Jersey Mike’s makes signature sandwich

Brent Rowbotham, 20, assembles a sandwich at the Jersey Mike's in Bonita Springs. All subs are made Mike's Way with onions, lettuce, tomato, vinegar, oil and spices.


Valerie Battista, 25, and Jordan Tetro, 21, bag up a submarine at the Jersey Mike's in Bonita Springs.

Jersey Mike’s is now open at the Springs Plaza in Bonita Springs and customers are lining up to see the sandwich makers do the “sub dance.”

The sandwich makers work furiously to slice meats, cheeses and freshly baked bread — taking orders and passing the sandwich down the assembly line for fresh veggies and Jersey Mike’s signature dressing — vinegar, oil and spices.

“We make everything from scratch,” said Paul Tonkovich, who was training new employees at the store. He flew in from the franchise’s headquarters in New Jersey.

The shop’s specialty is its certified Angus beef top rounds, trimmed and cooked right in the store.

“Everything is fresh. No pre-slicing and we even cook our own roast beef,” said Jim Wellbank, the store’s manager, owner and operator.

Wellbank picked Bonita Springs as the location to open a Jersey Mike’s because the closest one is in Fort Myers.

“It’s central and on the way to the beach. And it’s just a great area,” said Wellbank of the store that faces Bonita Beach Road. “There is excellent parking here and we wanted to bring something new to this area.”

Offering something new is why Wellbank makes fresh baked cookies and makes steak sandwiches on the spot.

“We have something for everyone. We carry an array of things ... low-carb, subs, wraps,” he said. “ ... even mini’s (subs) for the kids.”

The submarine-sized sandwiches are served hot or cold and the store also makes wraps, salads and offers catering to local business.

“We have had an excellent turnout in our opening,” said Wellbank of the response to the shop whose franchise history dates back to 1956.

Wellbank appreciates the community support and said he is working to collect donations for the Bonita Springs Assistance Office.

“We give to the community as much as possible,” said Wellbank, who will give customers who donate $2 a free sub if they bring in a store coupon. “We try to give back in some way.”

Reverse osmosis plant to expand

Bonita Springs Utilities customers will get more for their buck in the next five years as the company prepares to spend $128 million on building projects.

The projects include a reverse osmosis upgrade, utility relocations, some land acquisition and the replacement of one of the water plant tanks.

“This will help the customers ...,” said Fred Partin, the executive director of the utility.

Construction on the first of the major projects — expanding its reverse osmosis water treatment capacity — will begin next year.

“We will expand it from currently six million gallons per day and we will add three to four million gallons of capacity to that,” Partin said.

That $20 million expansion will take two years to complete and will respond to the growing area and increased water demands.
“That will cover the additional growth ... we anticipate in the foreseeable future,” Partin said.

Expanding the almost four- year-old reverse osmosis part of the water plant is necessary because it allows utility officials to provide water in times of severe drought or emergencies.

“This gives current customers a diversified water treatment plant,” he said of the plant that opened in 1971 off East Terry and used lime softening to treat water.

The Bonita Springs City Council agreed with Partin and voted 6-1 last week to allow utility officials to raise utility rates by 3. 4 percent.

The average bill will go up by $2.65 a month. The rate will increase Sept. 1.

“We are just adjusting to the economy ... ,” said Partin about the increase that was scheduled in the utility’s five-year plan for projects.

“This is just following to the time frame when we originally identified that it needed to be for.”

City Councilman Pat McCourt said the increase isn’t necessary because the utility shouldn’t charge existing customers for projects needed for growth.

He said the utility should use the existing $36 million surplus in its budget for projects or return it to existing customers.

“I understand that we have to give people raises and we need construction but I can’t justify the 60 percent increase over the last eight years,” said McCourt, who was the only council member to vote against the increase. “I’ve talked to a lot of people who are upset that we pay such high premiums.”

Utility officials want to provide the best service possible and feel it had to increase rates.

“I’d never say never,” said Partin when asked if rates would go up again.

The rates for current customers will be re-evaluated next year.

The exact locations of land the utility officials may acquire in the future, Partin said, aren’t determined yet.

“The area of land we might acquire is for right of way of wells and that’s just what we have to install in the coming years for our reverse osmosis plant,” Partin said. “We know that we need it and we will have to acquire the property, buy it, at some point.”

Pipers not selling Wonder Gardens

The Everglades Wonder Gardens in Bonita Springs is not for sale.

Owners David Piper and his brother Lester have received several offers to sell the park that has been in their family since the early 1930s.

“There has been a lot of interest but we haven’t closed any kind of deal or anything,” said David Piper. “The offers ... weren’t in the best interest of our family. We’ve been around a long time.”

Because of its history and unique collection of Florida wildlife, it’s still a popular Bonita Springs attraction.

“We haven’t actively tried to sell it but everything has its price,” Piper said.

The property faces Old 41 in downtown Bonita Springs and is adjacent to the river.

“They say there is no other property that is for mixed use and commercial that is on the river and that is privately owned,” he said, referring to what he has been told by interested buyers. “We are the only piece left so there is interest all over the U.S. ... it’s pretty amazing.”

Despite offers and contracts for the property, the park itself is still garnering interest from visitors, he said.

“It’s the off season but we’ve been happy with the summer,” Piper said of the park that is currently doing routine maintenance on its major attractions.
For now, the family has no plan to sell the park and is focusing on serving traveling groups, schools and bus groups.
“There are a lot of places to shop but there aren’t any alligator parks ...,” he said.