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Hunters Point canal settlement reached with one defendant 

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Featured.

CORTEZ – One of the defendants, Jacquelyn Shepard, named in a 2022 lawsuit regarding the residential use of the man-made Hunters Point-owned canal reached a settlement agreement with Cortez Road Investments and Finance Inc. (CRIF) and Hunters Point developer Marshall Gobuty. 

Through her Cortez Canal House and Cortez Boat Resort limited liability corporations, Shepard owns the canal-side homes located at 4219 126th Street West and 4223 126th Street West in Cortez. 

On Feb. 19, Shepard and CRIF reached a settlement agreement that removes Shepard as a defendant in the case for which a jury trial is scheduled to take place in mid-May before 12th Circuit Judge Charles Sniffen. 

The Manatee County Property Appraiser Office lists Cortez Road Investments and Finance Inc. as the owner of the canal that’s highlighted in teal. – Manatee County Property Appraiser Office | Submitted

Filed on June 3, 2022, the civil lawsuit alleges some of the docks and boat lifts at the west end of the canal, across the canal from the Hunters Point property, violate county regulations because they allegedly extend more than 25% into the canal waterway. When speaking to The Sun in the past, some of the other defendants disputed the allegation that their docks and/or boat lifts extend too far into the canal. 

According to the Joint Notice Of Voluntary Dismissal With Prejudice dated Feb. 19, “The parties have entered into a settlement agreement resolving all matters in the above-styled litigation as among themselves. All claims asserted by plaintiff against defendants Jacquelyn Shepard, The Cortez Canal House, LLC and The Cortez Boat Resort LLC are hereby voluntarily dismissed with prejudice. All counterclaims asserted by defendants Jacquelyn Shepard, The Cortez Canal House, LLC and The Cortez Boat Resort LLC against plaintiff are hereby voluntarily dismissed with prejudice. 

“This dismissal applies only to the claims and counterclaims among the parties executing this notice. The litigation remains pending as to all other parties. Each party shall bear their own attorney’s fees and costs incurred in this litigation,” the notice states.

THE PARTIES SPEAK

When speaking to The Sun on March 26, Gobuty said, “We worked together to solve an issue, keep the canal safe for boating and let the homeowners enjoy the canal behind their home. It was a pleasure to work with Jackie and her husband, Steve.

“One home had a dock was torn down by the hurricane and it is acceptable to Cortez Road Investments and Finance Inc. if she replaces that dock, after she gets the required Manatee County permits. The second home has a dock that is within the 25%, so that is fine as it is. They also have access to use the canal and the necessary easements have been granted and are being recorded,” Gobuty said. 

Several boat docks and boat lifts are located across the canal from the Hunters Point property in Cortez. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

Attorney Susan Martin represents Gobuty and CRIF. When speaking to The Sun on March 26, Martin disclosed some of the general settlement terms. 

The settlement terms include CRIF being named as additional insured parties on Shepard’s homeowners’ insurance policies. 

The settlement agreement allows Shepard to maintain her current dock at 4223 126th Street West and build a new, five-foot-wide dock at 4219 126th Street West to replace the dock that was damaged during the 2024 hurricanes.

When speaking to The Sun on March 26, Martin said, “Marshall’s objective is to have people comply with the Manatee County regulation by being less than 25% of the width of the water body. His second objective is to be on everybody’s insurance policy so if there’s some type of accident on the canal, he’s not responsible for it. Thirdly, and probably most important, is to make sure there are no navigational hazards on the canal.” 

Martin said the recorded easements grant Shepard and the occupants of those two properties the right to utilize the canal for the purpose of maintaining her docks and using the canal to access the Intracoastal Waterway. 

When speaking to The Sun on March 27, Shepard said she’s not real pleased about being limited to building a new dock that’s only five feet wide, but she’ll make it work. 

As for why she settled, Shepard said, “I didn’t want to spend any more money on legal fees. It’s a narrow canal, so we have to work together. Before Marshall came, it was only being used on our side of the canal. Now that’s not the case so we’ve got to make adjustments. As long as it’s done in a reasonable fashion and there’s compromise on both sides, then it’s a good day.”

