Deciding whether Lee Civic Center needs renovation or total rebuild

Lee County commissioners just voted to pay contractors $375,000 to determine how to fix up the Lee Civic Center, which they say definitely needs to be either remodeled or wholly rebuilt. They hope these contractors will tell them which one is the better option.

Deteriorating exterior metal and unstable seating are just some of the issues at the civic center at 11831 Bayshore Road that county leaders like Commissioner Frank Mann know about. But they have decided something needs to repair it, and community members agree.

“I just think it’s still pretty old and kind of an eyesore,” said Lee County resident Melissa Rohrman. “And it really needed some updates. Like, I wouldn’t have even let my kids on the bleachers. They were so old and sketchy.”

“We have to start with this study to find out what we’re up against,” Mann said. “And then we’ll know whether we can fix the building, whether we can remodel a building or we have to tear down and rebuild the building.”

Mann says it’s going to cost the county at least $2 million just to upgrade the center’s seating, so county leaders are prepared to spend a lot of money no matter which option they take. Mann also says the 16 buildings on the property are likewise all suffering from deferred maintenance

“Well, there’s no good news that’s going to come back out of this, because what we’re looking for is to find what is wrong and needs to be fixed,” Mann said. “I mean, 44-year-old plumbing is going to have to be upgraded.”

“I just hope that they really invest the money wisely,” said Lee County resident Kelly Howell. “It doesn’t need to be something… you know, a bazillion dollars, but basic renovations, paint and safety, would just transform the whole place.”

The Lee Civic Center is in Mann’s district, and he says that if Lee County does decide to tear down and rebuild the center, the fair, the markets and the other events usually held there will still continue.