A new members-only private beach club has been proposed in North Naples.

The multi-story clubhouse would be built on a 1.35-acre site, along the Gulf of America (formerly the Gulf of Mexico). It would overlook Vanderbilt Beach.

At a public hearing Aug. 21, the Collier County Planning Commission voted unanimously in favor of companion zoning and land use petitions for the project – known as Paraiso Beach Club.

The project will require both a rezoning and a conditional use approval. County commissioners are expected to make the final decision in October.

A handful of residents spoke in support of the club at the planning commission meeting. No one opposed it.

The club would sit on the west side of Gulf Shore Drive, near Bayview Avenue, to the north of the LaPlaya Beach and Golf Resort. The property is now zoned single-family residential, which doesn't allow for commercial development. It includes two lots.

The rezoning would extend the residential-tourist zoning for the LaPlaya resort to the property. With the new zoning designation, a conditional use approval is still needed for a private club to operate at the site, with private beach access.

The applicant is a limited liability company, going by Paraiso Beach Club LLC, which is the contract purchaser. David Tingley, a local businessman and seasoned executive in the financial services industry, is the company's manager.

Naples land use attorney Rich Yovanovich, who represents the applicant, told the planning commission his client had spent a lot of time talking to the neighbors and getting their input on the design.

Alternatively, if two new waterfront homes were built on the two lots, they'd likely be very large, and what's proposed instead would "create better view corridors for the community," he said.

He explained most members of the club would not be able to drive to it, but would have to walk, bike or take a shuttle instead, minimizing impacts on neighborhood traffic. There would be handicapped parking on site, along with limited parking for deliveries and employees, Yovanovich said.

He compared it to how The Floridian Club operates nearby, with its members coming and going mostly by shuttle, to access its private beach.

Like the Floridian, Paraiso would provide a private luxury shuttle service for its members.