Jonathan and Sheila Graham’s boat lift is part of the lawsuit dispute. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

The lawsuit still names Jonathan Graham, Sheila Graham, Mark Ibasfalean, Wendy Kokolis and George Kokolis as defendants.

The Sun reached out to Jonathan Graham, Mark Ibasfalean and their attorney, Fred Moore, but no comment was provided at this time. 

“Capt. Kim” Ibasfalean stores the boat she uses for her Captain Kim’s Boat Rides & Charters business at their canal-side home. In the front yard of Mark and Kim’s home are two signs that reference the “Stand with Captain Kim to Protect HerHome” online fundraiser that, to date, has received $1,215 in donations.

Mark and Kim Ibasfalean’s canal-side home. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

The tall vertical sign placed in the couple’s front yard says, “Help save the canal. Hunters Point, on the other side of this canal, has 6 homeowners on this canal in a 3-year court battle. They claim they OWN all of this part of the canal and up to 3 feet into our back yards and we must remove our docks.”

“Captain Kim” stores her charter boat at her canal-side home in Cortez. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

“I have lived here and paid property taxes for 40 years. They persuaded a judge to file a lis pendins (pendens) on our properties. Meaning: we cannot sell our homes or borrow against them. They specifically told me that ‘when’ they win, they will charge everyone to use the canal. Help us keep waterways open to the public. Stop developers from taking over!” the yard sign says.

This sign stands in Kim and Mark Ibasfalean’s front yard. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

A banner that hangs in front of the Ibasfaleans’ home also references the GoFundMe page and says, “Help us keep this canal for everyone. I have spent $100,000 lawyer/surveyor fees. If we loose (lose) = you will pay to use canal.”

This banner hangs in front of Mark and Kim Ibasfalean’s canal-side home. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

Regarding the upcoming jury trial, Martin said if CRIF prevails in the lawsuit, CRIF can pursue the recovery of the value of the use of the canal, from the time the lawsuit was filed until the time the non-compliant docks, boat lifts are removed 

Martin said if the defendants prevail in court, they’ll be able to maintain their docks and lifts in their current conditions, even if they pose potential navigational hazards to other boaters and canal users. 

CANAL HISTORY 

Constructed in the 1950s, the man-made inland canal extends from the humpback bridge at 127th Street West (near the former Seafood Shack property) to the Cortez Village Marina and boat basin at the east end of the canal. 

The canal surrounds the Hunters Point property on three sides and it provides the only waterway connection to the Intracoastal Waterway for those who have docks, lifts and boat storage facilities along the canal. 

The canal surrounds the Hunters Point property on three sides and extends east to the Cortez Village Marina. – Manatee County Property Appraiser Office | Submitted

The 2022 lawsuit was filed in connection with an ongoing dispute between Cortez Road Investments and Finance Inc. and the MHC Cortez Village LLC limited liability corporation that owns the nearby Cortez Village Marina that utilizes the canal Gobuty purchased when he bought the undeveloped Hunters Point property in 2017. 

The Cortez Village Marina (blue roof) is located to the east of the Hunters Point homes. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

The lawsuit involving the canal-side property owners was filed about a week after CRIF filed a civil lawsuit against MHC Cortez Village LLC, the owners and operators of the Cortez Village Marina, on May 26, 2022. 

CRIF filed the lawsuit against MHC Cortez Village LLC in the midst of what proved to be the marina ownership group’s unsuccessful challenge of the state-issued permit that allows for the construction of 49 Hunters Point docks and boat slips along the Hunters Point side of the canal. The CRIF/MHC Cortez Village lawsuit remains ongoing and no trial date has been set for that case. 

Approximately half of the 86 Hunters Point have been built and several are now occupied. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

The 86-unit Hunters Point community is now approximately 50% completed and some of the solar-powered, LEED-certified townhomes are now occupied as homes, second homes or short-term vacation rentals as the construction of more townhomes and the Hunters Point docks continues. 

