Leonhart & Jack Rosen - GAC - VATAR - BMI

In 1970, Cape Coral was officially declared a city. Despite the Rosen Brothers' many activities, they were forced to sell their dream and vision to GAC that same year. The professional land developer continued their project until 1975. GAC had overextended itself with the plan to further develop the city and had to file for bankruptcy. The bankruptcy estate was now managed by a bank until the AVATAR company took over the project in 1982.

In the mid-80's, I crossed the Hancock Bridge for the first time and stopped on the way north in the middle of the wilderness at a Wendy's restaurant on US 41, which was the first Wendy's restaurant in Cape Coral.

10 years later, Louis Campanelli, AVATAR's manager for the international market, hired me and BMI to sell houses and building plots internationally in the city of Cape Coral. A deep friendship developed with Lou, the AVATAR company and the city of Cape Coral. European television stations reported on our work in the "Waterfront Wonderland" and 7-day seminars were held in Cape Coral, based on the Rosen Brothers' idea. In the years that followed, we opened up the market to Europe and made many families' dreams of a house in paradise come true.

Soon the city of Cape Coral was the fastest growing city in America, next to Las Vegas. Business centers were built around the Cape Coral Parkway and along Del Prado Blvd. A new connection, the Cape Coral Bridge, to Fort Myers was built and made Cape Coral even more interesting for vacationers, as the beaches of Fort Myers Beach, Sanibel and Captiva could now be reached very quickly. The cities of Naples and Miami were getting closer, as were the tourist destinations of Key West and the Everglades.

Schools, which are now among the best in the region, and hospitals were built. Streets were beautified and many parks were created for families. Within 40 years, Cape Coral grew into a sizeable community of over 175,000 residents. The vast majority live in beautiful single-family homes and most of the international residents have integrated into the American neighborhood and made friends in foreign countries.