On Friday, Cameratta Properties launched a reworked First Street Village on the western border of downtown-the first new community in years to make its debut in the area.

Oasis, the most ambitious of the skyscraper projects, was sold in foreclosure and is selling 40 units Saturday at absolute auction-the winning bid takes it, no matter how low.  Developer Jorge Perez of the Related Group is making the bold move to set a price level for Oasis that should give prospective buyers a comfort level that hasn't been found downtown since the boom.

Some of the earlier projects are close to selling out:  Only 11 units remain to be sold in St. Tropez and Cameratta's High Point Place is 70 percent sold.

The new numbers are creating a confidence among potential buyers that at least there won't be major drops in prices, said Steve Luta, a Ft. Myers based commercial real estate broker.

Until recently, he said, clients were skittish about buying downtown.  That's in part because prices did drop dramatically from the boom times, when high-rise apartments were priced from about $400,000 to more than $1 million.

When major bad economic news surfaced, Luta said, "Every buyer I was representing would run for the hills and say, "Talk to you in two months"

But last month's market reacted differently to the bad news that lenders were facing issues about whether they'd properly foreclosed on some properties.  "The robo-signing didn't cause it to skip a beat" he said

The Oasis towers, loom large over the downtown Ft. Myers skyline with Beau Rivage, St. Tropez, and Riviera condos all located near the Edison Bridge over the Caloosahatchee River.

Investors are looking at the downtown Ft. Myers condominiums with a renewed interest.  Here's what experts say is behind the new optimism:

PRICES;  Units are for sale for less than half what they were going for in the heyday of the real estate boom.

TIMING;  In the current environment, time is on an investor's side.  Many plan to buy and rent out units until the current glut of inventory is absorbed.

PUBLIC/PRIVATE PROJECTS;  The city plans to spiff out downtown, starting with an 1.8 acre water basin, a new hotel and an expansion of the Harborside Events Center.

IF YOU GO;  Auction of Oasis condominium homes.  Related will auction off up to 125 units in Oasis 1. Forty of those will be sold at absolute auction, meaning the highest bid gets it now matter what.