Building was booming through most of the year 2006 and prices were rising. By 2007, Estero, the sleepy little village of 4,600 households only 10 years before, had grown to a bustling community of more than 25,000 permanent residents.
The 65-acre Estero Community Park opened to the public near the end of 2006 with a 42,000-square-foot recreation center and an attached amphitheater stage for concerts and other public events. With its bocce courts the resident teams of Country Creek benefited from the proximity of the park only minutes away.
The roads around us, as well as the community, were growing. Plans were in the works for widening U.S. 41 from Corkscrew to San Carlos, widening I-75 from four to six lanes and improving the Corkscrew/I-75 interchange and extending Three Oaks Parkway south from Coconut Road to Bonita Beach Road.
During January 2007, several major stores opened for business nearby. Lowes’ store opened for business in the Estero Town Commons on the southeast corner of Three Oaks and Corkscrew Road. The five-story, 94-room Hampton Inn opened in the Corkscrew Commerce Center, located on the southwest corner of the intersection of I-75 and Corkscrew Road. The Coconut Point Town Center was completed holding their Grand Opening the second weekend of February 2007.
In spite of the commercial boom in 2006 and 2007, a trend that began in early 2006 became very apparent in the housing industry by the end of 2007. Housing units permits issued during the months of 2007 were by far the lowest in the eight years that Lee County had tracked Estero’s permits. This slowdown in construction of new homes would be in stark contrast to the building boom year of 2005 when 2,699 building permits were issued. In 2007, only 432 permits were issued in Estero. Although fewer homes were started in 2007, the average building value of these homes was higher than any other year and more than double that of 2000. The same was not true for existing homes, however. The building boom of 2005 created a large number of unsold homes, causing a decline in property values.
By January 2007 in the Villages at Country Creek, the clubhouse renovation was almost complete. The Creekside Restaurant reopened, and the official Clubhouse Open House took place at the end of January 2007. With the renovation behind them, the Master Board and other residents were ready to turn their attention to other projects.
The biggest project in 2007 was renovation of most of the tees and greens on the entire golf course. The course was closed May 1 and reopened October 1. Gordon Lewis, the original golf course architect, surveyed and mapped out the size, shape and contour of the new greens seeded with champion grass. He designed the greens larger and better, making our executive course one of the best in the area. Volunteers, Inc. helped to reduce the cost by building walls and curbs and repairing cracked golf cart paths.
Other resident volunteers made their contributions. CCTV (channel 98) had been down during the renovation and was missed. It returned as Channel 95. The website (villagesatcountrycreek.org) was now online and running as a wonderful source of the latest information about Country Creek. Jackie Yndestaf and Ray Pothier were newly elected to the Master Board. Ron Reichert was re-elected to the Board.
Another issue in 2007 was that of supply of reclaimed water that had been halted by Lee County in the fall of 2005. After many available options, it was determined that building a storage tank and new pumping station was the most economical and practical choice. The location would be across from the golf course maintenance area. Completion would not be until November 2008.
2007 had been the year of the two biggest renovations to Country Creek since its opening in 1987. The clubhouse was totally remodeled, and the golf course was entirely renovated. Both gave a whole new look to Country Creek. Many enjoyed and used the Clubhouse for their special celebrations. That year Bob and Arlene Hoffman celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary at a great party, and Karen and Bob Bal’s daughter, Sarah, celebrated her marriage to Mark Betzer with a reception that was “a dream come true.” VCC residents happily enjoyed the up-to-date facilities.
