Downtown Fort Myers businesses disturbed by hotel road closures

Road closures, limited parking and ongoing construction have all been the recipe for a headache in downtown Fort Myers. The city said Bay Street between Dean Street and Hendry Street would close for 90 days, but it has been 6 months. The delays are all related to the Luminary Hotel construction in Fort Myers.

Business owners said they are starting to feel the negative effects of the road closures downtown and want to know when things will move forward.

“Ninety days was fine,” said Terry Hall, owner of Salon Nicholas. “Now, we’re at 180 days, and no one can really give us a clear answer of where they’re going, when it’s going to re-open.”

Concerns are especially at a height, since it’s now some of the most important months of the year for business owners.

“I mean we’re getting ready to be in the middle of high season,” Hall said. “It’s really hard to get people in and out of our salon when there’s no road there to let people in.”

The city told WINK News closures on Bay, Hendry and Edwards Drive should reopen next week.

“We’ve called to get updates,” Hall said. “No one can seem to return our phone calls or give us a better update when the roads going to be open.”

Nearby restaurants said they are also losing business because of the road closures, and drivers said the construction site causes confusion on the road and takes away many parking spots.

This comes after another controversy over a family deed to the land the hotel is built on. A judge cleared that deed last month. The project is expected to compete in 2020.

The new hotel will have a parking garage.The city said crews are pouring concrete for the third floor of the hotel. On the streets, crews will install underground utilities and repave before opening the roads back up next week.

“They’re not moving fast enough,” Hall said. “You can’t move downtown with all the streets being closed you know? It’s just getting nerve-wracking.”