Page 12 - August 2015 Life In Naples Magazine

STATETOHFECITY
NAPLES PIER RENOVATION

MAYOR JOHN SOREY T he Naples Pier renovation has remaining much cooler to the touch and ipe is one of the densest hardwoods available. It
begun. The Pier was closed has the same fire rating as concrete and steel and is so dense it does not float.
on July 6th and is expected to
reopen by the end of October. The last A large part of the process will be getting a barge with 30 foot sections of the new deck
major renovation occurred in two phases: from Ft. Myers, where it is being constructed, to the Naples Pier. It is estimated that the
half in the mid-1990s and the remainder barge, being pushed by a tug boat, will take five hours to arrive at the Naples Pier and will
in 2001. Dave Lykins, Community have to make that trip twice. The old 30 foot sections of decking will be removed and the
Services Director for the City,has assured new 30 foot sections inserted in place by crane. It should be very interesting to watch from
the beach.
us that the
timing of these We are happy to have Manhattan Construction Inc. as the general contractor for both
renovations the Naples Pier and the restroom project. Along with many other building projects, they
will allow the have built over 12,000 bridges.
City to take
advantage As for the restroom facilities, Matt Kragh, of MHK Architecture & Planning,
of reduced volunteered his services to design the renovated facilities. He has designed the restrooms
activity during
the summer
months and
will not impact
tourist season.
Many people have asked me, “Will
the pier look the same?” Simply put, Yes!
The City is renovating the Pier – not
removing or replacing it. It will however
have a bit of a different feel as we decided
to use ipe (pronounced ee-pay) wood
(also known as Brazilian Walnut) which
should last more than 30 years. Using
this material is more difficult and more
expensive, but it has the advantage of

12 Life in Naples | August • September • October 2015