On October 7, a crew from Shoreline Foundation Inc. drove the last of the 193 reinforced-concrete pilings that will hold up the new Naples Pier. From Gulf Shore Boulevard, the pier is starting to look like a pier again, with a line of piles running straight out from the end of 12th Avenue South. But the City of Naples still lists July 2027 as the reopening date.
Those two facts fit together. The decking, shelters and finish work still have to go in, and the City's schedule runs them in a fixed order after the concrete. That order keeps the pier closed for all of this winter and has it reopening in the middle of summer.
What the October milestone actually finished
The new piles are built for a heavier load than the old ones. They are 18 inches square, up from 14 inches. The City calls that a 65 percent boost. They come in 70, 85, and 100-foot lengths, and every size is longer than the longest pile under the old pier. All that extra capacity lets the deck sit three feet higher above the water. The structure also uses nearly three times as much poured concrete as before, which the City says improves the odds that the concrete portion makes it through a severe hurricane.
That design is a direct answer to what Hurricane Ian did on September 28, 2022. Roughly 140 feet of the old pier, including the end shelter and more than 30 pilings, ended up on the Gulf floor. Waves gutted the concession area and the midpoint shelter. City engineers decided the whole structure had to be replaced rather than patched. According to Gulfshore Business, this is the seventh reconstruction of a 137-year-old landmark, and the overall project is budgeted at $26.3 million.
The slow part is the part you walk on
The concrete is a little more than half done. The rebuild needs about 602 cubic yards in total. About 200 cubic yards were in place by July 24. The mid-pavilion pour on September 18 pushed the project past the halfway mark. Here is what the City's timeline says still has to happen:
- Finish the concrete. The contractor expects to complete all structural work by early 2027.
- Lay the deck. The Ipe decking goes in only after the last concrete pour. Two-thirds of that tropical hardwood had already arrived by late July and is waiting.
- Build the structures on top. Installing the decking and the structures starts after the structural phase is complete.
- Open in July 2027. That is about 18 months after construction began on January 6, 2026, which matches the length of closure the City announced at the start.
The City credits a calm summer for keeping the work on pace. Electrical work, bathroom and storage renovations, and foundation improvements are also underway on the land side.
The pier that comes back won't be the old one
The finished pier keeps the old dimensions, 1,000 feet long and 12 feet wide. It will have Ipe decking, bench bump-outs, and Polynesian-style roof structures at the midpoint and at the end. The biggest change is food. Gulfshore Business reported that FEMA said the former Cosmos at the Pier, or any other permanent concession stand, would not be allowed above the water under new risk guidelines. The City has chosen portable food and beverage carts at the mid-pavilion instead. During the March 4 council discussion, the carts under consideration would sell water, ice cream, and soda.
Council member Berne Barton pushed for that cart option before the unanimous vote, as Gulfshore Business reported:
"We need to try to find a solution that will help appease those who really do want to have some type of food and beverage service out there."
Local businesses near the beach also fill some of that gap. Gulf Coast News spoke with Richard Muller, owner of Divine Naples, which brings food, drinks, chairs, and umbrellas to people on the beach. He told the station that families may not want to give up their parking space just to go get food.
The land side gains some features. The approved design by Naples-based MHK Architecture includes:
- An underwater camera so visitors can watch marine life
- A family restroom and a small beach patrol office, both added to the north restroom at the entry
- A Naples Police/Beach Patrol substation, which the City says will put more staff on the pier
- A new shade structure and benches outside the women's restroom on the south side
Where 300 tons of the old pier went
Part of the old pier is already back in the Gulf. In late April, 59 concrete pilings from the old structure were placed at Wasmer Reef, an artificial reef first established in 2015. The Naples Daily News reported that the pilings weigh 300 tons and that the site is about 10 miles offshore of Gordon Pass.
Collier County's reef location table lists the Wasmer Naples Pier Reef at 26° 2.029′ N, 81° 58.585′ W, in 40 feet of water. The County records the deployment as April 27, 2026, while the City's project timeline lists April 24. At that distance and depth, you need a boat to reach it, and it suits scuba divers and anglers better than snorkelers. The reef program is run by the County's Coastal Zone Management Department, which handles monitoring and maintenance.
Keeping the pier routine going this winter
The pier, its stairs, restrooms, and showers are all closed, along with 12th Avenue South west of Gulf Shore Boulevard South. Here are the open options closest to the old spot:
- Broad Avenue South and 13th Avenue South beach ends. These are the City's pedestrian bypasses. Both will stay open for the whole project, and both have restrooms.
- The pier lot at 12th Avenue South and Gulf Shore Boulevard South. The western third is still open to the public. The eastern two-thirds is blocked off for construction. Like all City beach parking, it requires a beach parking permit or pay-by-space payment.
- Lowdermilk Park. It has beach access, restrooms, showers, benches, and parking, and it is open 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.
- Gordon River Greenway, 1596 Goodlette-Frank Road. For a dedicated place to fish from a structure, Collier County lists fishing and lookout piers here. The park is open daily from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission describes a free shoreline license for Florida residents who fish in saltwater from land or from a structure attached to land, and its page explains what that license does not cover. This is general information and not legal advice, so check FWC's page for your own situation before you cast a line.
What the City hasn't set yet
The City's Naples Pier park page still lists the pier as closed and gives no hours for after it reopens. The most recent posted pier rules date from December 2021. They limit anglers to one line or pole, ban shark fishing, and prohibit fishing or having fishing gear on the pier from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. The parking lot also closes during those hours. The City has not said whether those rules will carry over to the new structure. The project timeline also lists no opening ceremony yet, only the January 5 groundbreaking. The City posts each new milestone on its pier rebuild project page, and that page will be the first to show when the decking goes down.
Mike Kussmann has spent 17 years in remodeling and has watched plenty of projects where the visible milestone came well before the finish line. If you own a home near the 12th Avenue South beach end and want to talk through how the pier's return affects your plans for 2027, MovingWithMK can help. Get a free home valuation or call Mike today.
