Historic Preservation meeting: Opposition to 13th Street rebuild arises

BY LIZA STROUT - For more than two hours, members of the public and the Boca Grande Historic Preservation Board discussed a single topic: Expansion of the historic Johnson house on 13th Street.

Also at issue were future plans to build a second house on the lot. While neighbors objected and Lee County staff recommended that the petition be withdrawn so that neighbors could have more time to examine the plan, it was eventually passed, with three contingencies.

The first is approval from the Department of Environmental Protection. Second, a setback deficiency will have to be corrected. Finally, in order for the second home to be built, the property will have to be divided.

The vote was 4-1 to approve the plans, with board President Rebecca Paterson dissenting and Dana Robinette recusing herself from the discussion and abstaining from the vote, as she is selling the property to the petitioners, and the closing was dependent on the plans being approved.

The board also approved the rehabilitation of the entrance stairs at the Johann Fust Community Library, which is undergoing extensive renovations.