Government Relations & Lobbying
Bringing Client Goals to Fruition with Substantial Relationships and Deep Knowledge Our Government Relations & Lobbying team blends strong knowledge with impactful relationships. In fact,…
W. Lee Dobbins
About W. Lee Dobbins
Lee Dobbins practices land use, zoning, and commercial real estate law. He helps clients acquire and develop land, including negotiating purchase contracts, due diligence and obtaining local land development approvals.
Lee is the Managing Shareholder of Dean Mead’s Fort Pierce office. He has assisted clients in taking residential, commercial and mixed-use developments from the purchase of raw land through obtaining final development approvals. Lee also has experience obtaining economic development incentive grants and tax abatements, resolving utility issues, concurrency, debt restructuring transactions and drafting and negotiating complex commercial leases throughout the Treasure Coast.
Experience Highlights
Obtained approval of a master plan for a 200 acre mixed-use project anchored by a 9 acre man-made surf lagoon with a resort hotel.
Negotiated and drafted a 50-year ground lease for a mega-yacht maintenance and repair facility at the Port of Fort Pierce.
Key Legal Services
Primary Industries
- The Florida Bar - Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section - Member
- The Florida Bar - Environmental and Land Use Section – Member
- St. Lucie County Bar Association
- Economic Council of Okeechobee
- Leadership St. Lucie
- St. Lucie County Chamber of Commerce - President - 2002-2003
- St. Lucie County Chamber of Commerce - Board Member - 1998-2004
- St. Lucie County Economic Development Council - Board Member
- J.D.: University of Florida Levin College of Law, Gainesville, Florida, with honors, 1993;
- University of Florida - Trial Team, Member
- University of Florida Levin College of Law - Associate Research Editor, University of Florida Law Review
- Undergraduate Degree: B.A., Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, 1990
- Negotiated and drafted a 50-year ground lease for a mega-yacht maintenance and repair facility at the Port of Fort Pierce.
- Negotiated and drafted a development agreement for the King's Landing project in downtown Fort Pierce.
- Assisted a hotel developer with drafting and obtaining approval of amendments to the St. Lucie County Land Development Code creating a new zoning category for hotel resorts and allowing for condo-hotels.
- Negotiated and obtained approval of a development order for LTC Ranch West, a 2000 acre DRI in the City of Port St. Lucie.
- Obtained approval of The Atlantic, an $80M ocean-front luxury drug and alcohol treatment facility in St. Lucie County.
- Drafted and negotiated agreements with the City of Port St. Lucie for the construction of park improvements in the Riverland development in exchange for park impact fee credits.
- Negotiated and drafted several agreements between developers and St. Lucie County for the construction of road improvements or donation of road right-of-way, in exchange for road impact fee credits.
- Reviewed and negotiated multiple utility agreements with St. Lucie County, the City of Port St. Lucie and the Fort Pierce Utility Authority.
- Assisted in drafting the Planned Development zoning section of the Fort Pierce Land Development Code.
- Represented a private school in obtaining approvals to redevelop property in downtown Fort Pierce.
- Obtained development approvals and drafted and negotiated agreements with the City of Fort Pierce and St. Lucie County for the development of the 500 acre Village at Midway mixed-use project.
- Obtained development approvals and drafted and negotiated agreements with St. Lucie County addressing utilities and traffic concurrency for the 500 acre St. Lucie Commerce Center industrial park.
- Helped obtain development approvals and resolved permitting issues for the 1400 acre Tesoro luxury golf community in the City of Port St. Lucie.
- Negotiated and drafted an agreement with the St. Lucie County School Board for the donation of a school site in the LTC Ranch development, in exchange for school impact fee credits.
- Obtained approval of a 645 acre aggregates mine in western St. Lucie County.
- Obtained development approvals and resolved permitting issues for the Tesoro Preserve and Ravello waterfront communities in the City of Port St. Lucie.
- Assisted the developer of the Martin County Ranch Community in obtaining development approvals.
- Assisted a company in obtaining approvals and incentive grants to build a roof tile manufacturing plant in Okeechobee County.
- Negotiated and drafted an agreement for a developer to install water and sewer lines in a County right-of-way, and receive a portion of the connection fees from other properties connecting to that line.
- Assisted in obtaining development approvals and resolving permitting issues for Dollar General stores in Indian River County, St. Lucie County and Martin County.
- Assisted several companies in obtaining state and local government incentive grants and tax exemptions for expansions and relocations.
- Quoted in an article entitled, "Some waterfront property owners could be at risk of losing water access," published in Knowhere News on May 11, 2021
- Quoted in an article entitled, "Fort Pierce surfing center: dazzling proposal, but lots of questions remain," published in TCPalm on October 2, 2020
- Quoted in an article entitled, "Fort Pierce surf-pool developer lobbied for legislation to create rules to avoid using chlorine," published in TCPalm on September 29, 2020
- Quoted in an article entitled, "$595 surfing center and village with 800 homes, thousands of jobs may come to Fort Pierce," published in TCPalm on September 22, 2020
- House Bill 503 - Permit Extensions for Two Years, Dean Mead e-Newsletter, October 2012
- Florida's Ad Valorem Tax Exemption, Dean Mead e-Newsletter, June 2012
- Senate Bill 7207 - Permit Extensions, Dean Mead e-Newsletter, June 2011
- Senate Bill 1752 - Florida Economic Development Legislation, Dean Mead e-Newsletter, June 2010
- Florida
- St. Lucie County Council on Aging - Past Board Member
- St. Lucie County Education Foundation - Past Board Member
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