Subject:
Title
Case No. FLU-25-04 (Twin City MHC, LLC)
A request for a Future Land Use Map amendment from Residential Urban (8.54 acres) and Commercial General (0.4 acre) to Residential Medium on approximately 8.94 acres located at 10636 Gandy Boulevard North in unincorporated St. Petersburg.
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Recommended Action:
Recommended Action
Based upon the evidence and findings contained in the staff report and attachments, Case No. FLU-25-04 is recommended for denial:
An ordinance approving the application of Twin City MHC, LLC for a Future Land Use Map (FLUM) amendment.
• The subject property is the Twin City mobile home park located at 10636 Gandy Boulevard North in unincorporated St. Petersburg.
• Twin City was established in the 1950s and is nonconforming.
• The subject property is located within the Coastal Storm Area (CSA) and has incurred substantial flooding multiple times during recent storm events.
• The County, in partnership with the State, created a relocation program enabling mobile home park residents to move nationwide. Working alongside park management, Endeavors, and the Pinellas County Housing Authority, we helped residents secure safe, affordable housing.
• The applicants wish to redevelop the property as multifamily residential (e.g., apartments). The subject property would benefit from redevelopment and multifamily residential is appropriate under the existing land use categories.
• The existing land use categories would allow redevelopment with up to 64 residential units at 7.5 units per acre, while the proposed change would allow up to 134 units at 15.0 units per acre.
• The Pinellas County Comprehensive Plan directs population concentrations outside of storm vulnerable locations and restricts land use changes within the CSA to only those categories that allow 5.0 units per acre or fewer.
• The applicants are proposing a zoning change to allow for multifamily residential under a separate case, which is not dependent on the approval of this request.
• The Local Planning Agency recommended denial of the request (vote 4-2). No one from the public appeared at the public hearing.
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Strategic Priorities:
Healthy and Safe Communities
2.2 Enhance community safety
Summary:
Summary
The subject property consists of 8.94 acres located at 10636 Gandy Boulevard North, on the south side of the roadway about a mile west of the Gandy Bridge. Much of the surrounding area is within the City of St. Petersburg. The northern 0.4-acre ‘panhandle’ portion of the property closest to Gandy Boulevard is designated Commercial General (CG) on the FLUM while the remaining 8.54 acres are designated Residential Urban (RU). The existing use on the property is the Twin City Mobile Home Park (MHP). The master plan on file for Twin City indicates 103 mobile home spaces and three (3) apartment units. The MHP has flooded multiple times during recent storm events and relatively few of the mobile home units remain occupied. Elevating the homes as required per Federal regulations would be expensive and, due to age and prior damage, few would survive the process. Any new mobile homes placed on the property would also have to be elevated.
Twin City was established in the 1950s prior to the County’s zoning code and is considered nonconforming. If redeveloped, the existing FLUM categories would allow a maximum of 64 residential units (the RU category allows a maximum of 7.5 units per acre and the CG category does not allow residential uses in this location). The applicants desire to redevelop the property with multifamily housing (e.g., apartments) at a higher density than is currently allowed. A FLUM amendment to Residential Medium (RM) for the entire property is proposed. With a maximum density of 15.0 dwelling units per acre, RM would allow up to 134 residential units. A zoning change from Residential Mobile/Manufactured Home to Multi-family Residential would also be required for the proposed redevelopment, which the applicants are requesting via Zoning Case No. ZON-25-02.
The subject property is surrounded by a variety of uses. To the north across Gandy Boulevard is an apartment complex and to the northeast along the south side of Gandy are a retail strip center and car wash. These are located in St. Petersburg. The remaining adjacent properties are all unincorporated and include single family homes to the east, boat repair and storage to the southeast, the Derby Lane property to the south, and a motel, a communications tower, and a retail establishment to the west. Tampa Bay and its connecting wetlands are relatively close to the subject property, particularly to the south. In terms of FLUM categories, RU is predominant to the east, CG is to the west, Commercial Recreation (CR) is to the south, and the City of St. Petersburg has its own designations to the north and northeast. In addition, the adjacent boat repair and storage facilities are designated Employment (E).
