Fort Myers Beach has unveiled final design renderings for a new, longer pier to replace the one destroyed by Hurricane Ian. Officials say the rebuild will be finished by August 2027 – a full year ahead of schedule.
By Richard Luthmann
Ian’s Wrath Shatters an Icon
For as long as anyone can remember – over seven decades – the Fort Myers Beach fishing pier was a beloved centerpiece of the island. It anchored the lively Times Square district at the island’s north end, serving as the social hub for beachgoers. Generations of locals and tourists strolled its planks at sunset, casting lines into the Gulf.
In its heyday, the pier bustled daily with sightseers and anglers amid the street performers and café tables of Times Square, all enjoying the postcard-perfect sunsets. The pier even withstood past hurricanes like 2004’s Hurricane Charley.
But on September 28, 2022, Hurricane Ian’s Category-4 fury hit Fort Myers Beach head-on, unleashing destruction across the island. Ian obliterated the pier, ripping the concrete-and-wood structure down to a mere skeleton of pilings in the surf.
A Coast Guard officer surveying the aftermath remarked that virtually “no landmarks [were] left” on Fort Myers Beach – and the iconic pier was among the most painful losses.
For years, the pier and its adjacent Times Square plaza formed the heart of the island. Its loss left a void in the community. Nearly three years later, the site remains empty.
“I miss the pier… going out on the water and getting the sunset from a different view,” said vacationer Tony Sterner, gazing at the quiet Gulf where the pier once beckoned.
Even now, people still gather at the pier’s footprint each evening to catch the sunset and reminisce, eager for the day their pier rises again.
Pier Pressure With Pictures: Rallying for a Rebuild
In the aftermath of Ian, residents quickly turned their grief into a rallying cry to rebuild the pier. Reconstructing this centerpiece initially looked like a long haul – early on, officials predicted the new pier might not open until summer 2028 – nearly six years after the storm.
That prospect didn’t sit well at all with Fort Myers Beach residents. Frustration mounted as the process became mired in funding battles and government red tape. FEMA took months to approve funding, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ permit process alone can take 16 months.
A group of neighbors formed the Fort Myers Beach Pier Committee to advocate for a faster and stronger rebuild. Committee members Allen and Cynthia Shanosky spent a full year visiting more than two dozen coastal towns to learn how other communities rebuilt their piers, and they surveyed over 10,000 people to gather public input and show broad support.
Under mounting public pressure, county leaders took action. By February 2025 – nearly 900 days since Ian – the Lee County Board of Commissioners announced the pier could be completed by August 2027, shaving a whole year off the original schedule.
Commissioner David Mulicka praised county staff for accelerating the project’s design and permitting to move up the timeline. Residents applauded the accelerated timeline, relieved to see progress finally gaining momentum.
“We have always stated that 2027 was the goal, and we feel we can even shorten it more,” said Allen Shanosky, who lobbied officials relentlessly for a quicker timeline.
Pier Pressure With Pictures: Bigger, Better Design Finalized
County commissioners debated multiple design proposals for the new pier. In June 2024, they voted for a dramatically larger rebuild, opting for the largest of three designs (“Option 3”) to maximize capacity.
The plan calls for a pier stretching 1,000 feet into the Gulf and 12 feet across, roughly 71% longer and 50% wider than the old structure lost to Ian. These newly unveiled renderings represent 100% design completion, meaning the layout and overall design are now finalized.
The new pier will be built on the same footprint as the old one, located at the foot of Lynn Hall Beach Park. It will be built with reinforced concrete pilings and modern composite materials, making it sturdier and more resilient than its predecessor.
Plans show amenities such as elevated decks, shade structures, improved lighting, and fish-cleaning stations for anglers – features that will make the pier both a scenic promenade and a functional fishing spot. The new pier will also feature a T-shaped end, accompanied by a large, shaded pavilion and benches, echoing the design of the previous pier.
Rebuilding such an expansive pier comes with a hefty price tag. Lee County has approved over $17 million for the project, with about $11 million coming from tourism development (bed tax) reserves and the remainder funded by FEMA’s disaster relief grants.
Officials note that the investment will restore a signature attraction critical to the beach town’s recovery and economy.
Pier Pressure With Pictures: One Major Hurdle – Permits
Even with a design in hand and funding secured, one major hurdle remains before construction can begin: obtaining federal permits. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must approve the project, and obtaining federal environmental permits can take approximately 16 months. That lengthy approval is the project’s biggest obstacle to breaking ground.
Local zoning approvals are also underway. Town officials also recommended that no construction take place during sea turtle nesting season (May–October), which would halt work each summer and could delay the timeline by several months.
Despite these challenges, officials remain optimistic that the timeline will hold. The pier project is on track to transition from design to dirt by late 2026, with crews expected to start driving pilings in the final quarter of 2026. Once the ground is broken, building the 1,000-foot structure is estimated to take about one year, weather permitting.
If all goes as planned, the grand reopening is expected to arrive by August 2027 – a full year ahead of the initial summer 2028 plan. Local businesses are already counting down the days, hoping the pier’s return will bring back crowds to the Times Square shops and restaurants that have struggled since the storm.
In just two years’ time, Fort Myers Beach expects its horizon to be transformed again. A 1,000-foot symbol of resilience will once again rise from the wreckage to welcome sunsets and strolls for generations to come.
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