Civic center faces a crossroads

Story by Chuck Ballaro

For Bobbi Harrison, a fifth-generation Floridian who’s lived in North Fort Myers since 1968, there are a lot of great memories associated with the Lee Civic Center, from concerts to high school graduations and, of course, the Lee County Fair

What the future holds for the next generations, though, is as yet undetermined as the Lee Board of County Commissioners voted in March to take over the facility, citing concerns over the safety of the buildings

While county-approved and countyfunded, repairs are in the works, the county has closed all the buildings at the more than 100-acre Bayshore Road facility. It will be surveyed for future discussion.

“I don’t want to see it go. It's been a staple here, and next year is the 100th fair and that kind of blows everything out of the water,” Harrison said “Are we having a fair and where is it going to be ”

But permanent closure, at least in its current configuration, could be a possibility.

The April 1-2 Florida Gun Show was the last event at the big old building, at least for a while and perhaps ever as the county, which owns the building, de- cides what to do next with the aging facility

The Southwest Florida and Lee County Fair Association has run the property over the past 25 years, pouring millions of dollars into its upkeep. But it’s been running the grounds on a yearby-year basis the past couple years and its latest deal expires in September

Mike Peak, president of the fair board, said they support anything the county will do to improve the facility

“We knew this was coming a year ago when they voted to fund the studies of the buildings that they would be making decisions,” Peak said. “I applaud them, whatever they want to do. That’s great for the community and the board feels that way ”

The Lee Civic Center opened in 1979 and hosted a myriad of events from rock concerts to pro wrestling to the circus

However, when the stands were condemned nearly a decade ago, it severely limited what the big building can do. It could only do floor shows like the gun show, home shows and events during the fair

Meanwhile, the rest of the grounds are aging as well, with Whaley Hall being severely damaged by Hurricane Ian last year. The county must now decide what to do next, either renovate or replace. It is expected to cost around $15 5 million to renovate the civic center building and $42 2 million to rebuild it

The renovation of the entire complex will be around $22 million, with replacement being more than $53 million

This is not the first time the civic center ’s future has been explored In 2021, when the fair association was up for an- other contract, it got competition from Kitson & Partners, which has been developing Babcock Ranch on the Charlotte side of the Charlotte-Lee County line

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