The subject property is highly vulnerable to flooding and storm surge. It is located within the 25-year coastal floodplain and entirely within the Coastal High Hazard Area (CHHA), which is the area defined by the Sea, Lake and Overland Surges from Hurricanes (SLOSH) model to be inundated by a category one (1) hurricane, as reflected in the most recent Regional Evacuation Study, Storm Tide Atlas. It is also within the CSA, which includes the CHHA in addition to any isolated elevated areas that are surrounded by the CHHA (where evacuation would require crossing the CHHA). Correspondingly, the property and the surrounding area is within Hurricane Evacuation Zone A.
The subject property’s vulnerable location within the CSA/CHHA is critically important to this FLUM amendment request. The Pinellas County Comprehensive Plan restricts (re)development within and directs population concentrations out of the CSA. Toward this end, the Plan explicitly states that ‘the County shall not approve any request to amend the FLUM to designate parcels of land within the CSA with a FLUM category that permits more than 5.0 dwelling units per gross acre’ (Coastal Management Policy 2.1.3). The property’s existing RU FLUM category permits up to 7.5 dwelling units per gross acre, so it already permits a higher residential density. The RU category has been in place on the subject property for decades and is considered ‘grandfathered’. The requested RM category would allow up to 15.0 units per acre. This is double what the existing RU category allows and triple what the Comprehensive Plan permits for any FLUM amendment in the CSA. The Comprehensive Plan also restricts public expenditures that subsidize (re)development in the CSA. This is based on Section 163.3177(6)6., Florida Statutes, which requires that local governments limit public expenditures that subsidize development in CHHA’s.
The applicants have not stated an intent for the proposed development to include affordable units or that any affordable housing incentives will be sought. Because of the property’s location within the CSA, it is not eligible for the County’s affordable housing density bonus. The subject property is also not eligible to utilize the State’s Live Local Act due to its residential zoning. To be eligible for the Live Local Act, a property must be zoned commercial, industrial, or mixed use. Notably, Florida Statutes (Section 403.892) allow a density bonus of up to 35 percent for qualifying projects that install and utilize graywater reuse systems. Based on the existing RU FLUM category, that would allow up to 86 residential units on the subject property. The applicants, through their representative, were advised of this option but indicated a desire to continue to seek additional density via the requested FLUM amendment.
The proposed FLUM amendment is clearly inconsistent with the Pinellas County Comprehensive Plan. Florida Statutes require all development covered by the Comprehensive Plan to be consistent with the Plan as adopted. The Comprehensive Plan outright prohibits the requested density increase in the CSA and directs population concentrations outside of such storm vulnerable areas. Population increases within the CSA would in turn impact storm shelter demand and hurricane evacuation times. The request would be precedent setting for others to follow.
While the subject property would benefit from redevelopment, the current RU FLUM category would allow up to 64 newly constructed units, which is more than the maximum 5.0 units per acre (45 units) the Comprehensive Plan permits for FLUM changes in the CSA. In addition, the property developer could utilize the available graywater density bonus to increase the maximum number of units to 86, the equivalent of 9.6 units per acre. Redeveloping the subject property as multifamily residential can be considered appropriate based on compatibility with surrounding uses but it needs to be limited to the density currently allowed due to its highly vulnerable coastal location.
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Background Information:
The LPA recommended denial of this FLUM amendment request during its September 10, 2025, meeting (Vote 4-2).
Surrounding property owners within 400 feet of the subject property were notified by mail. Signs advertising the public hearing were posted on the subject property.
The Pinellas County Code contains the Mobile Home Transition Program, which implements Florida Statute requirements (Section 723.083) regarding determination that adequate mobile home parks or other suitable facilities exist for the relocation of the mobile home unit owners residing on the subject property. The applicants have provided information on the status of the MHP residents. Over the past several months, the park owners and the County have worked to assist mobile home residents with relocation from the subject property. The County is utilizing State funding to provide alternative rental housing for the residents. At the time of this writing, 44 households have been successfully relocated and assisted with relocation expenses and rent payments for up to 12 months. Two (2) additional applications are under further review. Per the applicants, a combination of evictions and condemnation proceedings will likely be used to remove any remaining residents due to the condition of the homes and unpaid rents.
Fiscal Impact:
N/A
Staff Member Responsible:
Gregg Mims, Director, Housing and Community Development
Glenn Bailey, Planning Division Manager
Partners:
N/A
Attachments:
LPA Report
Case Maps
Impacts Analysis
Traffic Analysis
Ordinance
Business Impact Estimate
Certificate of Ownership
Legal Description and Survey
Applicant Narrative
Applicant Report
Applicant Media Submittal
Legal Ad
Notification Map
Presentation