Captiva building codes upheld in vote

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Building codes
Drone view of Captiva Island. Credit: WINK

The ongoing saga regarding building codes in Captiva Island continues as Lee County Leaders decided if taller buildings are feasible.

Local representatives seek to make the buildings on the island more resilient against future storms; however, residents believe there is a conflict of interest.

Lee County Commissioners held their final vote Wednesday morning. The land use amendment approval vote was upheld.

“We’re a unique, small scale, low density community completely tied into nature,” said Jay Brown, president of the Captiva Community Panel, “This is a huge setting or precedent that will result in more and more development on Captiva.”

Islanders are insisting that Lee County Commissioners are siding with developers. People who live in Captiva Island say lower buildings are part of the charm.

Commissioners claim that amending height restrictions and codes will help fortify the structure of future buildings in the event of another strong storm.

Lee County Leaders say that the push for improving the building codes, spurred by Hurricane Ian, exposed the necessary changes for rebuilding and future structures.

The changes were approved in September, allowing future structures to raise the height from 28 feet above base flood elevation to 35 feet.

The backlash from the vote was strong, as people displayed their opinions toward county representatives regarding their discontent with the decision.

“It just took such a blow, and now it’s coming back, and to hear this rumble of something that might be happening on the road that goes through us … it scares me,” said Sanibel resident Ien Edgerly.

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