Naples City Council approved a controversial Fifth Avenue South redevelopment project last fall, more than a decade after a previous council rejected a near-identical concept based on an analysis that the plans violated the city charter.
By voting against a developer’s request in 2003 to construct a three-story hotel above a level of underground parking, the council followed the opinion of its lawyer, Bob Pritt, who said the project likely violated charter limits on building design.
Last November, Phil McCabe — the same developer whose 2003 project was rejected — came to the council with his plans for a three-story building with underground parking on the 400 block of Fifth Avenue South.
This time, Pritt’s 2003 legal analysis wasn’t included in any public discussions about the project, nor is there any record that he was asked to give a new opinion.