Bonita zoning board to hear development plan in August

The Bonita Springs zoning board will hear the case for a mixed-use plan development on what is popularly known as the Nicola Parcel on Aug. 4.

The applicant for the 20-acre parcel on U.S. 41 in Bonita Springs is proposing to build 240 multi-family homes, including 80 bonus density units on the parcel. The new request reduces the total commercial footage from 52,000 square feet to 40,540, probably prompted by traffic concerns.

Building 52,000 square feet of commercial space would cause the intersection of the site's access point with U.S. 41 to fail. The lower square footage of commercial space brings the service level down but does not cause the intersection to fail.

The only other concern for the plan, said Lee County planner Tony Palermo, is an access point dispute with the property's neighbor, North Bay Village. The original plans showed an access point through the parking area for North Bay, which was later changed to an emergency-only access.

The two property owners are still working on the possibility of that access. Other than that, the site has only one access point on U.S. 41, Palermo said. The height of the buildings -- 45 feet, or three stories, over parking for residential and 55 feet, or four stories, over parking for commercial, might also be an issue to be dealt with in terms of neighborhood concerns, he said.