Newspress.com
Cape Coral Yacht Club repairs almost completed
Joe and Suzi Hosfeld have watched the renovation
at the fishing pier on the Cape Coral Yacht Club for the last couple of months.
“It seems like they jump from one spot to another,” said Suzi Hosfeld, 46,
of south Fort Myers, as she and her husband, Joe, were laying out on the
club’s beach Monday while waiting for their 15-year-old son to finish his day
camp.
That work is to replace the pier, which had been in place for nearly 20 years
with only spot repairs done here and there. The pier is expected to be opened by
late September.
At the same time, not far from the pier, workers are restoring the seawall cap
and sidewalk. That project is expected to be completed by the end of next month.
“These are structural repairs,” said Barbara Dickinson, the yacht club
manager, of the fishing pier. “The fishing pier is very popular. It’s open
24 hours a day, seven days a week for fishing, and its part of our monthly
Sunset Celebration.”
Jay Saxena, services division director for the city’s public works department,
said the work on the pier and seawall has been going well.
“The design engineers are on board,” he said. “They seem to be following
the design the way it was intended to be. The contractor is on top of all the
issues.”
When the pier reopens, it will have a slightly different look, but still be the
same, familiar 600-foot stretch into the Caloosahatchee River that yacht
club-goers have grown to love over the years.
“It’s really pretty, it’s just nice out there,” Suzi Hosfeld said of the
pier. “I can’t wait for it to open again.”
A smaller project took about a week, but parents are happy about it. A canopy
was installed over the yacht club’s playground, offering shade from the
sizzling summer sun.
“It’s always good to improve the beaches and recreation areas,” said Sindy
Hankins, 25, fo Cape Coral, who brought her 1-year-old daughter, Mia, to the
playground Monday. “It usually gets really hot here during the summer. It’s
much better for the kids now. That’s one of my biggest concerns as a mom.”
And the yacht club’s pool was closed for a couple of weeks in the spring for
resurfacing and deck repair.
The Sunset Celebrations, held on the first Wednesday of the month with various
vendors and entertainment, are still taking place, even without the pier.
Dickinson said it helps that not as many people visit the yacht club during the
summer months. Vendors still set up shop in the park and on the beach pavilion.
But she and fans of the pier hope the October Sunset Celebration will be back on
the pier.
When it reopens, the pier will feature new railings and lighting, and a reroofed
shelter at the end of the pier.
Even without the pier, the Hosfelds enjoy the yacht club. It gives their son,
Carl, something fun to do. And it gives them a beach on which to sun themselves
while he is at camp. They began this routine last summer.
“When you live in Fort Myers, you don’t see this,” said Suzi Hosfeld,
referring to the yacht club’s beach. “I’m really impressed. It’s clean,
it’s nice. It’s a nice atmosphere. The people here are wonderful. It’s a
lot different from Fort Myers Beach.”