Jonathan and Sheila Graham’s red canopy-covered boat lift is part of the lawsuit. The boat lift in the foreground that is closer to the shoreline is not. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
The owners of this canal-side property, George and Wendy Kokolis, are named as defendants in the lawsuit. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
This canal-side home and dock were not named in the 2022 lawsuit. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
The canal connects with the Intracoastal Waterway on the other side of the 127th Street West bridge. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
New Hunters Point docks are being built along the northern side of the property. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
The Hunters Point community has a boat ramp and kayak launch at the east end of the property. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
This dock runs along the eastern edge of the Hunters Point property. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

Hunters Point canal settlement reached with one defendant

Marina clients face inclusion in canal lawsuit

Marina clients face inclusion in canal lawsuit

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Community News, Cortez, Featured.

CORTEZ – Cortez Village Marina clients who use the privately-owned Hunters Point canal may soon be named as additional defendants in a 2022 canal dispute-related lawsuit.

The Sun recently obtained a letter sent to a marina client. The letter was written by attorney Susan Martin, who represents Hunters Point developer Marshall Gobuty’s Cortez Road Invest­ments and Finance (CRIF) ownership group. When completed, the Hunters Point development will include 86 solar-powered homes.

Marina clients face inclusion in canal lawsuit
86 solar-powered homes are being built in the Hunters Point development. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

According to Gobuty, approximately 50 marina clients received the first wave of letters eventually sent to all known marina clients who use the facility that provides wet and dry storage for approximately 275 boats.

The marina is located just east of the portion of the canal privately owned by CRIF. In 2016, Gobuty purchased the undeveloped Hunters Point property and the man-made canal created in the 1950s.

Marina clients face inclusion in canal lawsuit
Canal-side homeowners use the canal to access the Intracoastal Waterway. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

The canal provides marina clients with their only direct access to the nearby Intracoastal Waterway (ICW). The canal also provides ICW access for several canal-side homeowners and to visitors at the Buttonwood and Holiday Cove RV resorts.

Marina clients face inclusion in canal lawsuit
Some Cortez Village Marina clients already received lawsuit-related letters. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

Dated March 20, Martin’s letter says, “CRIF is involved in a lawsuit with MHC Cortez Village LLC, aka Cortez Village Marina, regarding the unauthorized use and trespass upon the private canal owned by CRIF. Upon information and belief, you are storing a vessel at the marina and utilizing the CRIF private canal to access the Intracoastal, Anna Maria Sound or the Gulf of Mexico. There are ‘no trespass­ing’ signs posted on the private canal that are disregarded by the marina’s boat slip lessees and customers. Each trip down the canal by marina lessees is a separate trespass for which CRIF is seeking compensation in the circuit court.

“You are not authorized to utilize the CRIF private canal. You must immediately cease your use of the private canal. Any additional use of the private canal by you or another person utilizing your vessel with your consent is considered by CRIF to be an additional act of trespass. CRIF intends to amend the complaint to include lessees of the marina utilizing the CRIF private canal,” the letter says.

On April 4, The Sun emailed MHC Cortez Village attorneys Matthew Chait and Devon Woolard seeking their com­ments on the letter. As of April 8, neither Chait nor Woolard responded.

DISPUTE HISTORY

In 2021, the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD) issued CRIF an environmental resource permit that was supposed to allow for the construction of 49 boat slips along the triangular-shaped Hunters Point property. The docks have not yet been built.

MHC Cortez Village chal­lenged the permit based on the assertion that the new docks would impede naviga­tion for marina clients using the canal and negatively affect marina revenues.

Marina clients face inclusion in canal lawsuit
This diagram illustrates where the Hunters Point homes and docks are expected to be located. – Hunters Point | Submitted

In May 2022, in response to the permit challenge, CRIF filed the still-pending civil lawsuit that seeks a court order prohibiting Cortez Village Marina clients from using the canal.

Less than a week later, and in response to MHC Cortez Village’s concerns about the canal being too narrow to accommodate two-way boat traffic, CRIF filed a separate lawsuit against several canal-side homeowners along the western end of the canal.

