Basik Instincts: Part Three

A bomb exploding in his family home was a startling early childhood memory for Keith Basik. To be sure, Basik’s life on Marco Island, at West Point, in the Gulf War, and as a Naples developer, has had its share of peaks and valleys. But fortunately for Basik, the actual explosions are in his past. 

Basik was sitting in class at Tommie Barfield Elementary when he found out someone had detonated a bomb in his family home as it was being constructed. It was part of a rocky move to Marco Island for the eight-year-old. 

"I just remember having the most difficult times,” Basik said. "I remember that being difficult. I remember we were building the house, and it got delayed because of the bomb. It was April 1974. Someone put a bomb in it and blew it up, and it took us another year or so to get through it.” 

Initially, the Basiks thought the explosion could be tied to striking union construction workers on the island. Fortunately, no one was injured in the explosion. 

"There were different rumors,” he said. "And in terms of who was responsible, initially we thought it was Deltona. Then, 30 years later, I find out that's not really the case. It wasn't Deltona or people crossing the picket line at that time. It was more issues up in Chicago that kind of manifested or found their way down here. So, yeah, it was an interesting time. It was like, oh my gosh, why did we move down here? But it's turned out good.” 

Basik figures he gets his entrepreneurial mindset from his father Larry, who was an impactful developer on Marco Island starting in the early 1970s. 

“We came in 1973,” Basik said, “but my dad came several years earlier." 

Larry Basik was introduced to the island by a Deltona Corporation sales trip. Deltona, led by the Mackle Brothers, was the developer of modern Marco Island, which started in the mid-1960s. 

"Like a lot of people,we were from Chicago,” Basik said.“Deltona did these business junkets, and they would advertise in Chicago. Deltona would fly people down here and show them what they've got and try to sell them. So apparently, the first time my dad came down, he bought four lots. He comes home and tells my mom that, oh, by the way, I bought four lots. So, the next thing we know, we’re coming down here in 1973. The first couple of weeks, we stayed at the old motel section of the Marco Island Inn.” 

Larry and Anita Basik had six children. Laura was the oldest and the only daughter. Keith had brothers Jeff, Brian, Dan, and Kevin. Keith arrived between Dan and Kevin. He said the move to Marco was hardest on him and his sister. 

"I had a difficult time with it, and my sister did, too,” he said. "I think I was a shy kid, and it just was very uncomfortable for me. It was uncomfortable for my sister. She was just going to high school up in Chicago with all her friends. There wasn't all that much on Marco. You had the hotel. You had some of the smaller condos, maybe a couple of larger ones. But there wasn't a lot going on here. It was a totally new environment. They were going to school in two sessions. So, they didn't have Lely High School just yet. So that was kind of an odd thing. Then there's a double homicide or suicide, homicide that occurred in the graveyard. Kind of freaked her out.” 

The Basik family ended up thriving on Marco Island, with all five brothers graduating from military academies. His sister Laura ended up adapting well. In fact, she ended up being the homecoming queen at Lely High. All of the boys were noted athletes at Lely, especially on the football field. Like high school students continue to do today, Basik worked a variety of jobs on the island. 

"I worked at the Chevron gas station,” he said. "I worked at the Radisson as a bellhop. I also worked at the Marco Beach Hotel when they had all those clay courts. I was one of the court guys. 

Larry developed the Port of Marco Shopping Village in Old Marco, a very popular shopping and dining destination for islanders and tourists alike.  

"He built Mancuso's Deli,” Basik said. "Mancuso is my mom's maiden name. My aunt and uncle ran Mancuso's. My uncle ended up coming down after we did. So, my dad said let's create this deli and call it Mancuso's Deli. It had John's Cellar, that was my grandfather's name. It was just a little corner wine deal. The rest of it was the deli. We had a pizza every Friday night." 

Larry Basik then built Delaney’s seafood restaurant (now Cafe de Marco). 

"He knew Dick Delaney,” Basik said. "Somehow, it connected back to Chicago. So, he got them going with Delaney’s seafood restaurant." 

Delaney’s enjoyed a 10-year run from 1974 to 1983. Cafe de Marco eventually took over the Delaney’s building. The back of a Cafe de Marco tells some of the building's history. “This old Florida style building enjoys a rich part of Marco Island’s history…this building served as housing for the chambermaids working at the Inn…in 1983, the restaurant was sold to Sandy Scheduler-Franchino, and it became Cafe de Marco.” 

