Posted on November 3, 2020
The beaches and coastal environment are the primary draw for visitors to Lee County. The county’s Beach & Shoreline Program makes it possible for all of us to enjoy the amenities supported by visitors when they pay a tourist development tax on their hotel bill.
Since 1990 this program has provided more than $134 million to a variety of countywide projects related to beach maintenance, beach nourishment and beach park facility development.
Based upon the recommendation of the Tourist Development Council, the Lee Board of County Commissioners approved funding to 16 projects valued at $9.1 million for fiscal year 2020-21, which started Oct. 1. They include:
¦ $1.6 million addition to Lee County’s Beach Nourishment fund, which mitigates beach erosion at Gasparilla, Captiva, Fort Myers Beach, Lovers Key and Bonita.
¦ Beach and shoreline facility maintenance for Bonita, Cape Coral, Captiva, Fort Myers Beach, Sanibel and Cayo Costa, Gasparilla and Lovers Key State Parks.
¦ Countywide Emergency Beach Cleanup Fund.
¦ Shoreline stabilization at Caloosahatchee Regional Park.
Other items paid for with tourist-tax dollars include kayak accesses along the Great Calusa Blueway paddling trail. It also funds many public facilities, like restrooms, dune walkovers and shade structures at countywide beach parks, visitor trams at Cayo Costa, Lovers Key and on Fort Myers Beach, boardwalks at Four Mile Cove Eco Park and Matanzas Preserve and fishing piers at Matlacha, Fort Myers Beach and Sanibel.
These serve as examples of how our community benefits from tourism dollars and how it impacts the quality of life that we enjoy. For more information, see www.leevcb.com/funding-programs.
The Weather Channel features local areas
Typically, if our area is on The Weather Channel this time of year, it’s not great news. It’s often to provide warnings of a tropical storm or hurricane. But on Oct. 1, the area was featured in a morning broadcast segment with travel expert Laura Begley Bloom.
Bloom’s highlights included: “One of my favorite places is Fort Myers and Sanibel, Florida. The beaches of Fort Myers and Sanibel are made up of hundreds of barrier and coastal islands where you find 50 miles of white sand beaches. The destination also offers a lot of quaint local cottages that are really great for social distancing. They also have islands with an unusual ordinance called no buildings higher than a palm tree which means you’ll get big open skies and amazing views of the gulf. Also, almost three quarters of Sanibel is preserved for migrating birds, nesting turtles, and other wildlife, so that means a lot of room for visitors to social distance.” View the full segment at www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDY6CFZvyJI.
Florida greenways, trails
We talk a lot about our parks and outdoor spaces. It’s important for all of us to appreciate how accessible these wonderful facilities are to all of us. Lee County has five state parks — Cayo Costa, Koreshan, Lovers Key, Gasparilla Island and Mound Key Archaeological — and fall is the perfect time to enjoy the outdoors and socially distance in nature.
Florida’s award-winning system of state parks include 11 multiuse trails that are a part of a system of interconnected trails across the state. This system includes 7,500 miles of multi-use trails (paved and unpaved) for hiking, bicycling, equestrian, multiuse and 4,000 miles dedicated to paddling.
Greenways and trails provide open spaces where individuals and families can exercise and relieve stress while avoiding crowds and maintaining social distancing guidelines.
Florida also offers a huge variety of paddling trails for kayaking and canoeing including the Great Calusa Blueway.
Celebrate Florida Greenways and Trails by exploring and learning more about the system of trails across Florida. See www.floridadep.gov/parks/ogt/content/onlinetrail guide. ¦
— Content for Explore Southwest Florida is provided by the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau. Almost 5 million visitors to Lee County spend more than $3 billion annu ally. The VCB is funded exclusively by a 5% tourist tax and works to preserve and protect area beaches and the environment.
Source: bonitasprings
