by SC Reporter Emilie Alfino
It helps to understand Realtor Eric Pfeifer’s commitment to Sanibel when you hear this story. Eric’s wife, Mary Ellen, had been coming to Sanibel for vacations with her family since 1968. When Eric and his family moved to Sanibel in 2001, Mary Ellen’s dad gave Eric a note that she had written back in 1968 that said, “When I grow up, I want to live on Sanibel.” Eric, of course, was a big part of making that dream come true.
“Mary Ellen introduced me to Sanibel in 1989. Every year we returned, always dreaming of one day living in such a paradise,” Eric explained. “With the birth of our daughter Darby in 1997 and our son John in 1998, our priorities changed. Was living on Sanibel and Captiva just a dream? What were we waiting for? Retirement? Our children to graduate from college? Why not pursue this dream together as a family? What better place to raise children than a small resort community on a subtropical barrier island?”
Thrilled to be island residents, Eric and Mary Ellen lost no time becoming community “insiders.” Eric became an active member and board member of the Sanibel & Captiva Kiwanis Club, and Mary Ellen volunteered on the board of the Children’s Education Center of the Islands. Because sports were a major part of Eric’s life growing up, he stayed busy with his children’s activities, coaching T-ball and slow-pitch softball as well as soccer. He started the first NFL Youth Flag Football League, attracting 80 children in its first season. Eric also served on the city’s Sanibel Parks and Recreation Committee.
Eric grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, where he attended the Gilman School for Boys and later graduated from Vanderbilt University with a degree in Civil Engineering. He worked as an Engineer and Project Manager on jobs in both Georgia and Florida, building bridges and wharves and beltways. He later joined his two older brothers in a family business where they grew their company rapidly, earning recognition from Inc. 500 for two consecutive years as one of the fastest-growing companies in the United States.
As a business owner managing more than 80 employees and working crazy hours six and often seven days a week, Eric cherished his family time. Family vacations to Sanibel were always too short and too far between. After the birth of their second child in 1998, Eric and his wife decided that Sanibel could no longer be just a dream put off for future retirement, but a home for their family year-round. They achieved their dream in 2001 and moved to Sanibel full-time.
Because Sanibel did not (and still doesn’t) have a big demand for Professional Engineers, Eric launched a new career in Sanibel real estate. He obtained both his Realtor license and his Contractor license at the same time. Always a quick study, he quickly earned accolades for his real estate prowess. He opened his own brokerage in 2008, Pfeifer Realty Group, on Periwinkle Way and went on to win the Sanibel Captiva Community Service Award eight times. His customer-service awards from Realtor associations are numerous, often receiving the highest customer service scores nationwide. He was also honored as the Sanibel Captiva Chamber of Commerce’s Citizen of the Year in 2016.
Eric defines success one family at a time, combining old-fashioned hard work, leadership, and professional integrity to get the job done. Since January 2004, he has helped more buyers make their Sanibel and Captiva real estate dreams a reality than any other island agent.
“I don’t just sell island real estate, I invest in it, because I believe there is no place in the world like Sanibel and Captiva,” Eric said. “I truly love what I do and love where I live. This is not only my livelihood, but it’s my life here, and it’s just in my DNA to give back. I don’t sit on the sideline and complain. I want to be involved and be part of the narrative.”
Soon Eric was getting contacted by island nonprofits to join boards. “I don’t love long meetings, but I can give back in other ways, be more of a spokesperson, be Master of Ceremonies for certain events, for FISH, for the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation. I really like being a spokesperson and speaking from my heart for these nonprofits, which are so important. I don’t know if residents see the connection between nonprofits and the strength of the community, but I do. I like to give back.”
“It takes a lot of people to help run a community,” Eric continued. “Community Housing & Resources for example. If we don’t have affordable housing for people who work out here, it will be impossible to get people to work out here. In the City’s plan in 1975, we were supposed to try for 3 percent of all resident properties to be below-market-rate housing.” Eric estimated that to be about 135 properties, but “we’ve never gotten over 100. It’s a major issue. CHR needs to be successful for this island to be successful.”
