Legacy Harbour, a proposed two-tower, 25-story riverfront development off West First Street near downtown Fort Myers, received approval from Fort Myers City Council on June 2 to build 377 units on land that typically would allow for 290 units.
Now, ownership needs to find an investor to help it build.
If the development comes to fruition, it could take about a decade from now to complete, as the company has five years to apply for permits and eight years to break ground, said Megan Strayhorn, a land-use attorney working for the management group.
2044 West First Capital Propco legally owns the land and is operated by New Jersey-based AIRN Management. The current owners bought the land for about $20 million in January 2022.
In return for the extra 30% density approved by the city, AIRN Management pledges to create about 37,000 square feet of public gathering space. This will include a park off Bayside Parkway — following the demolition of a single-family home there — and a riverfront walkway with public access to a 131-slip marina that has yet to be rebuilt after being destroyed Sept. 28, 2022, by Hurricane Ian.
Legacy Harbour’s marina is the first step of the project, which still needs investors to make the two towers a reality.
“First, the marina will open,” Strayhorn said. “There are a few parcels that exist today that have the existing surface space to park on them. Once construction commences, the first phase will include that parking garage.”
Parking garages with retail and restaurants of six and seven stories are planned to be built on the south side of West First Street on the corner of Henley Place. Parking there eventually will provide public access to the marina, plus the retail and restaurants envisioned for both sides of the road.
The two towers also would have on-site parking for tenants. The 377 units could be a mix of apartments, condominiums and hotels, Strayhorn said.
A galleria with retail and restaurants is envisioned to be built between the two towers. The towers and galleria would be positioned between High Point Place’s condo complex at 2104 West First St. and the vacant restaurant building on the riverfront that was Joe’s Crab Shack until it vacated the space May 26.
“That is a hot topic,” Strayhorn said of a space that prior to Joe’s Crab Shack was Chart House, a steak restaurant. “As of right now, that building will stay. The property owner is trying to identify and locate new restaurants to come in. They’re taking a wide lens approach to see what is the right approach, to see what is the right fit for our community and Fort Myers and what will work there.”
Prior ownership of most of the land was assembled in the 1990s and early 2000s by the late Haywood Sullivan, a former Boston Red Sox catcher and later a part-owner of the team. He turned a $200,000 investment of a part-ownership stake into a $33 million buyout, which he used to acquire the rest of the properties.
Sullivan died in February 2003, leaving the land in a family trust that eventually sold it, eventually landing with the current ownership group.
NRIA and its affiliates, which included the Legacy Harbour investments, filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June 2022. The company exited bankruptcy in August 2023, with the current holding company forming then, according to NRIA .
AIRN Management is looking for a development partner to maximize the two-tower and marina project.
