Marco Shores apartment developer wants to build more units; neighbors want landscaping

Mainsail Apartments in Marco Shores is growing – and some residents are concerned.

The apartments opened in 2022 with 100 units in the area three miles north of Marco Island. The developer says those apartments are more than 99 percent occupied and wants to build 90 more on the lot next door.

Neighbors in condos that line the road near the JW Marriott-owned Hammock Bay Golf & Country Club aren't thrilled about the apartments but, expecting them to be approved, want the developer to plant palm trees and landscape Mainsail Drive or hand over some land for a park.

"Our tranquil neighborhood will be impacted forever," Gary Ceremuga told the Collier County Planning Commission at an October public hearing on the proposed Planned Unit Development Amendment that would allow residential on what currently is zoned for utilities and parks.

"We’re concerned about safety, and we’re worried about our market value," he said. "This is not what we bargained for when we bought on our quiet, dead-end street."

The planning commission unanimously approved Naples-based SK Holdings Real Estate LLC's request for an amendment to the existing Marco Shores PUD, which covers about 315 acres. The Collier County Board of Commissioners will consider the amendment Nov. 14.

Who owned the land before SK Holdings?

Located just before the Marco Island Executive Airport, which is maintained by Collier County, Mainsail Apartments would essentially be extended into Phase 2, SK Holdings attorney Noel Davies told commissioners. There would be interconnectivity between the two complexes, he said.

The same architects – MHK Architecture; the same general contractor – Waltbillig & Hood; and the same engineer – Peninsula Engineering – will work on the second phase, Davies said, "so any new structures will have the same look, feel and size as the existing."The current complex includes a four-story apartment building and four garage buildings. There’s also a clubhouse with a pool, a gym, a lounge area, administrative offices, and a mail area with a parcel-holding room.

SK Holdings purchased the 4.04 acres in two tracts from the city of Marco Island for $748,200 in May 2022, according to property records. Marco Island's lime operations plant was removed from the property in 2018, though it was decommissioned in 2008, said Jeff Poteet, general manager of Marco Island's Water and Sewer Department.

How much is rent? Are there affordable housing units?

There are no affordable housing units in the recently opened apartments and there will be none in the second phase, Davies said. He said the apartments are considered market rate.

"There is still a significant demand for market rate apartments particularly in this area of the county," Davies said.

Rents at Mainsail Apartments range from $1,923 to $2,301 for a one-bedroom, one-bath unit to $2,413 to $3,183 for a two-bedroom, two-bath unit, according to the website. As of October 2023, the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Naples is $2,498, according to real-estate platform Zumper.

Residents want reciprocation

At a neighborhood information meeting in July, residents complained about increased traffic and construction garbage, along with dilapidated sidewalks and lack of landscaping in the medians along the nearly two-mile Mainsail Drive. They wanted to know if background checks, and criminal records were searched on apartment applicants. Yes, SK Land Holdings owner and Naples attorney Jonathon Duke Kassolis assured them, according to a transcipt of the meeting.

In October, some Mainsail Drive residents repeated those concerns before planning commissioners and asked the developers to help with the county-maintained road and medians by planting trees promised by a long-ago developer.

"My client is willing to consider some reasonable requests," Davies said at the Planning Commission meeting. "My client is not going to build a park, is not going to landscape all of Mainsail Drive."

Collier County Planning Director Michael Bosi said the road is public but is "not part of our roadway beautification program." He said if the medians are landscaped, there would need to be a document indicating who would maintain them.

Davies said SK Holdings is willing to meet with residents again before the BOCC meeting, which became a stipulation of approval by the Planning Commission.

"We’re not the type of people who don’t want this in my yard; that’s not the reason we’re here," Marlene Mahoney said at the informational meeting. "It’s traffic, fire engines, we have a lot of people that walk and bike in the street. We have seen an increase in speeding."

Like some of her neighbors, Mahoney said she wants what was promised by previous developer WCI Communities Inc., which bought what was then Marco Shores Country Club in 2002. It welcomed the first residents in the three towers and coach homes in 2004.

A storied past

"When WCI approached Tropic Schooner and Mainsail when they wanted to add another level onto their building, we were promised that we would have some beautification down the median," Mahoney said. "They put trees but stopped it early. Then WCI sold and nothing else was done. We can’t stop progress; we know that. For us to do something, I think it would be nice if you did something."

Bonita Springs-based WCI filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2008 with about $1.9 billion in debt. It came out of bankruptcy and sold off properties. Homebuilder Lennar Corp. acquired WCI for $643 million in 2016.

It was Deltona Corporation, and the Mackle Brothers who developed Marco Shores and built the airport after starting development of Marco Island. The company settled nine lawsuits in 1982, five of them with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and one with the federal government after being denied permits to infill swampland to build homes. Deltona had pre-sold two large parcels that were denied permits. To repay customers as part of the settlement, Delonta sold off lands that weren't designated wetlands, including Marco Shores.

Planning Commissioner Robert Klucik Jr. (District 5) said planned unit developments and comprehensive plans change and the board is following the rules in place now.

"It’s decades later and it’s not reasonable to hold people to the original idea," he said.

Mainsail Drive occupants encouraged to work together

"I would encourage you to go to them and for you guys to have a respectful and specific proposal," said Commissioner Christopher Vernon (District 2).

"I would recommend requiring the county, airport authority and developer to come to some agreement," said Vice Chairman Joe Schmitt, an at-large member. The three should come up with a plan and agreement for maintenance, he said.

Commissioner Chuck Schumacher (District 3) urged residents of Mainsail Drive to discuss sharing the costs.

"That cost for maintenance will have to be shared," Schmitt said. "Because it sat like this for so many years."

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This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: More apartments in Marco Shores? Residents want road beautified