A Naples developer’s plans to build 205 apartments, including income-restricted units, instead of the approved 129 affordable homes in Golden Gate Estates, was delayed after an outcry by nearby residents and hesitancy by county commissioners.
When the developer’s attorney sought a continuance, the Board of County Commissioners on April 8 unanimously agreed to postpone a vote on rezoning and amending the plans for the 24.4-acre NC Square Mixed-Use Overlay on the southwest corner of Immokalee Road and Catawba Street until its May 13 meeting.
“At some point in time, we’ve got to stop doing what we’re doing if we want different results,” Commissioner Chris Hall said of residents complaining about too much construction. “To be a leader sometimes is hard, but I’m going to go ahead and take the lead on this. I don’t like it. I don’t like it increasing the density.”
He noted traffic will decrease without the day care, but Immokalee Road is “a mess … I care about adding more load on Immokalee Road. That’s already failed.”
The plans approved in 2021 didn’t move forward with construction of up to 129 affordable homes or a 12,000-square-foot day care for about 100 children at NC Square, where commercial, retail and office space also were approved. Naples-based HAA Capital LLC’s land-use attorney, Rich Yovanovich, told commissioners construction costs increased significantly, limiting what the developer could sell them for, and it wasn’t viable.
“It would cost more to build the unit than what they could sell them for, so the for-sale project has not moved forward,” Yovanovich said.
Naples-based HAA Capital, led by Naples Realtor Antonio Brown, is seeking a small-scale growth-management plan amendment to reduce commercial square footage from 44,400 square feet to 36,500 and to increase residential from 129 units to 205 apartments, not owner-occupied homes. They also sought to rezone the property, noting the amendment will reduce traffic trips due to removal of the day care and reduction of commercial.
Yovanovich noted traffic trips during evening peak hours under approved plans were reduced by 46%.
The development is bounded by the Valencia Trails community to the south and west, where there’s also open space, Crawford Landscaping and agricultural use to the east and The Club at TwinEagles golf course and preserve areas to the north.
When it was approved, Yovanovich said, the project was the first of its kind in the county’s rural fringe mixed-use district, which didn’t allow affordable-housing density bonuses or commercial development on Immokalee Road. But two years later, in 2023, he said, the county amended its growth-management plan to allow both in a mixed-use project.
The plan seeks 8.4 units per acre, not the 12.2 units allowed under the county’s growth-management plan. Of the 205 apartments, 30% would be income restricted, with 15% at 80% of the county’s area median income and below, and 15% at 100% AMI and below. The county’s AMI is $104,300. The county will monitor rentals to ensure income limits are adhered to.
Jessica Harrelson, of Peninsula Engineering, said they addressed concerns by Valencia Trails residents and won’t allow tennis, pickleball or basketball courts; will use Dark Skies-compliant lighting; the minimum lease will be eight months, with month-to-month leases after that; 6.2 acres will be preserved. They also added buffers and increased setbacks to minimize or obscure residents’ views of two four-story apartment buildings and one three-story apartment building.
Valencia Trails residents asked commissioners to stick with the original plans. Marian Riordan reminded them of the county’s vision to preserve and enhance community character and protect natural resources. She cited numerous commercial developments, homes and apartments being approved that will add intensity, density and traffic.
“If Collier County continues to approve developer amendments of changing rezoning, building heights, reducing normal buffer size, eventually Collier County will be unrecognizable,” Riordan said.
Planning and Zoning Director Mike Bosi said staff supports the proposal, which was unanimously approved by the Planning Commission. The Immokalee Road extension project would be completed when the apartments are rented three years from now, he said, lessening the impact on roadways.
Commissioners agreed affordable apartments are needed for police officers, nurses, teachers and others, and for people waiting to buy homes or build them.
Vice Chair Dan Kowal said the county was handed a “bad deal” when Golden Gate Estates was developed because it’s just homes, with no commercial or industrial development, which would provide jobs. He doubted NC Square would add more county residents, but likely would disperse residents already living here who want to move closer to jobs, so commissioners need to spread apartments countywide to lessen impact.
Hall was comfortable with 129 owner-occupied units and suggested reducing the 100% affordability requirement to 30%, but Yovanovich didn’t believe that was viable. Hall said “stop building” is the top request from constituents and the county already has apartments and homes already approved that aren’t built yet.
“We haven’t seen the effects, the total effects of the traffic,” he said. “All we know is we feel it and we see it now.”
