An Iowa-based developer plans to build luxury residential units on the last open lot in the second phase of the Shops at Hammock Cove on U.S. 41 East in East Naples.
Caliber Florida, a subsidiary of Caliber Iowa, plans a building with about 60 dwelling units on 4.34 acres of vacant commercial property at 4936 Tamiami Trail E., which is east of Thomasson Drive. This project would be the first for Caliber Florida, initiated this spring when Caliber Iowa bought the Hammock Cove property, which is part of the Sabal Bay master planned unit development. Caliber purchased the acreage for $2,205,000 in March, Collier County property records show. The parcel is next to Foxboro Sports Tavern and behind Culver’s fast-casual restaurant.
“We closed on the ground and are excited about being part of the development and working through the details about what that project might be,” said Nick Jensen, owner of Caliber Iowa, a real estate development company he started more than 10 years ago.
Preliminary plans filed with the county’s Growth Management Department show a proposed 66-unit building along the rear of the property with 92 parking spaces in front of it. The building will be in the 60-unit range and most likely three stories but specific details about it still have not been decided, Jensen said. Those details include whether the building will be apartments for rent or condominiums for sale and what demographic will be targeted by the multifamily project, he said, noting that Caliber Iowa is primarily a residential developer that has built and managed both apartments and condominiums.
The earliest the Naples project would start is 2023, but Jensen said a construction timeline has not been established yet. “I don’t know when we’ll start. We just have to get our scope figured out before we begin,” he said.
Jensen, who lives in Des Moines and has a second home in Naples, has been coming down to Naples for about 10 years and enjoys getting away from the Midwest to golf in the winter. He has watched the recent growth in Florida and is looking for additional development opportunities.
In April, Kolby Jones was brought on to launch Caliber Florida’s Naples-based operation as its broker and director in what is planned to be a long-term commitment to the Naples market. Jones has had an active real estate license for nearly 20 years and has been involved in transactions throughout many areas of the Sunshine State. In addition to development, Caliber offers both commercial and luxury residential brokerage services.
Caliber Naples development will be the third project under construction in the Sabal Bay PUD, not including Minto Communities’ expansion of the adjacent Isles of Collier Preserve luxury home community. Warren Henry Auto Group started construction this summer on Lamborghini of Naples on a 2-acre lot that fronts U.S. 41 between Culver’s and The Isles. Clearwater-based Park & Eleazer Construction estimates that the 18,000-square-foot luxury supercar dealership will be completed in April.
Under construction directly behind the high-performance Italian brand’s dealership and adjacent to the Caliber Naples project is a nearly 75,000-square-foot, 124-room Hampton by Hilton. The four-story hotel is targeted for completion by May 1.