Marina clients face inclusion in canal lawsuit
The canal extends westward to the humpback bridge on 127th Street. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

That still-unresolved lawsuit alleges those homeowners’ docks and boat lifts violate county code by extending more than 25% into the canal. In their legal respons­es, those homeowners contend their docks and lifts were legally permitted by Manatee County when installed and did not extend more than 25% into the canal when installed.

PERMIT HEARING

In late 2022, administrative law judge Bruce Culpepper presided over a multi-day hear­ing pertaining to the marina’s permit challenge.

During the hearing, it was established through documents and expert testimony that CRIF owns the portion of the canal that extends from the western edge of the Cortez Village Marina property to the humpback bridge at 127th Street West.

The hearing featured much testimony and debate about the potential impact the Hunters Point docks would have on canal navigability. As a safety precaution, Gobuty offered to implement one-way boat traffic on the canal at timed intervals for all incom­ing and outgoing boats.

In January 2023, seven wooden pilings were placed in the canal near the marina basin. Some signs say, “You Are Entering a Private Canal, Please Monitor VHF Channel 9,” “In­bound Traffic Every 15 Minutes on the Hour,” and “Outbound Traffic Every 15 Minutes on the Hour.” To date, specific one-way travel times and intervals have not been established or enforced.

PERMIT RULING

In March 2023, Culpepper issued a written recommended order in favor of CRIF, to be forwarded to the SWFWMD gov­erning board for a final ruling.

“All witnesses agree that following construction of the dock, boats will still be able to freely travel through the canal one at a time. The proposed dock will not interfere with or prevent a single boater from traversing from the bridge to an upland property. The evidence shows that the dock will not reduce the safe navigational width of the waterway any more than the (humpback) bridge at the entrance to the canal, which is 15 feet wide; or the narrow bottle­neck just before the marina, where mangrove growth restricts safe movement to one boat at a time,” Culpepper’s order said.

Marina clients face inclusion in canal lawsuit
Some portions of the canal are wider than others. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

“It is uncontroverted that the placement of the dock in the canal will affect navigation to some degree. Similarly, the evidence and testimony do not show that the construction of the dock will cause more than a mere inconvenience to boaters, much less result in a significant impediment to navigation. Based on the evidence and testimony presented, the undersigned finds that Cortez Road and the district presented competent substantial evidence establishing Cortez Road’s entitlement to the permit. Conversely, the marina did not meet its burden of demonstrat­ing that the district should not issue the permit,” Culpepper’s order said.

MHC Cortez Village appealed the SWFWMD governing board’s ruling and the upcoming oral arguments in the appeal case are scheduled for Tuesday, April 23.

Related coverage:

Marina appeals Hunters Point canal ruling

Board rules in favor of Hunters Point docks

Hunters Point prevails in canal hearing

Hunters Point prevails in dock permit challenge

Hunters Point prevails in dock permit challenge

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Community News, Cortez.

CORTEZ – Administrative Law Judge Bruce Culpepper issued a recommended order supporting the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s issuance of a permit for the construction of 49 canal-side dock slips at the Hunters Point Marina & Resort in Cortez.

“Based on the foregoing findings of fact and conclusions of law, it is recommended that the Southwest Florida Water Management District enter a final order granting Cortez Road Investment’s application for the permit to build a dock in the canal and issue ERP (environmental resource permit) Individual Construction Major Modification Permit 43032468.003,” Culpepper stated in the written recommended order he issued on March 7.

Hunters Point prevails in dock permit challenge
Administrative Law Judge Bruce Culpepper presided over the permit challenge hearing. – Submitted

Culpepper’s recommended order will be sent to the water district’s governing board for a final ruling. If the board’s final ruling supports Culpepper’s recommended order, the Hunters Points docks can be built in the man-made, privately-owned canal that surrounds the Hunters Point property on three sides.

Hunters Point prevails in dock permit challenge
This rendering illustrates the proposed Hunters Point dock locations along the canal. – Hunters Point | Submitted

Culpepper’s recommended order is based on the multi-day administrative hearing he conducted on behalf of the Florida Division of Administrative Hearings (DOAH) over the span of eight days in June, August and September.

