Coastland Center mall in Naples, which fell into disrepair during five major hurricanes over seven years, was given a break after its new manager and landscaper brought the 36.2-acre property into compliance with its 2016 landscape plan. 

The city Code Enforcement Board voted 5-2 to reduce the $50,000 fine to $40,000 and to give local Mall Manager Rick Jackson 30 days to pay or face the full fine for violations initially investigated in spring 2023. The $250 fines for failing to maintain the property — the city’s largest — had accrued daily from May 8, 2024, to Nov. 24, 2024, when it was brought into compliance. 

“The reason for the mitigation is twofold,” board member Maria Mair said of her motion for a reduction. “One is the new manager was a new manager and has tried to comply and the other part of it was … taking into account the storms.” 

She referred to seven major hurricanes since the 2016 landscape plan was put into place, which Jackson said was impossible to comply with in 90 days after he took over in March 2024. The mall is managed by Chicago-based Brookfield Properties Retail Group, which employs Jackson. 

Once Collier County’s top shopping draw, the 950,000-square-foot mall off Golden Gate Parkway, which spans Ninth Street North and Goodlette-Frank Road, fell into disrepair, with trash and debris strewn about, weeds, overgrown and dead vegetation and crumbling asphalt.  

“It took a long time to degrade,” city Compliance Manager Bill Quinsey told the board. “We couldn’t even get the grass mowed.” 

During spring and summer 2023, the Code Compliance office communicated with local management, which tried to resolve the issues, but the city had to reach out to the corporate parent. 

“The local staff here has been great,” Quinsey said. “They were doing their best and over the course of that summer of ’23, the mall operations manager was out there mowing the grass himself at times.” 

Violations involving grass and shrubs were corrected immediately, so the mall wasn’t fined for that. City officials couldn’t get corporate management to agree to a plan, so it cited the mall in November 2023 and a Code Enforcement Board hearing was held in January 2024, when it was ordered to clean up areas around the three entrances. 

The board assessed $250 daily in fines, which began accruing after a Feb. 7, 2024, order demanded that three violations be fixed, one within 45 days and the others within 90 days. 

Mall management was ordered to cut grass and weeds that exceeded eight inches, trim bushes and vegetation that encroached onto sidewalks and remove dead plants. Landscapers added mulch and cleaned some areas within 45 days, but violations remained. 

In October, the board heard an update and agreed to impose fines if it wasn’t brought up to compliance by Nov. 24, 2024, the date the new landscaper promised it would be complete. 

Jackson said the mall’s funds were limited because their lender controlled the budget. A $114.5 million mortgage for the 1998 purchase by Coastland Center Joint Venture was due in early 2023, he said, and Brookfield negotiated an extension due to skyrocketing interest rates. 

The mall went through three landscapers and hired the lowest bidder but found that the price didn’t cover the full scope. However, it was locked into their budget, so they hired a new landscaper. 

After starting work, Jackson said, they were hit by hurricanes Helene and Milton, which set them back again.  

Code Enforcement Board Attorney Robert Eschenfelder reminded the board they’d set the fine and added: “It’s grown to what it is and they’re asking you for whatever mercy you choose to do.” 

The mall’s attorney, Cynthia Shivamber, said the mall spent more than $137,000 on landscaping improvements and wasn’t able to fully comply because most had to be completed outside the April-May planting season. 

Jackson also sought leniency, explaining the 90-day timeline was “really impossible” and they found multiple issues outside the landscaping plan, so costs escalated further. They finally got into compliance, he said, and now have a landscaper on–site daily. 

Chair John Krol pointed out another nearby shopping center was cited and immediately remedied the issue. “We want to have a level of enforcement and bite and being the largest landowner, it’s a reflection on our city,” Krol added, noting reducing a fine isn’t fair to others who complied. 

They need a good reason for a reduction, he said, noting the city spent thousands in administrative costs and others, which were estimated at about $17,000. City Attorney Matt McConnell said they don’t charge for administrative costs but soon will change that policy. 

Board member Steven Greenwald contended high fines should be assessed for safety issues and lower fines should be for aesthetics, so the fine should be $10,000, $50 a day. Board member Mike Faucett agreed, but recommended $20,000, which includes the city’s outside attorney fees. 

Quinsey, who noted other cities offer a blanket reduction, suggested putting a timeline on payment for the reduced fine as an inducement and if it’s not paid by then, it would revert to $50,000. He added: “We have liens that sit out there for a long time.”