What's the damage to the main building at the Cape Coral Yacht Club?

Fixing up the Cape Coral Yacht Club property could run from $25,000 to $100 million, splitting the community as even officials have yet to inspect the property and get a clear picture of the damage.

Residents and former officials want to see the property restored with its historical significance maintained specifically with no major changes to the main ballroom building. Hurricane Ian, which took aim at Cape Coral as a Category 5 storm in September, has hastened the decision.

Florida Municipal Insurance Trust, administered by the Florida League of Cities, offers liability coverage for most Florida cities, handled the hurricane claim report, and put the estimated damage as $24,565.

The Yacht Club area, which includes the yacht basin, tennis courts, a swimming pool, a ballroom, and a riverside beach, has served as a popular attraction and staple for the city since the 1960s.

Ian left its mark on Cape Coral by damaging almost every structure after landfall.

The park included a master ballroom, pool, and Tony Rotino Center, a pier, beach, boat ramp, and other amenities- which sustained damage.

Previous discussions estimated that it could take years to repair the Yacht club and as much as $100 million for a "clean slate" approach to renovating the heavily damaged facilities.

Earlier this month, the city of Cape Coral announced that it intends to demolish all buildings at the Yacht Club Community Park because of the extensive damage received by Hurricane Ian.

An adjacent property, the Boat House Restaurant sustained severe damage as the building collapsed but is expected to finish repairs and reopen soon.

Insurance report and photos

The insurance claim report outlined almost $25,000 worth of damage to the main ballroom building.

Damage includes wind damage to the metal roof, the wood fence that surrounds the air conditioner outside of the building, the front entry driveway Portico, gutters along the back side, and metal siding around beams, and windows will require replacing and cleaning of the floor and entry area will be needed.

There is no evidence of storm surge in the building, but rainwater did enter through broken windows.

Photos taken by residents who claim to have been in the Yacht Club's main building were given by former council member Gloria Tate.

The photos show the inside of the building looking the way it did before Ian, the fireplace with the pillar, chandeliers, stage, and floor looking intact, and most of the damage seemingly toward the windows.

Tate said residents have been reaching out to her about saving the Yacht Club.

"I'm not saying that there is no damage; I'm just saying that it's repairable," said Tate.

City spokespersons did not comment directly on the figures as of Friday afternoon.

Kaitlyn Mullen said the city "cannot speculate as to the extent of the damage."

Previous coverage What we know about the current status of Cape Coral's Yacht Club.

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Cape Council discuss future What's the future of Cape Coral's Yacht Club? Council ponders massive project

Former and current district one councilmembers respond.

A former councilmember and longtime resident, Tate is seeking answers into the city's rebuilding process for the Yacht Club, specifically, the demolition of the main building.

"I am not against remodeling and redoing the club footprint," Tate said. "So rather than do this entire project with a new building, to restore the building that is there and then do the rest of the remodel makes more taxpayer sense and more community sense."

She said the yacht club's ballroom is the only historic building from the '60s.

"I understand that it's not black and white, but it's more about preserving history," Tate said. "Even if you rebuild it, it's not where it all started, it's something new and different."

She said she wants to see the city be more transparent on the status of the Yacht Club.

"I'm looking for clarity, I'm looking for fact, and I'm looking to see if they're following their own Historic Preservation guidelines," Tate said.

Several council members have not seen the inside of the building, including Bill Steinke, Tom Hayden, Jessica Cosden, and Robert Welsh.

Mayor John Gunter and Councilmembers Dan Sheppard, Patty Cummings, and Keith Long did not respond to questions regarding whether they had been in the building in the past seven months.

Steinke told the News-Press that no final decision on the Yacht Club has been made as the city has not approved a final bid on the demolition or a master plan.

He said the city is awaiting the final FEMA inspection report as they have to see if the cost of the repairs would break the 50% rule.

The 50% rule requires structures with substantial damage, or damage exceeding 50% of their market value, to meet the same requirements as new construction and current hurricane code, such as elevating the buildings.

"So that's a federal requirement that we don't have control over," Steinke said. "And so we got to make sure that all the t's are crossed and i's are dotted before a final determination is made so that we don't negatively impact our citizen's ability to get the credits that they're currently getting through the National Insurance Program."

Resident speak up

At a regular Cape Coral meeting, resident Bob Lauson expressed his concerns about the repair of the Yacht Club and its facilities.

"It appears that the hurricane and FEMA are being used as an excuse to clear the site for commercial development to make it more attractive for public-private partnership," Lauson said.

He questions why the city isn't doing more to preserve the historic nature of the Yacht Club buildings.

Lauson also brought up an old ordinance from the late '90s that established the location as a historical landmark for the city.

He ended his questioning by asking when can the public and press see the inside of the building.

The council did not address his comments at the meeting.

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The city's current status of the Yacht Club

The city reiterated its plans to move ahead with the demolition of the Yacht Club building during Wednesday's meeting.

As part of the process to recover the park, city staff is reviewing the design scope for shoreline improvements, the Landside Master Plan, which Kimley Horn will complete. Kimley Horn is a consulting firm that focuses on public and private developments.

The city estimates presenting the master plan scope and fee to the city council for approval before their hiatus on June 14.

City Manager Michael Ilczyszyn said if the plan is approved, the city will seek further input on how the Yacht Club's center will be arranged.

On whether residents or press will be allowed inside the Yacht Club Area, the city manager said the location is not "fit for public consumption and viewing."

He said once The Boathouse Restaurant is close to opening, staff will work on securing the areas with fencing.

Public Works is clearing the parking lot of debris and repairing the parking lot lights.

"We'll be removing any risk items that you know will have liability for us as the owner of the property so that people can use the Restaurant and then can see areas," Ilczyszyn said.

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Cape Coral residents question the extent of damage at the Yacht Club