Developer pays $7 million for Fort Myers Beach hotel

The Carousel Beach Inn on South Fort Myers Beach has sold to a Chicago developer who will use the property to complete a luxury residential development already under construction.

According to Lee County property records, the hotel sold for $7 million to Carousel Beach Redevelopment, a subsidiary of the Dublin Real Estate Investment Group.

The developer calls the 27-room Carousel the “final piece” needed to complete the project.

When complete, Gulfside Twelve, the development, will be made up of 12 individual units. Each one will be at least 4,000 square feet with four bedrooms, large lanais and a flex room. The amenities include resort-style pool, poolside cabanas, a grilling area and 180 feet of beachfront.

Three of the units “have already been accounted for” and prices on the remaining eight start at $3.9 million.

The Carousel Inn’s website remains live, though the reservation system does not allow bookings.

Interestingly, the site has a note on its landing page letting potential guests know it is “excited to welcome a brand new luxury condominium building to our neighborhood” and warning there may be “periods of time when there is construction noise.”

“Our team here is looped in with each phase of the project and we will do our best to minimize noise in the morning or any debris that may be a disturbance to the guest experience,” the undated note says.

Fort Myers Beach was devastated by Hurricane Ian leaving many homes, businesses and hotels destroyed. As the area begins the long, painful and expensive process of rebuilding, there is some concern that investors will swoop in to buy distressed properties permanently changing the character of the beach community.

A spokesperson for Dublin did not respond to an after-hours email asking about when Dublin began negotiations with the owners of the Carousel Inn.

According the county’s property records, the first year a building on the Carousel Beach Inn property appeared on the tax rolls was 1964.