The Hamilton Harbor Yacht Club is located on a 175-acre property, of which 120 acres is permanently preserved conservation area, in Collier County, southwest Florida. KECE was instrumental in the permitting process for this development, and developed all the mitigation plans for the preserve areas. Included among the preserves is a four-acre gopher tortoise preserve. Gopher tortoises that were living in the impact area were carefully relocated to the preserve by KECE ecologists prior to development. Prescribed burns of this area are conducted regularly to maintain optimal gopher tortoise habitat. The remaining preserve areas are a mixture of mangrove swamp, transitional wetlands, and upland habitats, including spoil islands located in Naples Bay, continuing Barron Gift Collier’s tradition of responsible land stewardship in southwest Florida.
Development of this project was completed in early 2008. After a November 2011 inspection, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection released the project from further monitoring after determining that the mitigation areas had met the established success criteria.