Downtown mixed-use site sold for $7M

FORT MYERS — An investment entity connected to Tampa financial services and commercial real estate executive Joe Bonora has acquired a 7.8-acre tract in downtown Fort Myers for $7 million.

Bonora, through City Walk Fort Myers LLC, bought the site from Madison Ave Investment Group LLC, according to a statement. Bonora is the co-founder and managing director of Tampa-based Aileron Capital Management.

Madison Ave Investment Group, led by Fort Myers investor Ayal Keren, bought the property in 2015 for $3.5 million, property records show.

Formerly known as First Street Village, the vacant site, on McGregor Boulevard, is entitled for a mix of residential and commercial uses, according to the statement. Under approvals established in 2006, the site is cleared for a mixed-use, multi-story development.

“This project will have a great impact on downtown and will shift the center of the River District westward,” Fort Myers Mayor Randy Henderson says in the release. “It will also help create much-needed new downtown living options, enhance Fort Myers' highly desirable, urban and walkable lifestyle and bring fresh commercial services to cater to the neighborhoods along the McGregor corridor and the almost 250,000 visitors that pass through the Edison & Ford Winter Estates each year.”

Fischler Property Co, a commercial real estate firm focused on investment, infill and redevelopment across Southwest Florida, arranged the transaction with both the buyer and seller. The firm also arranged the previous sale of the site.

“What a tremendous investment this is in the City of Fort Myers,” Fischler Property Co. principal Phil Fischler says in the statement. “We are inspired to see yet another big step forward in the burgeoning renaissance of downtown. This project will be a major addition to the River District and will serve as a catalyst for the restoration of a long-underutilized section of town.”