FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Mary Gibbs, Lee County Community Development
              (239) 479-8345

LEE: APRIL SINGLE-FAMILY PERMITS CREAM PREVIOUS RECORD

FORT MYERS, Fla. (May 6, 2004) Lee County's Community Development Department issued 632 single-family home permits in the month of April - an all-time record, besting the previous record of 571 set in August 2003.

The 400 monthly permits mark was broken only for the first time in April 2003.

In addition this April, permits were issued for 140 duplex units - another record.

Lee County's Community Development Department released its April statistics today. The totals are for unincorporated Lee County, City of Bonita Springs and Town of Fort Myers Beach. Both Bonita Springs and Fort Myers Beach contract with the county to do their permitting services.

The value of the 632 single-family home permits is $125 million. So far this year, the county has permitted $884 million of construction. Permitting value in Lee County experienced a huge increase in 2003, surging a whopping $500 million to surpass the $2 billion mark.

Permit value in 2002 was $1.48 billion.

Lee County issued 547 single-family home permits in January, 466 in February and 570 in March.

Lee County Community Development oversees planning, zoning, and development services such as permitting, development review, code enforcement and building inspections in the unincorporated areas of the county and for Bonita Springs and Fort Myers Beach. It employs 205 people and has a fiscal year 2004 operating budget of $21 million.

To learn more about the department and its services, visit http://www.lee-county.com/dcd/.