Most people don’t know about FISH’s existence on this island, Eric continued. “But helping people with health issues who need equipment, or someone who needs a ride to a doctor’s appointment. Or maybe somebody who needs help with their taxes. These are social services that every community needs”
And of course one of the biggest is probably SCCF because they buy land to keep it in conservation. There is currently around 70% conservation land on the island that can never be built on. Mary Ellen Pfeifer is on the SCCF board.
Currently Eric is on the board of Charitable Foundation of the Islands. “I didn’t know what it was when I first started. What a great organization that is.” CFI got all the islands’ executive directors together. “We recently had the Volunteer Expo with 50 organizations looking for new volunteers. About 500 people attended, and it was one of the greatest get-togethers of the community. CFI collaborates with all the other nonprofits. They also have the Leadership program. Fifteen members of the Leadership program now sit on island boards. “It’s kind of a culmination of all the nonprofit work I’ve done all under one roof, and I love it.”
The list of Eric’s activities as a supporter of the Sanibel and Captiva communities is too long to list here, but among them are the Bailey Matthews National Shell Museum, the Sanibel Community House, J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel School Fund, United Way, Sanibel Sea School, Sanibel Historical Museum & Village, and Coastal Watch.
In 2005, Eric ran for Sanibel City Council. “Although I did not win the election,” he said, “the experience was a great education in island politics and again affirmed to me that Sanibel is truly a community where all of its citizens are passionate about this great island and its many wonderful resources.”
Eric always thought about whether he should run for City Council again, and in watching and listening to the Planning Commission, he decided it was a better fit for his background in engineering. Although he let his engineering license expire in 2017, he still has his contractor’s license in the state of Florida. “Between engineering, construction, and real estate, I understood the Land Development Code and felt like that was more in my wheelhouse,” he explained.
Eric served on the Planning Commission for five years and was up for renewal in 2024. He could have applied for three more years but said he didn’t feel like he was making a huge difference there. “From Hurricane Ian until my last meeting in December 2024, there was only one new project that was approved and that was Shalimar. So I got frustrated. Why aren’t we approving more? I felt it was not the best use of my time.”
Throughout his tenure, his views on the Land Development Code were strong.
“For 50 years the Land Development Code has been incredible,” he said. “It’s basically our constitution, and we’ve learned to live by it. When you first arrive, it can be frustrating to understand how restrictive it is. But when you live here and your neighbor wants to do something, you appreciate the rules and regulations. So I think it’s imperative that we have it and that we continue it even though it sometimes feels overly restrictive.”
But from 1975 to 2025, the Code served its purpose and that was to keep developers off the island, to regulate density, to regulate intensity of use, he said. “For those reasons, I think it’s great,” Eric explained. “What’s proving true now is that after hurricanes Ian and Milton and Helene, it needs to be looked at and revised. We might need ‘Sanibel 2.0.’” Eric thinks some things need to be changed now. He was adamant, however, that “No one, I mean no one, wants more density, more houses or condos, and nobody wants high rises, and that will never change. But now we’re talking about the R word, resiliency.”
Eric said to keep in mind that the Land Development Code was written in 1975, while the flood maps were not issued until 1979. “Everybody was building on the ground, and we established a height limit based on that. When the flood maps came out the first floor had to be above the base flood elevation – should the height have been addressed then? But we didn’t have any flooding from Hurricane Donna to Hurricane Ian. So it really wasn’t a big deal. Now looking back, it is a big deal.”
Porter Goss in one of the first meetings since the storm said, we thought we had planned for everything, but we didn’t plan for Hurricane Ian because it had never happened before. Now it not only happened but it seems to be happening more frequently. “So should the code now address not only construction but existing homes, should people pay money to get a variance at the discretion of seven planning commissioners, or should the city say, we want you to build back resiliently, we’ll give you additional height for your existing home?”
Again, Eric stressed, “I want to be very clear. I’m not interested in changing height across the board as South Seas is discussing. The way we measure height should not be from the ground but from the base flood elevation.”
Changes to the Code are not easy. The process involves City Council giving direction to the Planning Commission. Then it goes to the Commission’s Land Development Code Review Subcommittee which makes a recommendation to the Planning Commission. Then it goes to City Council which has to give public notice and there’s a first reading and a month later, a second reading.
