Ground Broken on New 180-Bed Skilled Nursing Facility in Florida for Shell Point Retirement Community

FORT MYERS, Fla. ― The Weitz Company and Shell Point Retirement Community celebrated on Monday the groundbreaking of the Waterside Health Center, a new 195,141-square-foot skilled nursing facility in Ft. Myers, Fla.

More than 150 people attended the ceremony for the building that will be located at the front entry of Shell Point’s approximately 700-acre Continuing Care Retirement Community – the largest CCRC in Florida. The new facility will include 180 beds with private rooms across its six levels.

“The new Waterside Health Center will increase our ability to offer unique, state-of-the-art healthcare services in a more comfortable and convenient setting so that Shell Point’s medical team can provide personalized care to an even greater number of Shell Point residents and the surrounding community,” said Shell Point President Martin Schappell. 

Scheduled for completion in fall 2021, the building will include a grand entrance and lobby, rehabilitation center with therapy pool, health clinic, pharmacy, dental suite, nurse stations, dining and living rooms, sunrooms, plus a salon and day spa. Additional features include a butterfly garden, chapel and prayer garden, boardwalk, gazebo and bistro.

Weitz will serve as the project’s construction manager. RDG Planning & Design is the architect. This will be the 37th senior living project the two firms have designed and constructed together since 1972, including three other skilled nursing facilities ― Glenridge on Palmer Ranch (Sarasota, Fla.), The Woodlands at John Knox Village (Pompano Beach, Fla.) and Oak Hammock at the University of Florida (Gainesville, Fla.) ― that draw additional layers of inspections and approvals that must be passed by Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration.

“We are excited to build the Waterside Health Center for Shell Point and look forward to establishing a long-term, trusting relationship by delivering on the expectations Shell Point has established to enhance the level of care provided to its 2,500 residents,” said Dennis Gallagher, executive vice president and general manager of The Weitz Company. “Including RDG, the collective expertise of our three organizations is extremely complementary and will positively influence our work together on this project.”