Planning board recommends against annexation of Tall Pines mobile‑home park after broad resident opposition

The Fort Pierce Planning Board on June 9 recommended disapproval of a voluntary annexation and master‑plan development zoning application for the Tall Pines mobile‑home park after prolonged public comment and board discussion.

The applicant sought to annex approximately 41.38 acres at 314 South Erie Drive (two parcels as presented) from St. Lucie County into the City of Fort Pierce and rezone the site to Planned Development with a proposed master plan that would add a 33‑space long‑term recreational vehicle (RV) area and eight manufactured home lots to an existing manufactured‑home community. Erin Lees of WGI, representing the applicant, said the annexation would reduce the maximum potential density under county rules and allow uses—such as long‑term RV spaces—that the city’s zoning would permit.

Residents from Tall Pines occupied the meeting for more than an hour to oppose annexation. Stanley Seapial, president of the Tall Pines homeowners association, said the application materials listed two parcels but publicly available exhibits showed three and expressed safety concerns about narrow roads: “Seneca is only 18 feet 9 inches wide. And you’re gonna be bringing motor coaches down there… that gives us 9 inches clearance to pass each other,” Seapial said.

Other residents raised a wide range of concerns including road condition and maintenance, stormwater and drainage, alleged poor property management, the suitability of the site for RV traffic, capacity of the pool and clubhouse, and public‑safety impacts. Mike Befalco, a park resident, circulated a list of city ordinances he said were not being followed and noted Better Business Bureau complaints about the owner and operator. Peter McEnber, director of the HOA, described the proposed changes as “trying to put a size 10 foot in a 9 and a half shoe,” and said residents had not seen promised repairs or improvements.

Applicant Erin Lees told the board the current site contains about 214 occupied units and roughly 40 unoccupied lots and that the proposed annexation would lower the maximum density allowed—under the county the site could support up to 374 units; under the city’s proposed low‑density designation the maximum would be about 270 units. Lees said Inspire (the landowner/operator) has budgeted $64,000 of improvements for the year and characterized the RV component as long‑term spaces (minimum three months, average six to 12 months), not short‑term vacation use.

Board members and staff repeatedly raised concerns about incomplete information on municipal impacts. Several commissioners asked for a fiscal and service‑cost analysis, noting uncertainty about additional demands on the Fort Pierce Police Department, solid‑waste, roads and other city services. Planning staff confirmed the property receives water and sewer from the Fort Pierce Utilities Authority under service arrangements that commonly include annexation provisions but that a formal city annexation strategy is not in place.

After more than an hour of public testimony and board discussion, the Planning Board voted to recommend disapproval. The recorded motion to recommend disapproval passed on a roll call (motion noted as made by Miss Clemens, second by Mr. Collins) with the board voting unanimously to recommend against annexation. The Planning Board’s recommendation will be transmitted to the City Commission, which may act independently of the board’s recommendation.