana Grill at the mall entrance near CMX CinéBistro.  

Rodizio Grill’s “churrascaria” features all-you-can-eat meats and a salad bar with hot and cold sides, as well as a full bar. The Utah-based chain has more than 20 locations, including six in Florida, that are especially known for skewers of rotisserie-grilled meats carved tableside by gauchos.  

The Rodizio Grill in Naples will be significantly larger than the location operated since April 2016 at Coconut Point mall in Estero. The 9,160 square feet of indoor dining at 2048 Ninth St. N. combines Aurelio’s former space with that of another adjoining vacant retail unit. The new restaurant does not include outdoor dining. 

The Tim Aten Knows weekly column answers local questions from readers. Email Tim at Tim.Aten@NaplesPress.com.