In June 2021, the water management district issued Hunters Point developer Marshall Gobuty and his Cortez Road Investments and Finance Inc. ownership group the environmental resource permit/individual construction major modification permit needed to construct the docks. The permit authorizes Cortez Road Investments to install approximately 4,352 square feet of new piling-supported dock structures and to replace approximately 3,631 square feet of existing piling-supported dock structures.

Hunters Point prevails in dock permit challenge
The Cortez Village Marina is located eastward and upland from the Hunters Point property. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

Cortez Village Marina is located eastward and upland of the Hunters Point property. In July 2021, the Cortez Village Marina’s MHC Cortez Village LLC ownership group filed a petition challenging the issuance of that permit.

MHC Cortez Village asserted the proposed docks would adversely impact safe navigation and increase and impair vessel traffic through the canal by narrowing the canal’s navigable width.

During the hearing, MHC Cortez Village presented the testimony of marina manager Skip McPadden, Capt. Christopher Karentz and others. Cortez Road Investments presented testimony by Gobuty, land title expert Adron H. Walker, Captain Dane Fleming and others. The water management district’s witnesses included Lauren Greenawalt, who serves as a lead environmental scientist for the district.

The canal

According to Manatee County Property Appraiser records and testimony provided by Walker and Gobuty, Cortez Road Investments owns the portion of the canal that extends eastward from the humpback bridge at 127th Street West to the western boundary of the Cortez Village Marina property. Cortez Road Investments does not own the portion of the canal located directly in front of the marina basin or the remaining portion of the canal east of the marina.

Culpepper’s order notes the marina has existed in its current configuration since at least 2008 and a marina facility has operated at that location since at least the 1970s. According to McPadden’s testimony, the marina provides approximately 365 boat storage slips that include ‘high-and-dry’ slips, outside dry storage and in-water slips. McPadden testified the marina’s average boat size is 26 feet long and the largest boat stored there is 38 feet long and 11 feet wide.

The order notes the canal provides the marina and its clients with their only direct water access to the nearby Intracoastal Waterway.

“Consequently, to reach Tampa Bay or the Gulf of Mexico by boat, marina customers must travel down the canal past Hunters Point,” the order notes.

The order notes there are approximately 18 single-family homes located alongside the canal and many of those homes have existing docks and boatlifts – most of which predate Gobuty’s purchase of the Hunters Point property and canal in 2016.

In his order, Culpepper states: “Mr. Gobuty conveyed Cortez Road (Investments) never authorized any homeowners along the canal to access or use the waterway it owns. Neither has Cortez Road (Investments) given the marina or its customers specific permission to traverse the canal. Mr. Gobuty urged that Cortez Road (Investments) does not necessarily object to boaters using the canal to access Anna Maria Sound. However, Cortez Road (Investments) does intend to take steps to ensure that its property interests and rights to the canal are protected, as well as ensure the safe use of the canal. Towards this end, Cortez Road has and may continue to pursue legal action to ensure that the private homeowners across from Hunters Point comply with Manatee County codes in the configuration and placement of their docks in the canal.”

Testimony given

The order notes Cortez Road Investments has already implemented several navigational aids to enhance the safe use of the canal. One-way travel along the canal at timed intervals is encouraged to help prevent boats from passing side by side in the canal’s narrowest areas. Mirrors were installed at the 90-degree corners to increase boater visibility. “No wake” signs require boaters to travel at minimum speed and canal users are encouraged to monitor VHF radio channel 9 regarding inbound and outbound canal traffic.

Hunters Point prevails in dock permit challenge
Safety pilings and new signs were recently installed in the canal near the Cortez Village Marina. – Hunters Point | Submitted

Regarding testimony he received, Culpepper’s order says, “Ms. Greenawalt best framed the analysis by acknowledging that the dock, and any boats moored thereto, will undeniably affect navigation through the canal to some extent. The evidence clearly shows that boaters will have to be mindful of a reduced navigable width when traveling alongside Hunters Point, particularly when crossing the three ‘pinch points’ on the north-south channel. However, Capt. Fleming convincingly explained that after the dock is built, the canal will still contain sufficient space for boaters to safely travel between the bridge and the marina.

