Pelican Bay

Pelican Bay is a large, long-established master-planned community spanning roughly 2,330 acres in north Naples, originally developed starting in 1972 by a division of Westinghouse Corporation before being renamed Pelican Bay in 1974; WCI Communities and Gulf Bay Group of Companies later developed subsequent phases, including many of the community’s Gulf-front high-rise condominium towers. The community’s defining amenity is nearly 3 miles of private Gulf beach, reached via an open-air electric tram system running along a raised berm through a mangrove conservation area to two beachfront pavilions with restaurants (Marker 36 and Sandbar, the latter recently renovated) exclusively for Pelican Bay Foundation members, whose mandatory annual assessment (reported at $3,295 for fiscal year 2026) also covers the Community Center, fitness and wellness programming, and 18 Har-Tru tennis courts. Golf is organized separately through the privately owned Club Pelican Bay, a 27-hole facility (three nine-hole courses designed by Arthur Hills) with optional membership carrying substantial reported costs, roughly $130,000 to $150,000 in initiation fees plus over $13,000 in annual dues for full golf access. The community endured serious, well-documented storm-surge flooding during Hurricane Ian in September 2022, with surge in the adjacent Clam Bay system recorded at 9 to 13.2 feet and water reportedly reaching 6 feet high on Pelican Bay Boulevard, flooding lower parking garages across the high-rise towers and totaling more than 450 vehicles by some accounts; Hurricane Milton in October 2024 caused additional but reportedly less severe damage, aided by the Foundation having moved its tram vehicles to higher ground beforehand as a lesson learned from Ian. A beach renourishment project at Pelican Bay and neighboring Vanderbilt Beach, completed in January 2026, deposited roughly 400,000 tons of sand combined, with Pelican Bay’s roughly $2.5 million share funded through the Pelican Bay Services Division, a Collier County taxing unit, rather than the county directly, since the beach is private. The community’s most significant current controversy is a 2024-2026 dispute over a proposal by the neighboring Naples Grande Beach Resort (which sits within Pelican Bay’s planned unit development) to convert seven existing tennis courts into a water-park-style amenity with a lazy river and slides; a coalition of more than 50 residents, led by the closest affected neighborhoods (Bay Villas, Tierra Mar, and Bridge-Way Villas), opposed the project on noise, traffic, and parking grounds, with Bay Villas alone reportedly spending $100,000 in legal and professional fees and raising nearly $40,000 through a GoFundMe campaign; as of the most recent reporting found (March 2026), Collier County’s zoning division had sided with the resort, though the dispute’s final resolution was not confirmed. Layered mandatory and optional costs at Pelican Bay are substantial and worth disclosing plainly: the $3,295 annual Foundation assessment, a $10,000 resale capital assessment due at closing, separate building HOA dues that vary by tower, and up to $150,000 in optional golf-club costs represent a genuinely high total cost structure even before considering Naples-area property insurance, which commonly runs $4,000 or more annually and has faced significant underwriting pressure since Hurricane Ian.

Age Restriction

Pelican Bay is a general-population community with no legal age restriction or deed covenant limiting residency by age, despite one directory site (55places.com) listing it as a "55+ community" — this appears to be a marketing mischaracterization rather than a legal designation, since Naples’s formal 55-plus deed-restricted communities had largely gone out of style by the early 1980s and Pelican Bay was never developed as one. Population figures conflict across sources (roughly 6,159 to 6,660 residents depending on source and vintage), with a median age around 75 and roughly 78 percent of residents 65 or older — meaning it functions overwhelmingly as a retiree community by demographics even though it carries no legal restriction.

