Mississippi investor pays $14.5M for Tampa vacant lot

Naples/Fort Myers

Good to go: Construction has (finally) begun on Bimini Square in Cape Coral. Developers of the long-awaited mixed-used project broke ground Oct. 19. When complete, the development will have 218 residences, 58,000 square feet of nonresidential space along with boat slips and a parking garage. A Lee Health medical facility, waterfront restaurant and retail shops will take up the nonresidential space. The project, which sits on six acres west of Four Freedoms Park in the city, has been in the works for nearly four years and won city approval in February. It was one of several projects former city manager Rob Hernandez said would transform Cape Coral “from Cape Coma to Cape Cool.” One of those other projects was the $103 million mixed-used Cove at 47th development which broke ground last year. Bimini Square is expected to open in 2025.

Pier pressure: A Fort Myers construction company has been picked to do the repairs and the restoration of the fishing pier at Matlacha Community Park. Lee County Commissioners voted recently to award Infinite Construction the contract for the $388,000 FEMA-funded project to repair damage caused by Hurricane Ian last year. Infinite, according to state records and a LinkedIn page, is owned by Paul Kirilinas. According to city officials, the work will include removing and replacing the deck, railings, benches, garbage cans, fish cleaning stations and lighting. The work is expected to start early next year be done by May 1. No work needs to be done to the structure of the pier, which officials say is why the turnaround will be fast. The pier, popular with both local anglers and tourists, was built about 50 years ago and rebuilt in 2020.