Tim Aten Knows: Whole Foods, more coming to East Naples

Q: Any more talks or progress about the crushed rock empty corner lot on Santa Barbara and Davis? – Mike Sweeney, Naples 

Q: I was just wondering — have you heard of anything happening to the development on the corner of Santa Barbara and Davis? I thought it was supposed to be a Whole Foods as the anchor. – David S. DeHanas, Naples 

A: Plans are progressing for Whole Foods Market to anchor a sprawling mixed-use development — recently renamed Vitano — proposed on the vacant property on the southeast corner of Davis and Santa Barbara boulevards in East Naples. 

Just as the region’s first Whole Foods anchors Mercato in North Naples, Collier County’s second store for the national grocery chain will anchor Vitano, an 82-acre master planned unit development proposed for 86,904 square feet of retailers and restaurants, 200 townhomes and 422 units in four-story apartment buildings. Originally known as Taormina Reserve MPUD, part of the property formerly was the site of a controversial rock-crushing operation for a few years. 

A property ownership disclosure form filed with the county this year shows the 82 acres is still owned by Naples-based Highland Properties of Lee & Collier Ltd., but the property is under contract for purchase by Atlanta-based Naples Sanctuary LLC with Jeffrey Garrison holding the controlling interest. Garrison is a principal of SJC Ventures, the Atlanta-based development firm that is the master developer of Vitano. 

Garrison said SJC hopes to break ground on Vitano in 2027. “Once we start construction, it’s about 20 months until our retail portion opens, and it’s about 24 to 30 months as the residential starts to take occupancy,” he said. 

The site plan for Vitano shows a 31,995-square-foot Whole Foods Market on the hard corner of Davis and Santa Barbara. The grocer will be the largest tenant in Vitano, which will include more than 20 other retail units ranging from more than 7,000 square feet to 1,187 square feet.  

“I can confirm a Whole Foods Market store is in development at this location but have no other details to share at this time,” said Carrie Rodgers Hunte, corporate communications specialist for Amazon, which acquired Whole Foods Market in 2017. 

In addition to Whole Foods, the only other specific business SJC reports as coming to Vitano so far is Tipsy Salonbar, which has leased a 3,000-square-foot unit in one of the development’s retail buildings fronting Santa Barbara Boulevard. The full-service beauty salon is known for offering beer and wine. 

Vitano will stretch south from Davis Boulevard along the east side of Santa Barbara, and its townhome community and extensive preserve area will extend eastward directly south of the Boys & Girls Club of Collier County and the Firano residential community. Vitano remains in planning and permitting stages. County planners are reviewing a proposal to amend the existing PUD to subdivide and develop the property to accommodate up to 100,000 square feet of retail, 422 multifamily units and 200 townhomes.  

The project is proposed to have a full-access intersection and a right-in/right-out drive on Santa Barbara and a shared access drive with the Boys & Girls Club on Davis Boulevard. The main entrance into the community off Santa Barbara will be Vitano Boulevard, which will extend east through a roundabout and be the street address of the townhome condominiums. Other private interior roads within Vitano will include Essenza Way and Sereno Drive, site plans show.  

The Residences at Vitano will have a two-story, nearly 17,000-square-foot clubhouse with a pool, pickleball courts, putting green and community green space. The residential units will be on the southern and eastern ends of Vitano with a nature walk through a 26-acre park that will include a 3.4-acre lake with a dock, gazebo and pavilion, plans show. 

Egrets Crossing 

Additional new commercial development is coming to vacant lots on the southwest corner of Davis and Santa Barbara boulevards, across the street from the future Vitano. 

Construction is targeted to start by the end of the year on new retail opportunities on lots adjacent to the CVS pharmacy and Goodwill thrift store at the Egrets Crossing commercial planned unit development, said Robert Faller of Faller Family LLC, which has owned the nearly 17 acres on that corner for more than 20 years. 

A McDonald’s drive-thru restaurant is planned on Davis Boulevard, immediately west of CVS. An AutoZone store will be built immediately north of the existing Goodwill on Santa Barbara, and a Wawa convenience store and gas station is proposed for the vacant lot between CVS and the future auto parts store.  

To make their plans possible, the Faller family has petitioned Collier County to approve a planned unit development insubstantial change to allow an internal landscape buffer adjustment to create three additional lots. The existing PUD and the county’s land development code require specific landscape buffers between adjacent lots to provide adequate separation and landscaping standards.  

Before that interior buffer change can be approved, the county requires a neighborhood information meeting regarding the developer’s request. That public meeting will be 5:15 p.m. Sept. 10 in the Golden Gate Community Center, 4701 Golden Gate Parkway. 

The proposal would split the 4.95-acre Egrets Crossing Lot 1, which contains CVS, to create an adjacent smaller parcel for a 3,827-square-foot McDonald’s restaurant with 32 seats. Likewise, the 9.16-acre Egrets Crossing Lot 3, which contains Goodwill, would be divided to create another smaller parcel for a 7,381-square-foot AutoZone store. Wawa is planned on the 2.63-acre Egrets Crossing Lot 2, which is not part of a lot split. 

Plans to build Wawa at that site have picked up from where they were temporarily shelved a few years ago. Conceptual plans include a 6,119-square-foot convenience store and a canopy with 16 fueling stations at 4889 Santa Barbara Blvd.  

Since Collier’s first Wawa launched nine years ago at Radio and Livingston roads, two others have opened in East Naples. Coincidentally, McDonald’s just opened its latest area location Aug. 25 on Livingston Road behind that initial area Wawa. 

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