In the Know: Inside buzz (with photos) at Oakes, Costco expansion, latest on Wawa

Robert Calvo had this to share on Tuesday via his iPad:

We went to Costco in Naples yesterday and were surprised to see the building being extended. Also when we went inside, there was a section by the foods/meats area that is also going through some construction. So much so that they are currently not selling their rotisserie chicken that everyone loves so much. Any idea what is going on, and when it will be completed?

After I responded to his initial inquiry, his main concern was made more clear: I miss my rotisserie chicken.

He is not kidding about mankind's love for that $4.99 Costco rotisserie chicken — 91 million of those 3-pound birds fly out the door every year, CNN reported Thursday. Costco Warehouse actually loses money on them, with the concept of come in for the bird, roll out with $300 added to your credit card bill.

So I tried a few times to get answers about what's going on from Costco folks locally and at the corporate level — and while they were prompt, pretty much got the same response about company policy preventing comment. After researching it, I found that's just been the stealthy Costco way for the most part. So be it.

Let's dig through public records.

Costco is adding, at minimum, 9,632 square feet, and part of the effort centers on the revered rotisserie chicken while also addressing some issues it's been having. The work is said to include revisions related to its sewer setup and some roof work, in particular a roof drain.

Calvo's observation in the foods and meat area appears to be on the money. Just on Thursday, Costco was issued permits for kitchen hood and exhaust fan work. (The records, by the way, specify the "Chicken Rotisserie Hood Permit" application, and there are all types of ovens involved).

Earlier in the week, it was given the go-ahead on improving systems associated with fire suppression. Efforts pertaining to new coolers and freezers have also been approved, among numerous other additions.

An insider in the store did say their location isn't as big as some of the others, and the expansion fits with what's going on at Costco locations nationwide. The company's been adding to what Britannica says is the average 144,500-square-foot size store. Costco's major rival, Sam's Club, builds slightly smaller at an average 136,000 square feet.

Just another fun number: The Collier land value of the 13.8 acres is $7.1 million, according to the county records.

Based on documents, it could be April before certain aspects of the project are complete. What's not clear is when you'll get your chicken. They could even be selling the birds again by the time you read this. Just have to get those ovens plugged in. I'll keep working it.

Inside Oakes and its job fair

The goal for Oakes Farms' "Seed To Table" store is to open in November, and the company's plans call for up to 500 positions. 

After holding job fairs Friday and Saturday, Oakes Farms has scheduled at least two more on Oct. 25 and 26, from 8 a.m. to noon and 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. The fairs are taking place at the new store location, 4835 Immokalee Road, Naples, intersecting with Livingston Road, just west of Interstate 75. At each event, job seekers will have the opportunity to apply in person and receive immediate interviews.

Read:Oakes Farms' Seed to Table works toward November opening

Available jobs include managerial positions, cooks, in-store associates and more. Some more specific examples: guacamole station attendants, "wine/beer enthusiasts" and "mozzarella stretching" personnel.

Once hired, employees will park across Livingston in the new lot that's going in and be shuttled back and forth. 

Oakes Farms Inc. purchased the former Albertsons supermarket and its 7-acre lot at 4835 Immokalee Road for $5 million in 2014. The initial plans called for opening in 2015, and it was delayed to 2016. Then it was 2017, and then 2018.

Even the early November opening isn't on lock down, based on information from a recent homeowners board presentation during which the possibility of delaying at least a couple more weeks was on the table.

Read:With big investments in Southwest Florida, Hoffmanns hope to create a 'Disneyland for adults'

Naples making Wawa history

Wawa announced Thursday what In the Know first reported earlier in the week.

With its 200th store in Florida launching in Naples on Oct. 17, Wawa is debuting a new drink at the 8 a.m. opening that will be served at all of the state's locations.

The Florida Sunrise refreshment, only scheduled to be sold for a couple of weeks, will benefit the Feeding Florida food bank network that includes the Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida. Wawa estimates up to $25,000 from sales of its $2 Siptopia-branded creation will go to the network.

"It is an exciting milestone for us as it will be our 200th Florida store," said Lori Bruce, Wawa's public relations manager. "The Wawa Florida Sunrise is a hand-crafted beverage featuring a combination of lemonade, orange juice and strawberry all in a beautiful beverage that brings to life a Florida sunrise."

If it sounds like a tequila would enhance this concoction, a la the popular Eagles song, you'll need to add it in the comfort of your own home, and please NOT while you're driving.

The new spot, of course, will have its Cuban coffee, my favorite subject, like Wawa does at all its glorified Florida service stations. My car also benefits from the free air there.

A Naples area resident, James Roe, will serve as general manager, leading a team of about 40 associates at the U.S. 41 East and Price Street location adjacent to the Shops at Eagle Creek.

