FORT MYERS, Fla. -- If you’ve been to Downtown Fort Myers, it’s hard not to appreciate the old architecture. One building has been on First Street in downtown since 1900.
“Here it is 119 years later and it’s not going to survive,” said Joanne Miller, Historian, Lee County Clerk of Court
The city of Fort Myers deeming it unsafe due to a termite infestation.
“There is one window where you can look inside and you can see the wood and it’s so far gone there’s nothing they can do to save it,” said Miller.
It’s been vacant for about a decade, Miller says in 2011 a man from New York purchased the building for $130,000.
“That was quite a deal, maybe he didn’t know it was full of termites or in the historic district, I don’t know,” said Miller.
Since walls can’t talk, one man who works in the building next door remembers when it was a restaurant.
“I use to order lunch, have a beer, a lot of activity going on there all the time,” said Jim Gott.
A developer now plans to replace this downtown landmark with a new building modeled after the 1927 Mediterranean design. It will be rented out as retail, restaurant, or office space.
“I just hate to see it happening now when we have tourist season coming and we are building the hotel, we want our tourists to come downtown and come to the businesses,” said Miller.
And although a piece of history will soon be replaced, "we don’t know what’s under it, I just love that, it could be bottles, it could be anything,” said Miller.
This building set to be demolished Tuesday, October 1st. First Street from Hendry to Broadway will be closed to through traffic from 10pm Tuesday until 6am Wednesday, October 2nd.
On First Street and Jackson Street the Heitman building is the oldest building in Downtown Fort Myers dating back to the late 1800s.
