Gargiulo buys Collier land for $63.3 million

Gargiulo Inc., a food importer and wholesaler, has purchased more than 6,200 acres in Collier County for $63.3 million for agricultural purposes, according to county property records.

The 6,205-acre purchase represents the largest single land transaction in Southwest Florida in a decade, both from an acreage and monetary perspective. The company spent another $246,000, also in mid-June, to buy further land, records indicate.

Gargiulo acquired the land from Collier Land Holdings Ltd. and CDC Land Investments LLC, records show, which are affiliates of Collier Enterprises, a Naples firm that traces its roots back to advertising magnate Barron Gift Collier.

Neither Gargiulo nor Collier Enterprises officials returned telephone calls for comment on the transaction.

As part of its purchase, Gargiulo obtained a $43.8 million mortgage from PGIM Real Estate Finance LLC, an affiliate of Prudential Insurance Co. of America, according to county records.

Gargiulo’s purchase is the largest in a series of outsized land transactions in Lee and Collier counties in the past three years.

In 2016, an entity led by billionaire Jeff Greene bought a 2,576-acre tract in Collier County for $38.5 million, which he says he intends to use for mining and agriculture.

The following December, Lee County bought a massive 4,400-acre tract known as Edison Farms for $42.4 million, for conservation and water purification.

“Gargiulo has one of the largest operating farms in the area,” says Doug Meschko, director of market research at Fort Myers-based commercial real estate brokerage LSI Cos. “And this sale is in line with other, similar trades involving agricultural land.”