Debate over Old 41's new look heads to council

Three years of planning to revitalize downtown Bonita Springs may reach a crossroads on Wednesday.

At 5:30 p.m., the City Council will hear a variety of presentations on how to redevelop the historical district, particularly the 5.3-acre Bamboo Village site, which the city bought for $2.6 million in 2003.

At the heart of the negotiations will be the plan from Naples-based Antaramian Development Inc. to turn Bamboo Village into the upscale Imperial Landing with shops, restaurants and 106 condos.

The City Council gave the preliminary go-ahead to Antaramian in January, but the March election brought in three new council members, all of whom have expressed reservations about the project.

“The taxpayers own this property, and we should be able to negotiate whatever we want,” said Councilwoman Martha Simons, one of the three new members. “If (the developer) can’t get us something that is reasonable, then we should get somebody else.”

“It is important to have something down there that generates a solid tax base,” said Mayor Jay Arend, one of the strongest proponents of the project. “We’re trying to get the tax dollars out of it that we put into it.”

As the city moved through its revitalization plans starting in 2003, the redevelopment of Bamboo Village was seen as a catalyst to further development of the Old 41 corridor. A combination of residential and commercial uses on the property was seen as a way of bringing in tax revenue that, among other things, would offset its purchase price.

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This rendering shows Antaramian Development Inc.'s plans to develop 5.3 acres on Old 41 Road. Wednesday, the Bonita Springs City Council approved the conditions for the contract to develop the property. Under the agreement, Antaramian will pay the city $3.44 million for the property. In exchange, Antaramian will build Imperial Landing, a mix of residences, public access and entertainment.

The council selected Antaramian in January out of five developers that originally submitted applications.

In the March 7 elections, though, voters chose three challengers who had stated their opposition to the Antaramian plan. The new council members — Simons, Pat McCourt and Richard Ferreira — could join Alex Grantt, the lone dissenter from the January decision, to get Antaramian out of Bamboo Village.

“I’ve been as vocal as I need to be, and I think everyone knows where I stand,” McCourt said.

McCourt and Grantt made a motion May 17 to remove Antaramian from the project, but the council decided not take a vote that day because the developer hadn’t been given a chance to make a presentation to the new council and one of the members still didn’t know whether he could vote.

On Wednesday, the council will hear multiple presentations from the staff about the Bamboo Village site. In addition to Antaramian, other proposals have a library, a botanical garden or a park on the site.

“I’m hoping we get some value out of this workshop and turn some minds around,” Councilman John Joyce said. “If we don’t redevelop (Bamboo Village), it is all a waste of money.”

The council cannot take any formal action on Wednesday because the session is advertised as a workshop. The members can tell the staff what they want, though, and the workshop is seen as a strong indicator of whether the Antaramian project will live or die.

One issue already taken care of for Wednesday is the voting status of Councilman Ben Nelson. He abstained from the January vote because he owns property near the former Bamboo Village site. When it became clear the Antaramian project was in jeopardy, Nelson, who favors the project, asked the Florida Commission on Ethics to make a ruling.

The ethics commission said Nelson’s ownership of the property doesn’t create a conflict of interest and he can vote on the plan.

“I hope there is some real discussion Wednesday on what there might be in the way of compromise,” Nelson said. “I am still hopeful.”