Thank You for Your Vote and Support

Approximately 9 months ago, I began my campaign for the Bonita Springs City Council. Your support and votes have earned me the opportunity to represent you for the next four years. . . Thank You!

There are so many individuals who collected petitions to put my name on the ballot, financially contributed to the campaign, hosted Meet and Greets, made calls to voters, reached out to friends and neighbors to ask for their votes, and offered words of encouragement over the past 9 months. . . Thank You!

So now the work begins.  I remain committed to preserving and improving our overall quality of life in our district and in our city. My priority is focused on how we manage our growth in the future and its impact on traffic, the flow of stormwater, mitigation of the risk of flooding, and the preservation of our natural habitat and wildlife. I am committed to being fiscally responsible with our tax dollars and will always encourage your comments, thoughts, and suggestions.

Thank you for allowing me to be your District 6 City Council Member.

Sincerely,

Jim Fitzpatrick

November 5th is the Last Day to Cast Your Vote. . . Still Undecided?

Election Day, Tuesday November 5th, is the last to make your voice heard. Many of you have made your decision and thank you to those who have or will be voting for me.

Why I am running. . . 

• I have the time, energy, and love for our community, and want to make a difference for our future.
• I will own future growth decisions and not pass the buck. We, as residents, need to be proactive with both the City of Bonita Springs and Lee County early in the planning and decision making process.  
• My decisions will be made based on the impacts on our current and future quality of life. . . traffic, stormwater management, flooding risk, and protecting our natural habitat and wildlife.
• I will be an active member of City Council with proactive outreach to you the residents throughout my term, not just during the campaign season.
• I am committed to preserving and improving the overall quality of life in our District and in the City of Bonita Springs.

For detailed Q&A videos from the League of Women Voters and the Downtown Alliance, please see my post from October 1st titled, Making an Informed Decision - Candidate Forum Videos: https://www.fitz4district6.com/news/#making-an-informed-decision-candidate-forum-videos .

Early Voting Starts Monday October 21st. . . Bonita Springs Election Office

Early Voting starts next Monday October 21st through Saturday November 2nd with hours 10 AM to 6 PM daily.

If you are voting early, you can vote at:

Bonita Springs Election Office

Bonita Commons

25987 S. Tamiami Trail #105

Bonita Springs, FL 34134

DURING EARLY VOTING, you may drop off your Vote-By-Mail ballot at an authorized, secure ballot intake station located at each early voting location.

If you have any questions about my background & experience or my campaign, please feel free to call or text me at (239) 301-8167.

Endorsed by the Bonita Springs-Estero Realtors for Supporting Homeownership

My support of homeownership earned me the endorsement by the Bonita Springs-Estero Realtors. I want to thank the Bonita Springs-Estero Realtors for their endorsement. The endorsement process included a 30 minute interview, by a team of local realtors, addressing many of the issues important to our district. . . how we manage future growth. . . traffic congestion. . . storm water. . . and the current and future housing needs of our community. If you are looking for or selling a home, I urge you to use a local realtor, they know our market!

Making an Informed Decision - Candidate Forum Videos

Making an informed decision. . . I am attaching the videos from the Bonita Springs Downtown Alliance and the Lee County League of Women Voters Candidate Forums. I have included both the Mayoral and City Council portions of each event. If you have any questions regarding my responses, or would like further information, please do not hesitate to call or email me.

League of Women Voters forums…

 

Thank You Bonita Springs Downtown Alliance

With 41 days left before November 5^th, the Bonita Springs Downtown Business Alliance hosted a candidates’ forum for both City Council and Mayoral candidates in this fall’s municipal elections.

The forum focused on our downtown's growth, public safety, city parks, and traffic congestion, in addition to touching on housing and our future land uses in the city. Upon availability, I will post the link to the video of the event.

Our Downtown is a key part of Bonita Springs quality of life and I’m an advocate for its continued community-oriented growth and a supporter of finding ways to finance and start the construction of BERT, Bonita Estero Rails to Trails.