Housing Types

• High-rise Gulf-front condominium towers
• Low-rise condominiums
• Attached and detached villas
• Single-family homes

Pricing

Total residence figures conflict somewhat across sources: one breakdown cites 717 single-family homes plus 5,550 condominiums (roughly 6,267 total) across 95 distinct buildings and neighborhoods, while other sources round to "6,500-plus residences." As of a spring 2026 snapshot, community-wide condo prices ranged from roughly $199,000 to $38,000,000, with an overall median around $1,595,000 and average sale price around $2,200,776; high-rise condos specifically carried a median of roughly $2,300,000 to $2,350,000 across 2025 and 2026 with 73 closed sales in each year, and single-family homes averaged roughly $3,624,000 in 2025 sales (about $1,032 per square foot). Villa pricing was reported as roughly $1,195,000 to $34,900,000, though the top end of that range likely reflects an ultra-luxury outlier rather than a typical villa sale. These figures come from real-estate marketing aggregation rather than a single dated MLS pull and should be re-verified before relying on an exact number.

Fees & Assessments

HOA Dues: The mandatory Pelican Bay Foundation annual assessment for fiscal year 2026 is reported at $3,295, billed quarterly at roughly $823.75 (about $275 per month); this covers the private beach system, the two beachfront restaurants, tram transportation, the Community Center, fitness and wellness programming, and racquet (tennis) facilities. This Foundation fee is separate from and in addition to individual building or condo association dues, which vary by tower and were not itemized in this research. One reconciliation suggests a lower "$2,083" figure cited elsewhere may represent only the operating component before reserves and bulk media are folded in, but this was not independently confirmed against a current budget document.

Club/Golf Fees: Golf at Pelican Bay is organized through Club Pelican Bay (also known as The Club at Pelican Bay), a private, member-owned club that opened in 1980 and offers 27 holes across three nine-hole courses (Club, Pelican, and Bay) designed by Arthur Hills, plus a major clubhouse, spa, and fitness renovation completed in 2016. Membership is separate and optional from the mandatory Foundation beach dues. Reported costs conflict somewhat: a golf membership initiation fee is cited as either $150,000 or $130,000 depending on source, with annual golf dues around $13,070 and a $50,000 social membership joining fee carrying annual dues around $3,120; additional capital assessment, food and beverage minimum, and cart fees may also apply. A separate, related private club, Bay Colony Golf Club, offers an 18-hole course designed by Robert von Hagge for some Pelican Bay and Bay Colony residents. Note: "Pelican’s Nest," a similarly named 36-hole club, is a different, unrelated facility inside Pelican Landing in Bonita Springs and should not be confused with Pelican Bay’s own golf offerings.

Capital Contribution / Transfer Fees: A $10,000 resale capital assessment is reported as due at closing on any Pelican Bay purchase, with a reported one-time exemption for existing Pelican Bay owners who move to a different property within the community. This figure comes from a secondary source referencing the Foundation’s own estoppel documentation and should be confirmed directly before closing.

Amenities

• Nearly 3 miles of private Gulf beach, open daily 9 a.m. to sunset, accessible exclusively to Pelican Bay Foundation members (each owner may bring up to 6 guests)
• An open-air, electric tram system with 8 stations along a raised berm through a mangrove conservation area, connecting to North Beach and South Beach pavilions
• Marker 36, an upscale beachfront restaurant with an island/Caribbean-inspired menu and seasonal live music
• Sandbar, a more casual beachfront restaurant with a Mediterranean-leaning menu, renovated and reopened as one of the Foundation’s 2024-2025 accomplishments
• "The Nest," the renovated former Clam Pass building repurposed for member use
• A Community Center with fitness and wellness programming and 18 Har-Tru tennis courts
• A community park project with new pickleball courts, finalized and under construction as of the Foundation’s 2025 annual meeting
• Nature trails through the mangrove preserve

Getting Around

Healthcare: NCH Healthcare System operates two acute-care hospitals in the immediate area, NCH Baker Hospital downtown and NCH North Naples Hospital, with a combined capacity of roughly 716 beds and regional cancer and heart institutes; NCH North Naples Hospital is likely the closer of the two given Pelican Bay’s north Naples location, though this research could not confirm an exact mileage or drive time.

Airport: Southwest Florida International Airport is estimated at roughly 30 to 35 minutes by drive via I-75, somewhat closer than downtown Naples is to the same airport given Pelican Bay’s more northerly location; downtown Naples’ Fifth Avenue South is reported at roughly 6 to 7 miles, or 15 to 20 minutes, away.