Estero Boulevard project moving on to second phase

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FORT MYERS, Fla. Some are hopeful the worst is over.

Segment one of a multimillion dollar Estero Boulevard improvement project is wrapping up, and crews are moving on to segment two, which runs from Lovers Lane southeast to Madera Road. The first phase of reFresh Estero Boulevard took place near downtown.

“It was hell,” Fort Myers Beach resident Terance Cerullo said. “… But now that they got the first part done, I think second segment’s gonna go really great because they (have) a whole lot more room to work with.”

But some of that room will come at the cost of part of the Red Coconut RV Park, a resort that has been on the beach for 90 years. The boulevard widening project, which promises to bring safe sidewalks, bike paths and a better storm drain system, will take away land the business has used to accommodate larger RVs.

Cheryl Kochan, a Red Coconut regular, asked to be moved into a different parking spot after learning about the county’s plans. Red Coconut was able to accommodate her, but others might not be so lucky.

 

“It’s saddened me,” Kochan said. “… There’s some that have been coming a lot longer than us. It really, truly affects them.”

But others familiar with the boulevard project, like Dale Spankowski, don’t mind it.

“When they finish the sidewalk, I think it’s going to be really great,” Spankowski said.

Construction work on the project began in the summer of 2015. It’s expected to take over 10 years and cost more than $60 million.

Phase one was a learning experience, project spokeswoman Kaye Molnar said.

“It’s gone well in the long run,” she said. “It seems like it’s a long time coming. I know there’s a lot of folks that are sincerely glad its over.”

 

Contracts are going out now to the subcontractors for work on phase two. That process is expected to be done by June 1, allowing construction to begin along that stretch, Molnar said.

 

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