Basik recalls hanging out in the Port of Marco Shopping Village and the special vibe it had. 

"During its era, it really was a neat place,” he said. "At the time, it was just right. You had Delaney's, then you had this other shopping area. A couple of them would have little restaurants. And we had the big banyan tree. We worked there as kids. During its time, it was pretty cool."  

Larry Basik also purchased 60 acres of land on the Tamiami Trail between S.R. 951 and C.R. 92. 

"He ended up buying this in 1975,” Basik said from his office at Hideaway Storage, located on the property. "He bought it from a priest. My dad was sometimes too ahead of his time. Apparently, the priest said, ‘You know something like this will provide your family money or security in the future.' We always laugh because we say, ‘Unfortunately, the priest didn't tell us how long until it would take.' It took 50 years or so to get to the point where you’d say, okay, I think we're a little stabilized now.” 

The Basiks were definitely ahead of their time when they developed the Big Cypress Marketplace on that acreage. By this time, Keith had graduated from West Point, served in the Gulf War, and decided to join his father in the development business. They took a big swing at success when they designed and built the 100,000 sq. ft. Big Cypress Marketplace (think of a very large Bass Pro Shop). 

The Basiks billed their location as the Everglades Outpost, or the Gateway to the Everglades, bordered by four national parks and three state parks, offering their location as a central hub/welcome and education center for the parks to launch ecotours, excursions, events, educational workshops, and boating and fishing trips. The property was also being touted as a future hotel opportunity. The other two components of the property were the Big Cypress RV/cabin park and Big Cypress industrial storage/warehouse. 

And talk about taking big swings, Larry Basik had plans to bring the Space Shuttle to Big Cypress Marketplace. Basik said it’s a perfect illustration of his father’s trademark style. 

"He convinces not only me,” Basik said, "but the guy from NASA that we could probably get it. I end up going before the Board of County Commissioners to accept a proclamation to get the Space Shuttle here. That's my dad. He makes you think outside the box. My dad had a way of convincing us and everyone else of a bigger picture. The space shuttle was getting deactivated or decommissioned. My dad reached out to NASA and said, ‘Can we get it?' And I'm going, ‘Dad, there's no way we're going to get it.' But my dad just persisted. I swear, when I talked to the guy from NASA, he said, send me the paperwork. I'm thinking, you've got to be kidding me. We're thinking we're going to get the space shuttle.”  

The huge Big Cypress Marketplace was built primarily as an indoor flea market and winery. As construction progressed, the price tag of the elaborate facility also increased. 

“As time went on, the cost and the design of it had gone up,” said Basik.“And what we were doing became bigger and got more expensive. It was one heck of a place. No one could say anything negative about the way the place looked. We're a gateway into the Everglades, you know?” 

But shortly after the Big Cypress Marketplace opens, disaster strikes. 

“We eventually get up and running,” Basik said. "The building itself couldn’t have turned out better. But we opened up a month before Lehman Brothers crashed. Your ability to sustain a project during its infancy became exceptionally problematic. It was something that we couldn't hold on to. It was a tough, tough period. I don't think a lot of people understood what we were going through. It was a tough go. My dad lost the property during the savings and loan crisis.” 

But things eventually worked out, and today, Larry Basik’s old property, minus the Marketplace section, is back in the Basik family. 

"My brother Jeff and I came in, with my dad's knowledge, and ended up repurchasing it,” Basik said. "I had to prove to the bank that we could do something out here. Industrial condos are a very well-known idea now - the big man caves and all that. But back in 2003, no one else was doing it. I told my dad, 'I think this can work because I think there's a need for industrial. I think there's a market on Marco because there's not much land on Marco.’” 

Things have worked out well for Basik. He currently oversees The Hideout Elite Motor Storage and a concrete and mulch recycling operation on the property. And he’s always looking for more uses for his property. It’s already a popular destination for RVs with outside, covered, and inside industrial condo options, but Basik hints that a waterfront expansion of the RV segment could be coming, given there’s a nice body of water on the property. 

Who knows for sure what might be next for Basik. But one thing’s for sure, he is his father’s son. So, creative ideas and an entrepreneurial spirit will certainly be part of his plan. 

"On my dad's memorial stone it says, to a guy who says you just never know,” Basik said. “That was his saying, you just never know. Just give it a try."