Lee suburbs out of favor

Lee County is revising its land-use plan and the suburbs are out.

“We don't have the dollars to fund a suburban style of development,” says Kathie Ebaugh, principal planner with the Lee County Department of Community Development. “We are looking at intensities and densities,” she told a gathering of the Real Estate Investment Society in Fort Myers recently.

The buzzword now: redevelopment of existing areas. “It's all about redevelopment,” Ebaugh says.

While the revisions to Lee's plan are two years away, municipal planners are organizing meetings to discuss changes. One idea is to create town centers, which bring together housing, employment and transportation.

If you own land in Lee County's fringes, it might pay to keep close tabs on the discussions. The rules may be changing.