On Feb. 5, the Circuit Court Judge issued his Order and Final Declaratory Judgment declaring that the 2003 Settlement Agreement between Captiva Civic Association (CCA) and Lee County constitutes a valid and binding agreement.
The Judge declared that Paragraph 3 of the Settlement Agreement is clear and unambiguous. According to the Order:
“The total number of dwelling units on South Seas Resort is limited to 912. No building permits may be issued by County for dwelling units within South Seas Resort that will cause that number to be exceeded at any time.”
“Paragraph 3 of the 2003 Mediated Settlement Agreement shall be enforced and enforceable against, Defendant, Lee County, Florida, and no building permits may be issued by Lee County, Florida that will cause the number of dwelling units within the 304-acre property known as South Seas Resort to exceed 912 dwelling units at any time.”
The Judge also found that the 1973 Zoning Resolution and the 2002 Administrative Interpretation that have governed development on South Seas since its inception, and continues to govern South Seas today, include hotel room units as part of the 912-unit density limitation. This decision does not permit the County to increase development on South Seas beyond its historical density limit in effect for more than 50 years.
In enforcing the Settlement Agreement, the Court stated that:
“It is undisputed that the County and CCA voluntarily negotiated and executed the Settlement Agreement whereby the County expressly agreed not to issue building permits in excess of 912 units at any time. CCA reasonably relied on that promise and, in return, dismissed its lawsuit with prejudice. The County cannot accept the benefits of the Settlement Agreement – the dismissal of a lawsuit – and then later argue that the same agreement is unenforceable.”
This final decision by the Circuit Court is an important victory for the Captiva and Sanibel communities because it confirms the density limits put in place decades ago to protect Captiva from overdevelopment, and to protect our residents and guests who may need to evacuate the islands on our single, confined roadway in case of a hurricane or other natural disaster. The Circuit Court’s Order and Final Declaratory Judgment are attached here and here.