The new owners of South Seas (Timbers Resorts, The Ronto Group and Wheelock Street Capital) have filed a totally meritless lawsuit against CCA and have served extensive and wasteful public record requests upon the Panel and Sanibel. These legal actions are unproductive and seem only intended to increase the legal costs for the Captiva and Sanibel communities opposing overdevelopment on our fragile barrier islands. They also distract from the important cases that are currently under appeal.
South Seas is claiming in a new lawsuit that CCA misled the public in a prior “Legal Update” when it stated that the recent Circuit Court decision limiting South Seas to 912 dwelling units includes hotel rooms in the calculation of 912-unit cap. South Seas is demanding that CCA retract such statements and refund any donations that it received based on those statements. The lawsuit and its demands have no merit.
The recent Circuit Court decision held that the 2003 Settlement Agreement is “a valid and binding agreement” between the CCA and Lee County. It also held that Paragraph 3 of the Agreement is “clear and unambiguous.” Paragraph 3 provides:
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 of be exceeded at any time.
South Seas is claiming that the 912 limitation on dwelling units in the Agreement does not include both residential and hotel units – and that hotel units don’t count.
Nothing could be further from the truth. The evidence is overwhelming that the 912-unit density cap referenced in the 2003 Settlement Agreement and enforced by the Circuit Court includes hotel rooms.
The Circuit Court Order granting CCA’s Motion for Summary Judgment found that both the 1973 Zoning Resolution and the 2002 Administrative Interpretation (upon both of which the 2003 Settlement Agreement was based) included hotel units in the 912-unit cap. The ALJ in the DOAH proceeding made the same finding of fact. And the County’s Zoning Manager and Planning Manager both testified under oath that the 912-unit cap included hotel units – as did (believe it or not) the chief planner for South Seas. South Seas’ claim in this lawsuit has no basis in fact or law.
Attorneys for CCA will seek fees and costs from South Seas when this case is reviewed and dismissed by the court. It is also worth noting that South Seas is appealing the ruling in this case. Why bother if the 912-unit cap does not include its 435 proposed hotel rooms? It obviously does.