Literally and figuratively change is just around the corner and with it many more people, cars, and construction vehicles. In the past 10 years, the average daily traffic count on Palm Beach Boulevard has increased from 26,000 to 36,000. The FDOT believes there could be over 50,000 vehicles a day on Palm Beach Boulevard within five years, given current growth projections. As shown below, no matter what direction you may look, land is being developed for homes and commercial purposes. (Look closely and you will see that our Verandah is in the center of the map.)
Looking toward the east
Right around the corner on Buckingham Road, the Riverdale High School is undergoing a $108 million renovation to accommodate more students. Adjacent to the eastern walls of Verandah (Otter Bend, Citrus Creek, Sabal Point, etc.), three large housing projects (Buckingham, Hemingway Pointe, and Portico) are in their early stage of development and their proposals would produce over 2,500 homes on over 40 acres. A little to the east, the River Hall community has permits to build 2,695 homes and 45,000 SF of commercial space on 27 acres.
Toward the north
Just outside Verandah’s main gate are five residential and commercial projects that will result in nearly 1,000 homes and many new businesses. (It will be easy to get a fish sandwich as Culvers has purchased land behind Walgreens.)
The “800-pound gorilla” is Babcock Ranch – just 20-minutes north of Verandah. While it has 18,000 acres, they project about half will remain undeveloped. At build-out there will be 6 million square feet of commercial space. They have plans to build 19,500 homes to accommodate 50,000 residents. As of May 2024, over 4,000 were built and they had nearly 6,000 residents. (By way of comparison Verandah has about 1500 acres with 1,600 homes.)
Toward the west
Fort Myers has endured significant impacts from recent hurricanes and they have created a building boom. In September 2022, Hurricane Ian made landfall near Fort Myers Beach. Approximately 900 structures were reduced to rubble, and 2,200 others sustained damage. (The total damage to residential and commercial structures in Lee County exceeded $112 billion.) In September 2024, Hurricane Helene struck Fort Myers, impacting 86 residential structures and sixteen commercial structures. Weeks later Hurricane Milton made landfall bringing additional devastation. The cumulative effect of these storms has left the area in a prolonged state of recovery, with ongoing efforts to rebuild homes, businesses, and infrastructure. All of these projects require housing for the trades people building these projects. Drive a few of the back streets in Fort Myers and you will see new apartments are popping up everywhere. In the past five years over 15,000 apartment units were in the planning and construction phases in Lee County.
Right here in Verandah
Development of Verandah began in 2003. The market was super-heated and in the early days there were often lotteries held to select people that wanted to buy house lots in Verandah. Over the years the market has surged and retracted. We now have 1556 homes. As we enter 2025 there remain just over 50 vacant lots in four Verandah neighborhoods. In closing, “looking around the corner” big changes are coming our way.
