Cape Harbour sets commercial, multi-family phase;
Meanwhile, single-family residential sales boom

The Breeze: New Directions - Community Progress 2001 Saturday, April 28, 2001

By KEVIN DUFFY

A planned community which, on the surface, appears similar to the proposed development at Tarpon Point, is on its way at Cape Harbour.

Will Stout, owner of Realmark Cape Harbour, unveiled his vision during FuturesCape, held at Palmetto-Pine Country Club in March, and maintained that his plan is different from the Tarpon Point proposal.

"The two projects are very different," he said. "Ours is a destination community, theirs is more self-contained."

Stout is planning on more of a public-access destination than what is being proposed at Tarpon Point, he said. "We're planning more retail, more restaurants," he said.

"We have worked hard to make this a meeting place," Stout said. "This will be an ambitious, mixed-use plan."

The community will be built on 40 acres of land beside the marina, and will include office space, high-end retail, a coffee shop, bakery, and at least two restaurants, Stout said. Also planned are a combination of "high- and low-rise" condominiums, as well as a hotel.

"We have 40 acres of naked sand, and 10 acres of water, the marina, in the middle," Stout said.

Stout has been working with Avalon Engineering and Johnson Engineering, as well as an international landscape architect and land-planner to make the idea a reality.

"We want to ensure that we have a concept that mixes public space and use, as well as maintaining the privacy of our residential community," Stout said.

When reviewing waterfront communities around the world, Stout noted that most people gravitate to the water's edge. "We'll be unveiling, in our public hearing process, a comprehensive, mixed-use plan where the public will find this an inviting destination to dine, shop, or walk the dog," Stout said.

When completed, Cape Harbour will be an attraction to all of the city, not just residents of the community, Stout said. "It will continue to enhance the whole city, not just Cape Harbour," he said. Phase One, the completion of the restaurants, is expected by the end of this year.

Stout had a pre-grand opening celebration with the Southwest Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra in March to promote the Designer Showcase of Homes, held from March 26 through April 8, as well as the enhancements to his community. Billed "The Great Gatsby Sunset Concert," it was well-attended, with luminaries such as State Senator Burt Sanders, R-Cape Coral Representative Jeff Kottkamp, R-Cape Coral, and County Commissioners Andy Coy and John Abion on hand.

At the ribbon cutting for Cape Harbour, also in March, Mayor Arnold Kempe, called the property "one of the great amenities" of the city.

"We need Cape Harbour, we need its tax base," he said.

Kempe also mentioned the need for a second Chiquita lock, pledging to do "all we can" to make it a reality.

"Overall, Stout and Realmark have brought to light a facet of Cape Coral that may have been overlooked," said Howard Baum, owner and president of Coastland Homes. "It is a deep-water, gated community that is in an upscale location."

"Not only Cape Harbour, but all of Cape Coral has been promoted as a great place to raise a family," said Baum.

Coastland Homes is in the process of placing a model, The Huntington, within Cape Harbour. It is a three-bedroom, three-bath home with more than 2,400 square feet of living area, incorporating a great room plan. "It has a very open design plan for views that are desirable at Cape Harbour," Baum said.

Baum said Coastland began building homes in the area during the interim perios after Avatar Properties sold the land to Realmark and before Stout began building Cape Harbour.

Another builder in the community, Aubuchon Homes, has constructed a model that commands a price tag of $1.4

million, said Gary Aubuchon, president of the company.

The "Harbour Cove" is a brand-new design that features two master suites, as well as 3.362 square feet of living space. "It brings a few new elements to the Cape Coral market," Aubuchon said.

"Given the age of our clients, a lot have elderly parents that move in with them, and the second master suite comes in handy for that reason," he added.

It is a breath-taking affair, which opens up to incorporate the lanai and pool area as part of the home, rather than an add-on at the back. The pool incorporates the popular "infinite edge" concept, and also includes a Jacuzzi hewn from a miniature rock waterfall, and a wet-bar that one can literally swim to.

"The swim-up is covered by a tiki hut, you can swim up or walk down to it from the side," Aubuchon said.

High ceilings, cornices and pillars are all liberally employed. There is also a hurricane-safe room.

"We have created ceiling details that almost cross the line between home construction and art," said Aubuchon, whose company also is constructing the house that Stout will call home himself. The price tag? Five million bucks.

"What he's brought to Cape Coral is the product we have been looking for," said Realtor and City Councilmember Gloria Tate of Stout, adding that she was pleased with the dramatic effect that his presence in the community has had on her business.

"We had turned many people away because we don't have a gated community," she said. "It was something that we really lacked."

"He is shaping the future as far as where the higher-end product will be," Tate said. "Certainly he has shaped infrastructure needs to come."

He is one of the driving forces behind utilities in the southwest," she continued. "Those who can't afford to live in Cape Harbour certainly want to live in the area around it."

"The most important ingredient he has brought is a fresh set of eyes," said Aubuchon. "We have been seasoned into believing that Cape Coral had a low ceiling. We believed Cape Coral had a certain limitation to it's price point, and it took the city 30 years to realize it's first million dollar resale."

All of this changed in early 2000 when Stout arrived from Georgia.

"Will Stout came into town and saw that Cape Coral, as a community, was being under marketed," Aubuchon said. "What he did in purchasing Cape Harbour and restructuring, he changed the prices in Cape Coral forever. And we see that imprint already.

Aubuchon pointed out that Avatar Properties Inc., the previous owner of the property, was selling houses on lots for less than what Stout is currently selling the land for.

"Essentially, they were giving away the homes or land for free, depending on how you look at it," he said.

"When we first opened our model (on Cape Coral Parkway), Cape buyers were walking in saying '$1.4 million, that's a lot of money for this house'," Aubuchon said.

Following an editorial by Stout that ran in the Naples Daily News, homebuyers from there who visited the model elicited an entirely different reaction.

"Naples buyers, at the same time, were saying,'Wow, $1.4 million, what a steal'," he said, laughing. "The same whistle, different comments."

"One of the things that Will got us all to do was realize that it isn't just residential that is undervalued, our whole city is undervalued by an erroneous set of beliefs," Aubuchon said.

As a growing city, Stout is excited over where his community fits in. "For every one house, we have the infrastructure in place for six more," he said. "Within 10 years, the city will look brand new. We want to be part of that growth."