Yay, our group won the scavenger hunt! And it was actually a fun trip.
Before taking this class I had driven into downtown Fort Myers on three seperate occasions. The first time I went to hear a presentation on the waterfront revitalization project sponsored by the Fort Myers Redevelopment Agency. The presenter was very proud of the plans drafted for the new downtown, but when I asked her about affordable housing, public transportations, and the homeless people camped out in Centennial Park, she didn't have much to say. The second time I went I was applying for a passport at the County Clerk's office on 2nd street. I parked in the parking garage, walked to the post office, and then back to the clerk's office. It was a pleasantly easy trip, and I didn't need to move my car once I got downtown. The third trip to downtown was for my little sister's high school graduation at Harborside Convention Center. We arrived early and got inside without much fuss. Leaving was another matter altogether. Apparently carpooling is not the fashion here, because there was an inordinate amount of cars parked on every available foot of blacktop.
This time I got to do a bit of exploring. Reading the green landmark and historical information plaques and signs reminded me of childhood trips to St Augustine and Atlanta. I was dying to go shopping in the Potomac Bead Co store, but alas we were women on a mission, and didn’t have the time to spare. If the weather had been drier, I would have suggested that we take a picture with Edison, Ford, and Firestone at the park fountain, but rainclouds dampened the tourist-y mood. Ultimately the downtown area is a reflection of the people who inhabit and surround it. There were many vacant storefronts, commercial properties left in limbo, and not a lot of foot traffic, but there were a few gems sprinkled throughout. I don’t know when, but I can see myself wandering those streets again, leisurely if not enthusiastically.
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