Seeing the future of Florida in sustainable developments

Dennis Gilkey was at the forefront of Southwest Florida development during his nine-year reign as president of the Bonita Bay Group (23 years with the company in all). He oversaw the building of 10 residential communities, more than 13,000 acres of master-planned development in Lee and Collier counties.

Dennis Gilkley COURTESY PHOTO But in 2007, Mr. Gilkey, 57, gave up the position and created the Gilkey Organization, a sustainable land development consulting firm with real-estate services that specializes in planning mixeduse communities for landowners.

"It was always a dream of mine to be an independent small-businessman," he says. "I figured I should do that while I still had a few years left."

Mr. Gilkey is mild-mannered, courteous and soft-spoken if somewhat blunt. His company offices in Bonita Springs are small, and his wife and son make up a third of his staff.

It might appear Mr. Gilkey downshifted his ambitions. But in reality, the Gilkey Organization is taking on longterm, large-scale development projects that eclipse anything he did previously. Clients include landowners in 20 Florida counties, including Lee and Collier, who collectively own about 1,000,000 acres. Mr. Gilkey will help create their business plans and then guide them through every step as they develop their properties.

Mr. Gilkey also plans to be a part of land developments in Georgia. Ultimately, he aims to orchestrate environmentally friendly, mixed-use developments: the kinds of residential communities that he says help reduce urban sprawl and add value to the property. The living space is compact, with homes designed above or near shopping centers and businesses; and instead of yards, there are plenty of walking trails and green space.

He believes such communities represent a part of Florida's future. But he also understands that they'll succeed only if they're appealing to the people who end up living in them. "That's what it boils down to," he says. "We still have to keep our finger on the pulse of the customer." He suspects baby boomers' children will enjoy the mixed-use developments more than their parents, because they'll be better adapted to a lifestyle based on conserving energy.

Mr. Gilkey sees his main advantage as his breadth of experience: 33 years of local expertise and connections made in land development, highway, building and utility projects. When he started with Bonita Bay Group in 1984 it had only six employees, the same number as his company now. By the time he left, it had grown to more than 1,500 employees. This time around, he'll stick to about eight employees or less.

"I plan to keep this a small company," he says. "The rest can be done with alliances, networking and partnering."

As one might expect, Mr. Gilkey has taken on a demanding schedule with his new business. He spends about 60 hours a week at the office and says, "I basically feel that I'm on 24/7." But it's something he's comfortable with. "My work ethic has always been more blue collar," he says. "I've always worked long hours."

Maybe it came from his upbringing in Fort Pierce, where his father was a laborer on the Florida East Coast Railroad, and his mother a secretary. Neither of his parents went to college; Mr. Gilkey bucked tradition and graduated with a degree in civil engineering from the University of Florida in 1973.

After that, he spent a decade as a consultant to officials in Jacksonville on warehouses, highways and bridges. Then he moved to Clearwater and focused on land development, including the kinds of gated communities he would later build in Bonita Springs.

He's active in groups including the Bonita Springs YMCA and engineering societies and organizations that sponsor sustainable development. He's been a commissioner on the Century Commission for a Sustainable Florida since 2005 and was co-chair of the Lee County Smart Growth Advisory Committee from 2002 to 2005.

When he's not working, Mr. Gilkey likes to go boating and fishing. Sometimes he takes a break at his second home north of Tampa in Crystal River. But for now, he's ready to get to work building Florida's future in sustainable developments.