Realtors identify Cape Coral’s southwest quadrant as the new hot spot. A three-square-mile L-shaped neighborhood west of Chiquita Boulevard, the area offers existing homes, many built within the last 15 years, and vacant lots, some located on the South Spreader Waterway with Gulf access. "It’s one of Southwest Florida’s safest neighborhoods," says Lenora Marshall, an agent with Century 21 Sunbelt. "There’s also a nice mix of families with children, young professionals, retirees and part-time residents," adds her associate Teri Kibbe. Statistics show the average southwest Cape home costs $405,000 for an off-water location and $820,000 for a waterfront home.

ESTERO
New development continues to flourish along or near the Estero River—mainly new-home neighborhoods and commercial development. The scenic river leads eventually to Estero Bay and portions of it remain undisturbed, offering a glimpse back in time. Estero has several gated communities, a major outlet mall (Miromar Outlets), an ice-hockey/entertainment venue (Germain Arena), the new International Design Center, two top-flight hotels (Embassy Suites and the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa) and Florida Gulf Coast University, the state’s newest university.

New shopping centers border the town’s north and south boundaries—Gulf Coast Town Center at Alico and Ben Hill Griffin roads, and Coconut Point at Coconut Road and U.S. 41. New condominium communities are following these two popular retail spots, including residences above the shops at Coconut Point.

Though Estero is still unincorporated, civic-minded and well-organized residents have created self-governed review boards that would make any full-fledged city envious. The boards set standards for Estero’s architectural appearance and its streetscape, among other things. They will help guide the final design plans for the upcoming Estero on the River project, a mixed-use development that will include homes and the 500-seat, $20 million Gulfshore Playhouse Theater.

Traces of Estero’s past are still visible along Sandy Lane and Broadway Avenue, where banyan trees create a canopy overhead, goats run in small fields next to older homes with screened front porches, and the sprawling champion Mysore fig tree stands sentry at the intersection of the two roads.

FORT MYERS RIVER DISTRICT
Downtown Fort Myers, now officially known as the River District to reflect the 40-block area’s relationship to the Caloosahatchee River, continues its meteoric development. Two new high-rise condominiums are now open, and an ongoing flurry of activity will bring a total of 3,800 new homes in the next few years. The impetus for the development was an unused waterfront and a vision by master planner Andrés Duany, the father of new urbanism who’s credited with reviving Fifth Avenue South in Naples and South Beach in Miami.

The design philosophy, says Don Paight, Fort Myers’ director of downtown redevelopment, "brings everything together. People can live, work, shop, play and do everything in one area. With rising gas prices it just makes sense to be able to walk to work or take a water taxi or shuttle. It makes for a better lifestyle. You don’t spend your life on the road driving."

The growing district offers retail stores, restaurants, offices and some residences on second floors. Paight says the surrounding new-home developments, which range from 32-story towers to mixed-use developments and low-rises with resort-style amenities, appeal to the target demographic of urban dwellers.

The River District’s nightlife comes alive on the weekends. Favorite haunts include the charming Brick Bar, which often features jazz and blues magicians, Fat Cat’s Drink Shack, the Cigar Bar and EnVie and Level nightclubs. Fine dining is available at Veranda, Harold’s on the Bay, The Morgan House and the new Patio 33 and H2, a tapas bar.

During the day, rub elbows with government employees and attorneys for lunch at Second Street Deli. To the east of the district is historic Dean Park, a neighborhood of 1920s Victorian and Colonial homes and Florida-cottage bungalows that have been lovingly restored by new owners. To the south are the Fort Myers Skatium and the City of Palms Park, the spring-training home of the 2004 Major League Baseball champion Boston Red Sox.


RIVERFRONT
The Caloosahatchee River divides Fort Myers and Cape Coral, reaching a mile wide at its fullest. Some of the earliest development in Fort Myers took place along the river, mainly on the city’s famous royal-palm-lined McGregor Boulevard and its cul-de-sac side streets. The winter homes of Thomas Edison and Henry Ford are found west of downtown, encircled by white picket fences and botanical gardens. The homes and Edison’s laboratory are open to guests and host a number of special events, including a holiday house and activities associated with the Edison Festival of Light, a three-week celebration of the city’s most famous resident.

The neighborhood offers diverse architecture, from older two-story brick estates and mid-1950s ranch homes to Spanish-style haciendas and Mediterranean revival homes mixed with the occasional contemporary or Old Florida (some nearly a century old). Most homes are on large lots and hidden behind decades-old landscaping and tidy hedges, and some include a sweep of river in the back yard.

The area is favored by families with children because of its neighborliness—families tend to know one another, and children walk to school. Many homes have been occupied by the same owners since the 1970s or earlier, and some have a storied past—once home to the first bank president or the first funeral home director in the area. And now the next generation is returning; adults who grew up in Fort Myers want their kids to grow up in the same neighborhood they did. Recent sales have ranged from $155,000 for a small condo to more than $5 million.

Edison Park, found directly across from the Edison homestead, was designed by the inventor’s good friend, the late Jim Newton, and offers 1970s-era homes priced in the high $200,000s, as well as a mix of newer and older residences priced to more than $1 million. The Fort Myers Country Club is within walking or biking distance of most homes.

SOUTH FORT MYERS
Fort Myers’ jagged city boundaries continue south until about Colonial Boulevard. Anything south of the city limits is known as south Fort Myers, an unincorporated area of Lee County that was home to nearly 50,000 people in 2000. It’s a large swath of land between Lehigh Acres, San Carlos Park and the Caloosahatchee that incorporates several distinct neighborhoods, including Cypress Lake, Iona-McGregor, Punta Rassa, Whiskey Creek and The Villas. Proximity to the beaches, the HealthPark Medical Center and a county park attract many residents to the area.

Iona-McGregor follows McGregor Boulevard en route to Fort Myers Beach, and because of its proximity to water, offers some homes along canals leading to the Caloosahatchee River and overlooking Cape Coral on the river’s west bank.

Located off McGregor are the sprawling Gulf Harbour Yacht & Country Club and the ungated Town and River Estates, offering older homes, some on canals. Commercial development includes restaurants, retail stores and the Tanger Outlet Center at the triangular intersection of McGregor and Summerlin. Punta Rassa is home to the Sanibel Harbour Resort & Spa and a number of condo buildings. Turn from Summerlin Road onto John Morris Road and you’ll eventually find Fort Myers’ only beach, the 731-acre Bunche Beach, where natural tidal wetlands offer a look at Florida’s more wild side.

Whiskey Creek, a 1,500-home subdivision dating from 1969, borders its namesake creek off McGregor Boulevard and is north of Iona-McGregor. Selling points include an executive golf course, a mix of condos, 55-and-older multifamily housing and single-family homes, and a great location—close to the Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall and a number of restaurants and shops.

The Villas, a 1,350-home neighborhood behind the upscale Bell Tower Shops, was platted in the 1950s and boasts mature landscaping, large lots and mostly older homes. The first planned residential neighborhood developed south of Fort Myers, The Villas has a community center, a two-and-a-half-acre park and a voluntary but active homeowners association.

Heading east, several new moderately priced developments have sprouted up in the last few years, including Paseo, a 1,200-unit Stock Development community with a lively town center; Renaissance, with nearly 400 coach and single-family homes on 500 acres; and Botanica Lakes, a development of single-family homes built by GL Homes, all near the I-75-Daniels Parkway interchange.

A number of subdivisions and gated communities are found on each side of the Tamiami Trail as it heads south to San Carlos Park. Nearby Lakes Regional Park on Gladiolus Drive is a 279-acre oasis in the middle of all this development, with more than half the park dedicated to freshwater lakes for fishing, canoeing and swimming. Two of the area’s newest high-rises at Riva Del Lago offer resort-style amenities.

Destinations in the eastern portion of south Fort Myers include the Southwest Florida International Airport, the Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve and Hammond Stadium, the spring-training home of the Minnesota Twins.

LEHIGH ACRES
Once a 20,000-acre tax shelter for a Chicago businessman-cum-Florida rancher, today’s Lehigh Acres is experiencing sizzling construction activity, with hundreds of new-home construction permits issued monthly, taxable property values that increased 88 percent during 2006 and a population of 42,400. Lee Ratner saw Lehigh’s potential in 1954 when he subdivided his Lucky Lee Ranch, making the east Lee County community the first post-World War II retirement community in Florida.

Today the 95-square-mile Lehigh has 152,000 lots (some on lakes and canals), a mix of new and old homes and is one of the more affordable real estate markets in Southwest Florida, sought out by young families and first-time homebuyers. The median age has dropped from 38 in 2000 to 36.5.

Proving Lehigh’s affordability: Condos and smaller houses can be found below $100,000. Some newer, larger homes are approaching the $1 million mark.

NORTH FORT MYERS
Development has slowly pushed its way out of downtown Fort Myers and into North Fort Myers, where new gated communities mingle with mini farms. Waterfront (canals, lakes and the Caloosahatchee River) is often found in the mix, where $1 million homes offer deep-water sailboat access. The area has a solid commercial base and a major tourist attraction—the Shell Factory and Nature Park with its Waltzing Waters. The river, Cape Coral and Charlotte County define the area’s 70 square miles.

PINE ISLAND
An island just 17 miles long by two to four miles wide, Pine Island offers several distinct personalities—from the arts and fishing town of Matlacha on Little Pine Island to the peace and quiet of Bokeelia on its northern tip and the more populated St. James City at its southern point. One thing you won’t find on Pine Island: beaches. There aren’t any, and residents are content for it to stay that way.

About two-thirds of Pine Island’s residents live in St. James City, accessed eight-and-a-half miles due south on Stringfellow and past Elks, Moose and fisherman’s clubs and co-ops. St. James City has a thriving commercial base with businesses that take advantage of its ties to the sea. There are several marinas and fishing charters and establishments like the Waterfront Restaurant and Marina, said to attract diners from 50 miles away with its burgers and grouper sandwiches, and the Double Nichol Pub, a tavern and sandwich shop, where the specialty is "the Father," a toasted sandwich with bologna, pepperoni, salami, cappicola, provolone, jalapeños, oil, lettuce, tomato and onion.

MATLACHA
Home of the "fishingest bridge in the world," Matlacha was originally inhabited by squatters, who built fishing camps along Pine Island Road. Today these small cottages are considered historic gems, and some are now used as art galleries and shops. Side streets display Matlacha’s fishing and shrimp fleet and a combination of older and newer homes, most on the canals that reach into Matlacha Pass. Residents like the area’s laid-back ambiance and its walk-to-anywhere location. There’s even a park, bait and tackle shops, a few restaurants and a bar. Pastel buildings and painted light poles reflect Matlacha’s artistic side.