At the west end of 12th Avenue South, the barges are still offshore and the fences still run down to the sand, but the line of concrete heading out into the Gulf is now complete. On October 7, Shoreline Foundation Inc. drove the last of the 193 reinforced-concrete pilings for the new Naples Pier. Anyone walking past on Gulf Shore Boulevard South can see the full length of the pier for the first time since Hurricane Ian.
The City of Naples is targeting July 2027 for the reopening. The pier that opens then will be stronger and higher than the one Old Naples remembers. It will also be plainer, because the food stand that sat over the water since 1946 cannot come back. Pilings salvaged from the old pier have already been put to a second use about 10 miles offshore.
The last piling is in, and the reopening target is July 2027
The rebuild has moved quickly since the groundbreaking on January 5, 2026. Construction started the next day. The City's project page credits a calm summer for keeping crews on pace. The 2026 milestones so far:
- April 13: Demolition of the old pier finished.
- May 5: Divers began a month of clearing debris, including pilings from the 1990s still buried in the seabed.
- June 17: Crews started building a temporary trestle on the south side, so work can go on when weather sends the offshore barges to shelter.
- June 26: First concrete pour for the bents. The full project needs about 602 cubic yards of concrete.
- July 24: Third pour finished, and two-thirds of the new decking arrived.
- September 18: The mid-pavilion pour pushed the project past the halfway mark on concrete.
- October 7: The last piling was driven.
Next comes the rest of the structural work, which the contractor expects to finish by early 2027. After that, crews lay the Ipe decking, a tropical hardwood picked for how well it resists rot. Electrical work, foundation upgrades and renovations of the restrooms and storage areas are already underway.
The Naples Daily News put it plainly on October 6: this winter will be the fourth season without the pier. The paper also noted that beachgoers will have a clear view of the work through the rest of the year and into the winter months.
Built three feet higher for the next Ian
Ian took out about 140 feet of the old pier. That included the end shelter and more than 30 pilings, all of which ended up on the Gulf floor. Waves gutted the concession area, the midpoint shelter and the storage rooms. The structure had already been rebuilt after storms in 1910, 1926, 1944 and 1960. It was renovated in 2015, damaged by Irma two years later, and then destroyed by Ian five years after that.
With that history, the design team at Turrell, Hall & Associates and MHK Architecture worked mainly on how the pier holds up in a storm. Here is how the new pier compares with the old one.
- Piling size: 18 inches square, up from 14 inches. The City calls that a 65 percent boost.
- Piling length: 70, 85 and 100 feet, all longer than the longest pilings in the previous pier.
- Spacing: fewer pilings, set farther apart, to reduce effects on the shoreline and erosion.
- Concrete: nearly three times as much poured concrete as before.
- Height: three feet higher above the water.
The construction contract went to Shoreline Foundation in October 2024 for $23.5 million. FEMA committed funding in December 2025. Before that, the project spent much of 2025 waiting on federal permits, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers gave final approval that October. Those permits shaped more than the pilings. They also decide what visitors will find halfway out.
The over-water food stand is gone by rule
For decades, a stop at the mid-pier concession was part of a walk on the pier. According to Naples Press, the concession had been over the water since 1946, and Cosmos at the Pier ran it when Ian hit. FEMA advised the City that a concession stand over the water was prohibited. Naples Press also reported that a survey found a concession stand was not a top preference for visitors.
City Council looked at moving food service to the land end. In that same report, Naples Press said Council had decided a stand, deck and seating at the entry would make people bunch up and block the flow onto the pier. It would also bring noise, smells and other problems for neighbors. The design engineer explained the narrow opening that remains. Permanent food sales and vending machines are not an approved over-water use, but a food cart that is rolled on and off each day is allowed.
That is the plan now. At the March 4, 2026 Council meeting, Council stayed opposed to a full concession stand. It asked the City Manager to look at electrical capacity and a possible spot for a portable cart selling a few items such as water and ice cream. The City's project page now lists portable food and beverage carts at the mid-pavilion. No cart operator has been named yet.
The land end will also look different. The plan shown in March shrank the landside footprint well below the earlier concession-and-dining design. It includes:
- A small Beach Patrol office with its own restroom, next to the north restroom
- The old changing room turned into pier storage
- A small shade structure with benches and educational boards beside the south restroom
- Showers moved out from under the covered area
Gulf Coast News described the office as a small Naples Police substation with an accessible bathroom near the entrance. It also reported less shaded seating on the south side. Council approved the substation to add safety and staff presence on the pier. Naples Press reported in its earlier coverage that the rebuild would not include a bait shop. The City has not announced fishing rules, lighting, hours or a reopening ceremony.
The July 2027 pier will be a longer-lasting deck three feet above the water, with a cart at the midpoint, a patrol office at the entrance and a small shaded spot to sit.
Where the old pier went
Demolition wrapped up on April 13, but part of the old pier was reused. The City's timeline records 59 concrete pilings from it going down at Wasmer Reef on April 24, 2026. The Naples Daily News reported that the pilings weighed 300 tons and went down about 10 miles off Gordon Pass, at a reef first started in 2015.
Collier County's reef location inventory lists the site as the Naples Pier reef, at 26° 2.029' N, 81° 58.585' W, in 40 feet of water with 15 feet of relief. The county's entry lists the load as 250 tons and the deployment date as April 27. The county's Coastal Zone Management Department runs the artificial reef program. It coordinates monitoring and maintenance with Sea Grant, fishing guides and local agencies.
The neighborhood has gone four seasons without fishing from its pier, and pieces of that pier now form the base of an artificial reef. Before heading out to it, check the county program for current rules.
The beach end this winter
Until next summer, the pier is closed, along with its stairs, restrooms, showers and 12th Avenue South west of Gulf Shore Boulevard South. Parking in the pier lot is limited. The western third is open to the public, and the eastern two-thirds are closed for construction.
The City has set up pedestrian bypasses at two nearby beach ends, and both have restrooms:
- Broad Avenue South
- 13th Avenue South
The City's beach access table lists both as open and 12th Avenue South as closed. For guests coming down this season, either beach end gives a close view of the construction site.
If friends or family visiting this winter ask when they can walk out to the end again, the honest answer is July 2027, and the City is reporting that the job is on schedule. If you are weighing how a landmark rebuild like this fits into a move to Old Naples, or you want an informed read on the blocks near 12th Avenue South, Tom & Sue Weidlich are glad to talk it through. Book an Appointment and we will give you a local view of what is changing at the beach end.