A third Wawa is planned for Rattlesnake Hammock Road and U.S. 41 East for spring 2020. Bruce did not have a date for a fourth one that records show is planned for Davis and Santa Barbara boulevards. Collier's first Wawa opened in 2017 at Livingston and Radio roads.

About the Wawa name: The company traces some of its roots to Wawa, Pennsylvania, which was named after the Wawa goose that got its moniker from the Ojibwe Native American tribe.

After our initial report this past week, here's what a few of you had to say about Wawa No. 200 on the Naples Daily News Facebook page, which drew more than 155 loves, likes, shares and comments on the topic:

Roberta Bee: Soon there will be 200 in Naples. 

Geno Nailon: As a Pennsylvanian, I love Wawa and stop every day if not every other. They have it figured out

Marilyn Albrecht: I'm sick of all these mega stations in Florida, Naples in particular. Enough with the Wawas and RaceTracs. Sick of them.

Adam Roma: I ordered some sandwiches from the other location in Naples, and they weren’t made the same as the Wawa locations up north. Something was off. We need the Philadelphia Amoroso's rolls.

Patricia Arnold Sherry: I don’t eat any fast food except for the occasional Chick-fil-A, but I do love Wawa.

Vanderbilt Commons housing update

The Collier County Commission voted this past week to allow the Vanderbilt Commons project to move forward.

That's the project featured as part of In the Know in last Monday's Naples Daily News as part of answering Naples resident Robert Martin's question. It's on the north side of Vanderbilt Beach Road, just off Collier Boulevard that also has a growing number of businesses, such as Cirella's Italian Bistro & Sushi Bar and Five Guys Burgers and Fries, which opened a year ago.

Martin and other residents raised concerns that the more than 50 units on 2.5 acres planned for the housing violates the density limit of 4.3 units per acre that had been in place.

But they were surprised at the county's math, as revealed in the column last week. 

"You probably opened many eyes in the way the county calculates density," Martin said in a follow-up email to In the Know.

Here's what the county did.

It agreed to count the entire 14.49 acres of Vanderbilt Commons (shopping center land included), not just those 2.5 acres where the residential development is focused. By doing that math, the density falls within the 4-unit-per-acre rules.

The idea for homes goes back to at least 2007, but the project became a victim of the economic downturn. Talk of residential gained traction almost four years ago, and the plan solidified with the commission votes.

Read:Naples named No. 1 on list of 'best cities for early retirement' in United States

And:Naples does it again, ranks as No. 1 spot to retire in the country

¡Naples si, Miami no!

In last week's column, we noted that one of the questions I keep hearing as growth and development continues in Collier County is whether Naples is becoming another Miami.

Here's what some of you had to say on the Daily News' Facebook page on the question, which drew about 80 loves, likes, shares and comments:

Ann Zimmer: Think it’s looking like it.

Carol Delaurentis: It is already.

Naples Realtor Evelyn Frailey: That was the big concern back in 1990 when I first moved here. Seen lots of changes and growth but that will never happen.

Danielle Silva: Far from "another Miami." Miami actually has a nightlife and a wide mix of cultures, nationalities and people year-round. Naples does not. Traffic on a regular day in Naples has never competed with traffic in Miami.

Claudia Vargas Gifford: Naples is what Miami is not!

Kevin Maguire: Naples is not becoming Miami. It's too boring. More like a Toledo.

In the Know:Updates on several North Naples shopping centers, Oakes, DSW, and Forever 21

And Looking at DSW as one opens, another closes. Also, Oakes, Forever 21 updates and a hotel returns.

Hot hotels

Edgewater Beach Hotel and LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort have earned Conde Nast Traveler magazine's 2019 Readers Choice Award, as announced this past week.  Edgewater is the only Naples hotel to make the list of "Top 15 Florida Hotels" and LaPlaya the only Naples resort to make the "Top 30 Florida Resorts" list.

By the Numbers

Tourism's impact on growth and development cannot ever be overlooked. Plenty of evidence at a couple of recent events including the:

• 2019 Elaine McLaughlin Outstanding Hospitality Service Awards that The News-Press Media Group helps produce and I attended;
• And the Paradise Coast Tourism Star Awards, which colleagues Laura Layden and Andrew Wigdor covered.

Here are some annual stats from Collier and Lee governments and tourism groups:

► What tourists spend: $5 billion. That's BILLION.

► Number of visitors: 7 million

► Jobs: 100,000, or roughly 20 percent of the workforce

Columnist Phil Fernandez writes In the Know for the Naples Daily News. Contact him with ideas, tips or questions at pfernandez@gannett.com and include your name and hometown unless you're the surreptitious type or in the witness protection program.