History Saved

Sometimes the adage out with the old, in with the new is not the best one. In the case of one special gazebo, or shade structure on the island, what’s old is new again might be more appropriate. 

Father and son Jim and Bradley Chute built the gazebo in 2013 as the younger Chute’s Eagle Scout project. Since then the gazebo has provided shade for countless visitors to Veterans’ Park.

But a lot can happen in 10 years, especially on Marco Island, where perfectly good structures are routinely torn down and replaced with something glittering and new.

It turns out the father-son Eagle Scout project was one of the final projects for Jim Chute, an artisan, who for 25 years was the owner/operator of Island Wood Shop, where he specialized in custom cabinets.

"He passed away July of 2017,” Bradley Chute said solemnly. "This project was finished in 2013. During this time period I was still working for my dad. I would help him with projects around the shop. This was the last big project for him. The last hurrah.”

It’s hard to say who was proudest or most moved Friday morning when a handful of the people, most involved in saving Jim and Bradley’s gazebo, met at the gazebo’s new location at Leigh Plummer Park, on Barfield Drive.

Martha Montgomery, the city’s facilities supervisor, was certainly a key player in saving the shade structure, but she didn’t do it alone.

“This was a group effort,” Martha Montgomery said. "When they started to do the renovations at Veterans’ Park, the mother of the son who built this gazebo found out that it was going to be torn down. She called the city and asked for it to be saved. That began my journey.”

Montgomery, the city’s Fleet and Facilities Management Department Supervisor, worked hand-in-hand with the city’s public works department to figure out the logistics.

"Public Works was a big help,” Montgomery said, “Mike Chidester, Public Works supervisor, coordinated with the contractor at Veterans’ Community Park.”

The portion of the Veterans’ Park project where the gazebo was located was about to be redeveloped.

“He told me, ‘We’re getting ready to develop that site – where do you want it’” Montgomery said. “The only open space we could move it to was at Lily Court, behind the maintenance building. This project was in permitting for a while. Leigh Plummer Park never had a site development plan. So that, along with permitting, was the issue.”

Moving the gazebo was no easy task. Montgomery had to beat the bushes to find help.

"I reached out to nine vendors to get estimates,” continued Montgomery. "What I needed them to do was bring this to Leigh Plummer Park and to assemble it. I only heard back from one. I had no response from a few. I had four say that they weren’t interested in the job. The difficulty with this is that contractors will install a new shade structure. Manufacturers will hire someone to install a new shade structure. And since this one was old, and didn’t come from a manufacturer, they kind of shied away from it. Which is understandable. At that point I reached out to Bradley Chute. I said, ‘Can you meet me at Lily Court? I just want to get the history of this so I understand why we’re doing this—if we can do this.’ When he turns the corner and he looks at it, he says, ‘Oh my goodness. This is in such great shape. I was worried about the travel and everything.'”

Bradley Chute will never forget seeing the gazebo at the Lily Court facility.

"I went and visited it one time,” Bradley said, "to make sure everything was still together and that we had all the parts to move it again. Martha was basically the director to get the trailer, get the crane, and get everybody together to get it moved over to Leigh Plummer Park. She was the biggest help in terms of the coordination of the movement of the project. She did the permits. She was able to get the concrete slab poured. She made it happen so quick. I was blown away. She said, ‘We’re going to have the slab poured next week and it’s going to be assembled in about two weeks, we’ll let you know.’  Boom. It’s already done. That’s amazing.”

Of course it wasn’t as easy as Montgomery made it look. But she did have the advantage of a total buy in from everyone involved. When she met Bradley Chute at Lily Court, Montgomery didn’t realize that Jim Chute had passed in 2017.

“When I was having this conversation with Bradley, I didn’t know if it might not be better to go the route of a new shade structure. He had gotten everything donated. He and his father had taken it out to Veterans’ Community Park and assembled it onsite. But then I noticed he was talking about his dad in the past tense. I said, ‘Is your dad with you now to help you if we do this again?' He said, ’No, my dad’s passed away. This was one of the last projects we worked on together.' I said right away, ‘We’ve got to figure this out.’”

There was one big stumbling block that Montgomery had to overcome.

"The issue was really with the roof,” she said, “transporting it, because it’s wide and it’s heavy. I reached out to Jamie Wasko of Moore Roofing, because Bradley told me Moore Roofing had donated the roof. Jamie said, ‘Oh wow. We’ve got to save it. We’ve got to make it work. Give me a little time to figure this out.’  He called me about a week later. He said, ‘I think I’ve got it.’"

Wasko laid out a game plan for Montgomery for moving the almost five-ton roof.