Within the scope and available time for the event, we did not get the opportunity to fully discuss topics impacting District 6. The following are several of my priorities which have been discussed, and sometimes debated, with my friends, neighbors, and residents of District 6:

• Address the traffic flow along E. Terry Street, Bonita Grande, and particularly along Bonita Beach Rd around the new Midtown Bonita commercial center.
• Evaluate the consolidated flooding risks and storm waterflow of the developments under construction along Bonita Beach Rd, Bonita Grande, and E Terry St. Note – There are approximately 1,100 new residential units and the Midtown Bonita commercial center currently under construction.
• Protection of our City and County designated DRGR (Density Reduction Groundwater Resource) land.
• Work to source the required funding for the purchase and construction of BERT.
• Ensure the stormwater management remains the top strategic priority of the city moving forward.
• Renovation and expansion of the Bonita Springs City Parks. Our District’s Bonita Nature Place needs to be updated, and an additional city park needs to be created within our district.

Please feel free to call or email me with your thoughts and questions.

As always, I ask for your consideration, your support, and most importantly your vote.

Videos from Lee County League of Women Voters Candidate Forum - September 14th

I'll be at the Bonita Springs Downtown Alliance Candidate Forum

If you did not have an opportunity to attend this past Saturday's Lee County League of Women Voters Candidate Forum, the Bonita Springs Downtown Alliance is hosting its "Get to Know Your City of Bonita Springs Candidates" event next Monday September 23rd from 5 to 7 PM at the Bonita Springs Lions Club.

Be sure to bring your neighbors and friends.

I'll be at the Lee County League of Women Voters Candidate Forum - Saturday September 14th

Join me this Saturday, September 14th from 10 AM to Noon for the Lee County League of Women Voters Bonita Springs Candidates Forum. The forum will be held at the Bonita Springs Public Library. City Council candidates, including our District (District 6) and the Mayoral Candidates have been invited. This should be an informative event, I look forward to seeing you there.

Vote-by-mail ballot requests must be received by 5:00 p.m. on the Thursday 12 days prior to the election. (Florida Statute 101.62)

Quick Reminder - If you are planning to Vote-by-Mail in the Florida General Election on Tuesday November 5th, you need to request your ballot at least 12 days prior to the election (5:00 PM Thursday October 24th, 2024).

Also, VOTE-BY-MAIL BALLOTS WILL NOT BE FORWARDED BY THE UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE. Effective April 17, 2024, per Florida Statute, requests for a mail ballot to be mailed to an address not already on your Voter Registration record must be in writing and be signed by the voter using the DS-DE 160 Statewide Vote-by-Mail Request form. (UOCAVA citizens are exempt from this requirement.).

For further information about voting by mail go to https://www.lee.vote/Vote-by-Mail/Vote-by-Mail-Information/Request-a-Vote-by-Mail-Ballot .

This information was taken from Lee County Elections' website on 08/19/2024.

Bonita Springs City Council Declines Seagate Proposed Comprehensive Plan Amendments

August 7th - The Bonita Springs City Council, following a presentation from the developer, Seagate, comments from the community, and Q&A, declined to approve (Vote was 6 to 1.) Seagate's proposed Future Land Usage amendments to the City's Comprehensive Plan and related maps. The proposed Future Land Usage amendments were needed to continue the process to allow construction of a residential community of 299 residential homes across from Palmira.

During public comments I argued against the proposed amendments for the following reasons:

• On May 16th the Local Planning Agency, who is responsible for reviewing and recommending any changes to our City's Comprehensive Plan, after developer presentations, comments from City's Planning Department, and public comments made the recommendation to NOT RECOMMEND the proposed Future Land Usage amendments and map changes
• 107 acres of the proposed 204+ acre development were on designated Wetlands
• the proposed development is within the designated Florida Panther Natural Habitat
• Lastly, there are approximately 1,100 new residential units and a major new commercial development (MIDTOWN Bonita) under construction in our District and the combined impacts of these developments on traffic congestion, stormwater flow, flood water mitigation, and the remaining natural habitat is unknown.

The City of Bonita Springs needs to fully understand the impacts of the projects underway before considering changes to our Comprehensive Plan.

You can find an article in Gulfshore Business published summarizing the meeting.

Seagate Revana, LLC to recommend amendments to City's Comprehensive Plan and Maps

Seagate Revana, LLC's proposed amendments to the Bonita Springs Comprehensive Plan will be addressed at the August 7th's Bonita Springs City Council Meeting at 5:30 PM. The proposed amendments are required to support the construction of a residential development of approximately 300 units across from Palmira on Bonita Beach Road. The amendments to be presented at the City Council meeting were originally presented at the May 16th meeting of the Local Planning Agency which unanimously declined to recommend the changes to City Council.

I encourage city residents to attend the meeting and make your opinions known.

Relevant information regarding the development follows. 

Please contact me with any questions regarding the meeting or this issue.