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If you travel between Fort Myers and Naples on U.S. 41, it's hard to miss The Ship.
Built in 1996 by Fort Myers-based Fowler Construction as a replica of a Spanish galleon, word on the street is the Bonita Springs landmark is slated for a teardown to make way for an assisted-living facility.
Builder Rob Fowler Jr. says the ship's concrete foundation means it can't float. But that hasn't stopped people from asking him whether it could sail away — despite the fact that there's no water nearby.
The Ship once housed a popular restaurant and bar. It's been for sale for at least a decade since the restaurant closed.
The Ship was Fowler's first major project after he graduated from college. His father handed him plans for the galleon that were written in Italian. “Here, go build this,” his father told him.
The Ship, which is named the Troy Franco after the original owner's two sons, was one of the centers of activity in Bonita Springs in the late 1990s. “There was hardly anything out there,” Fowler recalls.
Today, Bonita Springs is one of the hottest real estate markets on the Gulf Coast. Hertz is building its global headquarters nearby and residential construction has rebounded.
But Fowler isn't sentimental about the hulking structure. “I've been wanting to tear it down for a while because I wanted to be part of a new project,” Fowler says.
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