“So that would take a long time, and that’s just for one change not the whole Land Development Code,” Eric explained. “So my recommendation would be to hire a firm to work on the whole Code and while we’re waiting for that, make emergency changes for ground level houses, for example.”
Eric feels it’s the obligation of realtors to educate new people to Sanibel, how it’s all interconnected and that giving back is a big part of this community. For example, SCCF gives a free one-year membership to newcomers, but new people don’t know what SCCF is, so, as realtors, Eric feels they should educate them on SCCF, FISH, CHR, CFI, and others, and invite them to the City’s orientation of new residents and the like.
“I feel like we’re the liaisons between the community and the new residents, and I feel an obligation to help people, to ask them to get involved,” Eric said. “We’re ambassadors for our community. That’s how I see it. I’m not saying that’s how every realtor looks at it, but they should.”
“Real estate represents being a part of something bigger, a neighborhood, and a community. On Sanibel and Captiva islands, we have a great community that is not just a series of neighborhoods gated and isolated from other neighborhoods; we are all neighbors here on the islands, and it shows any time you attend a community event.
“As a full-time island resident, getting involved in the many island civic groups and staying involved has been a great pleasure. Nowhere else have I found a community of residents so generous of their time and efforts as well as their financial support for the many benefits and nonprofit organizations.”
As to the future? “I am 100 percent here for the long haul.”
Eric Pfeifer: A Voice for Progress
Although no longer on the Planning Commission, Eric plans to continue to be an involved citizen and a voice for progress in the City. He made these suggestions to the City Council and Planning Commission at a Joint Workshop on Tuesday, Feb. 18.
First, Remember Hurricane Ian was a true natural disaster, so recovery takes time. There’s some negativity going around about the city, and it’s not entirely true. If anybody is working against us, it’s the insurance companies. This is why when you walk along the beach, you see some buildings that have not yet been started. They’re not only waiting for insurance, but now they’re litigating, which will take about 18 months because this is how litigation works.
Second, there are the things we can control and what the city can do to help us. I do think the Land Development Code is one part of the equation of how we can get back on our feet. We need time to address the LDC. I am not looking for more density, high rises, or intensity of use. No one wants that. I don’t want to get misinterpreted. But there are other things we can change between the Planning Department and the Natural Resources Department, the strict enforcement of the rules of 1975, let’s put some discretion and logic and common sense in that.
Third, I would like to see some better communication between the city and its residents. In any relationship, it’s always about communication. When there are problems and people get angry, it’s maybe a lack of communication. For example we have a stormwater retention issue right now. So the city hired Johnson Engineering who did an island-wide topography study about how it’s all interconnected and how everything is working. The city was blamed for mismanaging the weirs, and that’s not true at all, but until the city articulates what happened, people don’t know that. What is the plan now that you’ve paid Johnson Engineering? I think the city needs to communicate that.
Fourth, fast-track variances in a state of emergency. It takes a long time and costs money to apply for a variance. The seven variance standards that have to be met are nearly impossible to meet, I learned on the Planning Commission. The Code was written such that we really don’t want variances. So you need some discretion on the Planning Commission. I think the city should fast track the process in a state of emergency. Any changes or leniency should happen only in a state of emergency, which we are still in now.
Fifth, we need to have a better relationship with Lee County. We are not meeting with them on a regular basis. So we need a healthier relationship there.
Sixth, revisit the ombudsman position that came up during the budget hearings. I was a supporter of this idea. If you’re a homeowner and want to apply for a permit, treat it like triage, with the help of an ombudsman.
Finally, the city should hold meetings with all of the city directors, and City Manager Dana Souza should ask what they’re hearing about hold-ups, and how do we get to a ‘yes’ with a property owner instead of frustrating them with saying ‘no.’ Instead say, I’m going to do everything in my power to get this approved, so let’s work together. It used to happen. I don’t know if it happens now or not, regular meetings with the directors of each department, how can we get to a yes. Everybody’s frustrated, manager, staff, Council, Planning Commission, because of the financial disaster. How can we make it better?
“That’s what I’m working on now,” Eric concluded.