In 1992 Charlotte County proposed an area within Punta Gorda city limits as a possible site for Florida’s tenth state university.  The parcel was known as the Ansin property, located between U.S. 41 and Taylor Road approximately 2.5 miles from the downtown area. Even though Charlotte County offered to absorb the infrastructure costs, the proposal was turned down by the University.

 Several possible reasons exist for the rejection of this initial offer. One explanation appeared to be the demographics of Charlotte County. A 1990 US Census revealed the median age in the area to be 70.1 years of age.  This means half the residents were over this age and half were under.  Thus residents displayed a lack of interest in a university within their community.  Moreover then-elected county commissioners, acting on the opinions of their constituents, resisted development of the university.  Further, while the county offered to absorb infrastructure costs, this would have been at taxpayer expense.  As there were no offers for future funding, such as donations of cash or operating cost donations, the site in Punta Gorda was refused.

However, the Charlotte County of 2006 reveals a new attitude towards a university.  There is now a renewed interest in developing vacant lands within its urban growth management plan.  The 1996 Charlotte County Comprehensive Land Use Plan listed 74.2% of vacant land as undeveloped within the urban areas of Charlotte County.  These areas are located primarily south of the Peace River.  The main goal of Charlotte County Commissioners is to develop these areas in order to compete with surrounding communities such as Sarasota and Fort Myers.  Many other factors played into the satellite campus debate in Charlotte County. The median age in the county dropped to 54 years of age in 2006.  This decrease appeared to be the result of younger people moving to the area seeking improved economic opportunities, aided by the rapid development in surrounding areas.  As well, Hurricane Charley in August of 2004 caused significant damage to the area and changed the demographics of the county.  As the storm raged, thousands of residents, were swept from their homes.  Especially hard hit were the area's retirees.  The storms affects forced residents to leave the area.  Many did not return..  Many of these residents never returned to the area.  As a result, the remaining population witnessed a decrease in age.  These younger residents demanded more services, most notably access to quality higher education for themselves and their children. 

Other factors contributing to the attraction of Charlotte County include its proximity to the main campus and county support for a university.  The Charlotte County press has quoted commissions as listing their desire for a university and that it will be "Florida Gulf Coast University or they will seek out someone else."  Moreover, affordable housing availability within the county adds to its attraction.  According to the Southwest Florida Board of Realtors, the median cost of housing in Charlotte Couny is considerably lower than the rest of the University's service area.  Housing costs in Lee County range approximately one-third higher than in Charlotte and Collier County staggers the budget at 2.3 times the cost of homes in Charlotte County.  Logically, staff, students and faculty could benefit from the affordable housing opportunities in Charlotte County.