What are the trends in SWFL for 2024? What were the greatest business and growth stories of 2023?
Hurricane Ian, which the National Weather Service estimates caused $112 billion in damage, left Southwest Florida unsettled 15 months ago.
While many still struggled following the storm, the region’s economic engines continued to run strong in 2024, according to a recent article by Phil Fernandez and Laura Layden of Naples Daily News.
The top eight business and growth topics of 2023 are listed here. These are just a few examples of the year’s strong rebound, as firms and governments signed deals.
1. Chico becomes private
In late September, Fort Myers-based Chico’s FAS announced a $1 billion cash sale to a New York private equity firm.
The corporation went private last month after shareholders approved the sale, ending its long career on the New York Stock Exchange. Shareholders got $7.60 each.
After leading the fashion company’s turnaround, Molly Langenstein resigned as CEO after the sale.
The buyer, Sycamore Partners, invests in retail, consumer, and distribution.
Lizanne Kindler, executive chair and CEO of Sycamore-owned KnitWell Group, replaced Langenstein after accepting a “golden parachute.”
2. $200M Fort Myers Beach gets Margaritaville.
The long-awaited Margaritaville compound opened this month, giving Southwest Florida its largest national seaside resort and entertainment attraction in a neighborhood at the right time.
Its $200 million Fort Myers Beach arrival happened 14 months after Ian, one of the costliest hurricanes in history, and was fully accessible to the public.
3.$250M Great Wolf Lodge to open in Naples
The Naples Great Wolf Lodge, which will open late this year alongside Margaritaville, could overtake Edison & Ford Estates as the area’s biggest manufactured tourist destination.
The massive 915,750-square-foot Uline regional distribution center was built 13 months ago next to the $250 million hotel and water park complex off Collier Boulevard and I-75. The 500-room family-friendly stronghold with 90,000 square feet of aquatic thrills would be the Chicago-based venture’s first Florida location after focusing on winter.
4. Rural village permit challenged
In December, opposition grew as a wetlands permit for Collier County’s long-awaited Bellmar Village approached.
Collier Enterprises has most of the municipal and state licenses for the rural hamlet east of Golden Gate Estates, but it lacks a Section 404, or wetlands permit, under the Clean Water Act to start construction.
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection convened a public meeting last month to decide whether to issue the long-awaited permit.
At the information-only meeting, opponents held a protest and press conference to raise concerns about the development’s environmental and wildlife implications, especially the endangered Florida panther.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission concluded after a lengthy examination that the village is suitable for the wildlife and natural habitat in the area, bringing it closer to reality.
5. Estero Island property selling higher than ever after Ian
After Ian, Margaritaville continued its ambitions, as investors and developers came to Estero Island despite the hurricane. Moss Marina’s Arches project, 110 paces east, needs town clearance for 400 hotel rooms in three structures on 4.5 acres along the bay.
Ian’s $52 million acquisition of the former Red Coconut RV site, a mile south, was the year’s highest for a now-vacant 10 acres. Another two miles south, London Bay Development completed the $25 million sale for the Sandpiper Gulf Resort’s ruins last month. Many other islands were purchased last year, with many reconstruction ideas.
6. Monster center purchase boosts Sanibel’s spirits substantially
With Ian also beating Sanibel, Rosalita’s Cantina’s March opening was a morale boost for the hamlet after its biggest business center deal in decades. Evan DuPont, a native son, handled the $6 million sale of Rabbit Road Center, which housed Doc Ford’s, Timbers, and 400 Rabbits prior to the hurricane.
New co-owner Tim McGowan told The News-Press the opening boosted the island economy and employed personnel again. The St. Louis-born Tex Mex-flavored Rosalita’s, owned by McGowan and brothers Bill, Sean, and Seamus McGowan, has three locations.
7. Apartment investments dominate commercial deals.
Apartment investments dominated commercial agreements in Southwest Florida. The top acquisitions in Collier and Lee counties were multifamily buildings.
Pearl Founders Square Apartments, a 400-unit complex built in 2022 on 17.7 acres at 8820 Walter Way in Naples, sold for $125.1 million to Beitel Group from Davis Development.
On 18 acres and built in 2015, ECI Group bought the 260-unit Waterline Estero Apartments near Hertz Arena off I-75 from Passco Cos. for $78.8 million. Formerly Longitude 81 Apartments, it sold for $53.5 million in 2017.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News.
