MELISSA BILL The Lehigh Community Council announced at its monthly meeting that BJM Consulting is being retained to conduct a new incorporation feasibility study.

The Lehigh Acres Community Council is moving ahead with a new study to determine whether it would be feasible for Lehigh to become a city.

BJM Consulting, the same company that performed a similar analysis in 2007, has been retained. The announcement was made on June 19 at the council’s monthly meeting.

“The first step is to see if incorporating is feasible,” said Community Council Board Member Joan Cunningham. “Then it’s up to Tallahassee to decide whether or not Lehigh is ready for incorporation.”

Council members are asking residents to get involved with the process both by contributing their time and helping to finance the cost of the feasibility study.

“We need to start fundraising efforts not just for the study, but for the campaign as well,” Cunningham said.

MELISSA BILL Members of the Community Watch Coordinators attended the June 19 meeting of the Lehigh Acres Community Council.

Plans are to form a political action group similar to the early efforts of Cape Coral’s incorporation. There is already a possible name for the new council – Incorporate Lehigh. Council members suggest that anyone who wants to get involved come to the next meeting on July 17.

Lee County Commissioner Frank Mann commented that in the end it is the local legislators who will put the matter of incorporation to a vote in Tallahassee.

Others in attendance included Vincent Berta, the senior code officer with Lee County Code Enforcement, who spoke about the steady rise of code violation cases. According to Berta, Lehigh has seen an increase in violations this year, with 6,631 cases to date.

“We are getting a lot of complaints about semi-trucks and 18-wheelers in the area,” Berta said. “People are upset that the trucks are parking next to Lehigh Acres Elementary and by the old country club driving range. They stay overnight and then leave in the morning, so it’s hard to catch them.”

“Our code enforcement officers are out at night and on the weekends to try to make Lehigh Acres a cleaner and safer place,” Berta said.

Steve McGiffin, chair of the Community Watch Coordinators, explained that he and other watch members worry about the growing epidemic of parked trucks, as well as the constant littering of the landscape by dumped shopping carts.

“We have spoken to (several area) stores … about the problem and they simply wouldn’t step in to help. So we teamed up with Lee County Solid Waste and Code Enforcement to collect the carts and turn them in for scrap metal,” McGiffin said.

Lee County Parks and Recreation Supervisor David Raybuck was also on hand to go over recent events at Veterans Park, which is already seeing a busy summer.

“Our summer camp is pretty much sold out,” Raybuck said. “We also recently held a couple of basketball tournaments, and a softball tournament is scheduled for next weekend.”

The council also discussed the outcome of a proposed public high school in Alva.

According to Community Council Board Member Theresa Park, the Lee County School District decided against Alva as the future location of the new East Zone high school, instead choosing Gateway as the final site.

The Lehigh Acres Community Council will hold its next meeting on July 17 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Lee County Sheriff’s Office East District substation, at 1301 Homestead Road N.

For more information, visit the Lehigh Acres Community Council at: www.lehighacrescommunitycouncil.com/.