“He said, 'We’ve got a company with the machine needed to lift the roof from the flatbed,’” Montgomery said. "But he said, 'I need you to get it there.'  I said, ‘okay, let me figure it out.'  So I called Public Works. I gave them the move date. Mike Chidester said, ‘I can do it.’  So he loaded everything up.

"The day before he was going to do it, he said, ‘I have a favor to ask you. Can we get a police escort?’ His concern was that he could do it early in the morning, but there’s still going to be cars on the road. So I asked the police department for help. They all showed up at 6:30 in the morning. There was a police escort in front of them, and a police escort in back of them, and they dropped it at Leigh Plummer Park with no problem at all. Jamie coordinated with his guy to be here the next day. His guy came and lifted the roof and put it on. Then Jamie’s crew came out and added anything that was missing. They added the brackets. They added new wood. The roof, from travel, was a little bent. They fixed all that. Because of the father-son story, Jamie felt he needed to help the community, and he didn’t charge anything for it.”

"I’m happy to do it,” Wasko said. "We’ve been here nearly 20 years, and this community has supported us. And we’re here to support this community.”

Bradley and Linda Chute certainly appreciate Wasko. Bradley remembers going to Moore Roofing when he was a 13-year-old Boy Scout.

"Moore Roofing originally sponsored the entire green roof,” Bradley Chute said. "The rock was all donated by Island Rock. Naples Lumber donated the trusses.”

Linda Chute remembers her son approaching local homes and businesses.

"He had to go door to door and ring doorbells and explain what he was doing,” Linda Chute said.

“I had to go to all of these businesses in uniform and explain,” Bradley Chute said.

The Chutes have no doubt the gazebo would have been a casualty if they had not contacted City Hall with their concerns.

"We found out there were serious renovation plans for Veterans’ Park going on,” Bradley Chute said. "I did a little bit of research into the plans. My project was nowhere in the plans whatsoever. We eventually contacted the city. It wasn’t until then that someone said, ‘Oh, someone still cares about that building.’"

Montgomery remembers when she first learned of the gazebo.

’They said the Boy Scouts have a structure,” Montgomery said. "Then I found out it was an Eagle Scout and he built it with his dad. They even had the drawings. It was a great story that I didn’t know until I met with them. I'm glad I met with them because I wouldn’t have known all this. Bradley’s a great kid.”

"That’s when we went from basically destruction/demolition to relocation,” Bradley Chute said. 

Linda and Bradley Chute remember how they felt when they realized the gazebo was likely headed for destruction. 

“Heartbroken,” Linda Chute said.

"Devastated a little bit,” Bradley Chute said, "to think that it’s just going to get mowed over."  

Thankfully, the Chute’s gazebo is now in a great spot in Leigh Plummer Park, ready to welcome future generations of park goers.

"It’s handicap accessible,” Montgomery proudly points out. "It has a great view of the lake. It’s a good open spot. It’s a great place to take a break. A lot of people run here. Over there’s a Purple Martin house. It’s a great addition.”

Montgomery asks Linda Chute for her first impressions of the new location for the gazebo when she arrived Friday morning.

"Thank you, thank you,” an emotional Linda Chute gushes. "It’s beautiful. I’m very impressed. This is awesome.”

Then Linda Chute recalls what former Deltona Corporation architect, Herb Savage, told her about the gazebo. Savage, Deltona’s lead architect, who lived to be 99 years old, is a Marco Island icon.

“Herb Savage said, ‘If we get a hurricane on Marco Island, I’m going to strap myself to that pole. This isn't going anywhere,’” Linda Chute said.

Wasko agrees with Savage’s endorsement.

“This thing went through Irma,” Wasko said, shaking his head in wonder. "We had to change the strapping. We actually get better uplift pressure with them. This thing is square. If you put a level on these posts, everything is perfect. We replaced the fasteners. We put stainless in so they won’t rust. I was talking with Victor from Commex Painting and Waterproofing. Probably sometime next week he’s going to come out and paint the roof. We’re going to do some more stuff. This thing’s going to be beautiful for 20 to 25 years. It ain't going nowhere!” 

Linda Chute points out that Samantha Malloy, the city’s manager of parks, recreation and culture, and the Calusa Garden Club also played key roles in saving the gazebo.

"Susan LaGrotta of the Calusa Garden Club came up with a wonderful idea of relocation,” Linda Chute said. "We approached Samantha Malloy who said that ‘we would love to have the gazebo moved over there.'  She said, 'Let me check into this.’ I never thought I would see it happen. It’s wonderful. My husband would be very, very proud. Very pleased."