Hunters Point prevails in dock permit challenge
Several of the 86 Hunters Point homes have already been built and some area awaiting new docks. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

“All witnesses agree that following construction of the dock, boats will still be able to freely travel through the canal one at a time. The proposed dock will not interfere with or prevent a single boater from traversing from the bridge to an upland property.
“The evidence shows that the dock will not reduce the safe navigational width of the waterway any more than the bridge at the entrance to the canal, which is 15 feet wide, or the narrow bottleneck just before the marina where mangrove growth restricts safe movement to one boat at a time,” Culpepper noted in his order.

“It is uncontroverted that the placement of the dock in the canal will affect navigation to some degree. However, the evidence was insufficient to conclude that the dock will constitute an environmental hazard to public health, safety, welfare or property. Similarly, the evidence and testimony do not show that the construction of the dock will cause more than a mere inconvenience to boaters similar to what they already face at the bridge, much less result in a significant impediment to navigation,” the order states.

“Based on the evidence and testimony presented at the final hearing, the undersigned finds that Cortez Road (Investments) and the district presented competent substantial evidence establishing Cortez Road’s entitlement to the permit. Conversely, the marina did not meet its burden of demonstrating that the district should not issue the permit,” Culpepper stated in his order.

‘Safety’ pilings placed in Hunters Point canal

Pilings placed in Hunters Point canal

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Community News, Cortez.

CORTEZ – Seven new wooden pilings have been placed in the privately-owned Hunters Point canal near the canal-side entrance to the Cortez Village Marina.

Installed last week, the pilings have various signs affixed to them that say, “Caution, Narrow Bridge Ahead,” “Mana- tee Zone, Slow Speed, Minimum Wake,” “You Are Entering a Private Canal, Please Monitor VHF Channel 9,” “Inbound Traffic Every 15 Minutes on the Hour,” “Outbound Traffic Every 15 Minutes on the Hour” and “No Wake Zone.”

‘Safety’ pilings placed in Hunters Point canal
Signs containing safety and navigational instructions are affixed to the new pilings. – Cortez Road Investments | Submitted

Hunters Point developer Marshall Gobuty said the new pilings and signs were installed for safety reasons in response to concerns that Cortez Village Marina representatives repeatedly expressed during the multi-day permit challenge hearing held in 2022, presided over by administrative law Judge Bruce Culpepper.

The new pilings appear to narrow the navigable area of the canal near the marina entrance, but Gobuty said the pilings still provide a 20-foot-wide clearance for boats to pass through, one at a time, and that a water district representative viewed the new pilings and expressed no concerns.

The marina ownership group seeks a ruling as to whether the Southwest Florida Water Management District properly issued the environmental resource permit in 2021 that allows 49 Hunters Point docks to be built along the decades-old, man-made canal Gobuty purchased in 2016 when he bought the Hunters Point property.

During the hearing, marina representatives and expert witnesses claimed two-way boat traffic on the canal would become more challenging and less safe with the installation of the 49 canal-side residential docks desired for the Hunters Point community currently under construction in Cortez.

During the hearing, Gobuty, his attorney, Susan Martin, and his expert witnesses suggested limiting boat traffic on the canal to one-way travel occurring at 15-minute intervals to help ensure greater navigational safety for canal users.

The privately-owned canal currently provides marina users with their only direct access to the Intracoastal Waterway and it was stated during the hearing that the marina ownership group has no written or verbal agreements that guarantee the continued use of the canal.

The canal also provides several canal-side homeowners (some of whom have been named in an unresolved civil lawsuit filed by Cortez Road Investments) and two RV resorts with access to the Intracoastal Waterway.

The parties involved in the dock permitting challenge dispute still await a recommended order from Culpepper regarding the permit issued by the water district, to be followed by a final order issued by the water district’s governing board.

‘Safety’ pilings placed in Hunters Point canal
This photo represents the view boaters see of the new pilings when approaching the Cortez Village Marina’s canal-side entrance. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

Gobuty said a water district representative viewed new pilings and expressed no concerns. The new pilings appear to narrow the navigable area of the canal near the marina entrance, but Gobuty said the pilings still provide a 20-foot-wide clearance for boats to pass through, one at a time.