Tim Aten Knows: Luxury car ‘sanctuary’ planned for Bayshore

Q: What’s coming to the small strip plaza behind the plaza where Big Lots used to be on Bayshore? – Melissa Negron, Naples 

A: The 5th Avenue Car Club — promoted as “a private sanctuary for extraordinary cars” — has plans for car condominiums on Bayshore Drive that are elevated in more ways than one. 

Not only does the local business propose 31 two-story auto condos designed as a high-end destination for car collectors, but the site plan also features a state-of-the-art “sky gallery” with an automated storage retrieval system that will accommodate 466 vehicles in a 56-foot-tall, seven-level building above flood level at 2740 Bayshore Drive. 

The project would redevelop the property of Gulf Gate South, the 18-unit commercial strip on the northwest corner of Bayshore Drive and Weeks Avenue that includes tenants such as Baci Trattoria & Pizza, I Love Curry, Fernweh Ice Cream and Mario’s Hair Salon. Fort Myers-based GCM Contracting Solutions, doing business as 5th Avenue Car Club LLC, acquired the 3.3-acre strip of land in a $4 million transaction on Nov. 20.  

Gulf Gate South, a two-building, 17,472-square-foot retail strip that abuts the rear of Gulf Gate Plaza at U.S. 41 East and Bayshore Drive in East Naples, eventually would be razed to create 5th Avenue Car Club, which anticipates a mid-2027 completion date.  

The development’s automated car storage and retrieval system would use the same highly secure technology GCM used for boats in area marinas, said Paul O’Callaghan, project executive for GCM, a full-service design-build general contractor.  

“Gulf Star Marina in Fort Myers is the first fully automated smart marina in a 200-mph wind-resistant facility globally, and it proved its worth during Hurricane Ian,” O’Callaghan said. “Not a single boat was damaged in any of the three local marinas that we have built — Gulf Star, Rose Marina and Hamilton Harbor Yacht Club.”  

The owners of the car condominiums will have first right of refusal to take space in the automated car storage tower, O’Callaghan said.  

“This is a first-of-its-kind, unique offering that allows a connoisseur to store their entire collection of tens to hundreds of vehicles in one luxury motor storage facility,” he said. 

The three base unit sizes for the two-story car condos will range from 2,378 to 2,546 square feet, but may be combined for larger, custom configurations. Each will have flexible floor plans with bathrooms, mezzanines and outdoor balconies. The luxury car community even plans an on-site pickleball court. 

The proposed concept and project design, which still must be approved by Collier County government, concerns Shirley Garcia, program manager of the Bayfront Gateway Triangle Community Redevelopment Area. Garcia cited inconsistencies with the county’s land development code — because, she said, conditional use approval of a warehouse/storage use is contrary to and inconsistent with the purpose and intent of the Gateway Triangle Zoning Overlay District’s commercial mixed-use subdistrict to provide pedestrian-oriented commercial and mixed-use developments and higher-density residential uses. 

Garcia invited the developer to present its plans Jan. 6 to the CRA advisory board for a review of the project so that the board can make a formal recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners, which also serves as the CRA board. 

“This is a conditional use. It’s not an allowable use by right. So, I think our advisory board must weigh in on whether or not they recommend a project like this,” she said. “Because a conditional use, once you open that door, you can’t close it. Once the Board approves a conditional use of that kind, there is no stopping anyone else from applying for the same type of conditional use for public or private storages, car washes, gas stations. They really need to look at if that’s the kind of projects we want to see in the redevelopment area.” 

GCM sees its exclusive 5th Avenue Car Club as much more than conventional storage. O’Callaghan, who referred to the upscale design of the car condos as “absolutely fantastic,” showed renderings for the proposed business to Bayshore entrepreneur Rebecca Maddox, who shares his excitement for the redevelopment project. 

“First of all, I think the design is spectacular. I really do,” Maddox said. “That shopping center has been such an eyesore for so long.” 

The renderings for the proposed redevelopment don’t look like a car condo, she said, noting that its appearance would complement her nearby members-only social venue on Bayshore Drive. 

“The architecture is very similar to what we did here at The Maddox. There’s a lot of wood and glass. It’s going to tie in beautifully.” 

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