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Tarpon won't rezone mobile home park

In two separate votes, city commissioners unanimously reject rezoning Linger Longer Mobile Home Park to make room for a new development.

By YUXING ZHENG
Published October 20, 2005

TARPON SPRINGS - Linger Longer Mobile Home park residents can remain in their homes a little longer after city commissioners voted Tuesday to annex part of the park into the city but to deny rezoning it.

Ed Armstrong, the agent for the Clearwater development group interested in building 248 condominiums and townhouses on the site, said Wednesday he would withdraw the annexation application "within the next couple of days" because commissioners rejected the rezoning.

"We're not comfortable annexing into the city with this level of uncertainty as to our entitlements," Armstrong said.

Boos Development Group had applied to rezone the 9.7-acre RV area and the northern half of the mobile home section to allow for a residential development with a maximum of 15 housing units per acre. In a separate ordinance, the group had asked to rezone the southern half of the mobile home section to allow a maximum of 7.5 units per acre.

The applications will receive a second reading at the commission's Nov. 1 meeting.

City commissioners Tuesday voted 3-1 to annex the southern half of the mobile home park. Commissioner Peter Dalacos opposed the annexation. They also voted 4-0 on two separate ordinances to deny changing the zoning. Commissioner David Archie was absent.

Commissioners expressed concern about the proposed density and the fate of the park's roughly 100 residents, who would likely be evicted if Boos' applications were approved.

"We're not dealing in a vacuum here," Dalacos said. "By deciding to annex, there are people there who will be affected. People are going to be displaced."

Boos agreed in January to purchase the property from Linger Longer Mobile H.P. LLC, a Nevada company. The sale is contingent on the rezoning, said David W. Morse, senior vice president of Boos. His company is still very interested in the property, Morse said Wednesday, but he did not know when the sale might close.

The park was never offered for sale to the park's homeowners first because Boos submitted an unsolicited bid. Florida law gives homeowners associations the first option to purchase a mobile home park if the owner places it for sale.

About 40 park residents and neighbors attended Tuesday's meeting and roughly a dozen spoke in opposition to Boos' applications.

"When I bought this place, I heard talk about the "mobile home park' or the "trailer park,' " resident Howard Matthews said. "This is our home. I'm very happy there." Boos has hired Resident Relocation Services of Clearwater to assist residents in finding new places to live. It held a meeting with residents Sept. 7 and submitted a relocation plan to the city that detailed other area mobile home parks and their lot rents.

"We walk them through the entire process until each of them has a place to move to," said Scott Lyckberg of Relocation Services.

But residents Tuesday said the proposed locations were either unaffordable or were coops that required a buy-in, requirements beyond many of the senior residents' fixed incomes. Many of them spoke spontaneously from the audience, and Mayor Beverley Billiris had to request silence several times.

All four commissioners said they were uncomfortable approving the rezoning applications without knowing exactly where the park's residents would go.

"These are their homes; whether it's rich enough for me or you doesn't matter," Billiris said. "Displacing people, I have a problem with. I'm not having it on my conscience."

Billiris said the developer must have a clear plan for moving each resident before she could approve rezoning. Billiris, who had to purchase her mother's lot in a Dunedin mobile home park four years ago, said she sympathized with Linger Longer residents.

"If I wasn't there for her, she wouldn't have anywhere to go," said Billiris, who suggested residents start looking into other area parks.

Residents on Wednesday said they were pleased with the City Commission's decision, though they said they knew the issue was far from dead.

"I thought the commissioners saw the full picture and got a fairly good idea about what this development company is attempting to do," resident Archie Milliet said. "It was a great victory for us and for the community."

Milliet said he expects a drawn-out affair. He has not looked at alternative mobile home parks in the area.

"We've won the battle, but the war has yet to be won," Milliet said. "It's a wait-and-see game at this point."

Yuxing Zheng can be reached at 727 445-4163 or at yzheng@sptimes.com

[Last modified October 20, 2005, 01:19:18]