Residents of Twin City Mobile Home Park are being relocated as Pinellas County considers a rezoning plan that would redevelop the storm-damaged community.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A flood-damaged mobile home park in Pinellas County could soon be redeveloped, but as plans move forward, some residents say they’re being pushed out of the only community they’ve known for years.
The Twin City Mobile Home Park was hit hard by last year’s hurricanes. Many of the homes were deemed uninhabitable, and now the property owner is asking the county to rezone the land from Residential Mobile/Manufactured Home to Multifamily Residential. The change would allow up to 266 housing units, compared to 64 now.
As part of the rezoning process, residents are being cleared from the property. County records show that as of Sept. 10, 51 people applied for relocation assistance.
So far, 42 were approved and given help with rent and moving expenses for up to a year, while nine others are still in the process. Officials say the remaining residents will likely be removed through evictions or condemnations.
For longtime residents, the transition has been difficult.
“They’re trying to get rid of what I do believe they think is trailer trash,” Heidi Roschke said, who has lived in the park for years.
Roschke says not everyone qualifies for assistance, especially those who share homes to afford rising rents.
“They don’t cover any kind of roommate situation, and with rent at like $1,600 for a one-bedroom or studio, most people are teaming up and getting roommates,” she said.
County planners say the rezoning would bring safer, flood-resistant housing and help meet growing demand as Pinellas County’s population balloons.
Still, Roschke worries that what’s happening at Twin City could set a precedent.
“If they can do it here, they can do it to any business, single-family residence, so somebody has to stand back and say this is not OK,” she said.
The Pinellas County Commission will take public comment on the proposed rezoning at its meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday.