Sanibel's Fishing Pier Nears a Return, Four Years After Hurricane Ian
The fishing pier near Sanibel's historic lighthouse, closed since Hurricane Ian in 2022, is undergoing temporary repairs with a reopening hoped for in late November or early December — while the city plans a permanent replacement.
Sanibel's fishing pier, a gathering place for generations near the historic lighthouse, has been closed since Hurricane Ian damaged it in 2022 — the last major piece of island infrastructure without a restoration plan, according to the Sanibel fishing pier citizen committee. That changed this month, when the city, community leaders and residents marked the groundbreaking for the pier's restoration, a citizen-driven effort that raised funds for temporary repairs.
The Charitable Foundation of the Islands, which partnered with the committee to establish the Sanibel Pier Fund, said the fundraising campaign exceeded its initial goal of about $300,000, with residents, businesses and local organizations contributing roughly $380,000 toward the effort, according to the Southwest Florida newsletter's October 30 issue. The temporary restoration levels the damaged piling and places a new deck on a different support structure, rather than replacing the piling, so the existing pier can reopen while a permanent replacement is planned.
If construction progresses as planned and the necessary approvals are received, the temporarily repaired pier is anticipated to reopen to the public in late November or early December, the foundation said. Meanwhile, the permanent replacement moves forward: on October 6, the Sanibel City Council approved a preferred location for the future pier following a public information meeting and community input, and the city has a $2.1 million Tourist Development Beach and Shoreline Funding Grant toward building the new pier, according to local reporting on the project.
