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Development closing in on trailer parks
BY TRAVIS JAMES TRITTEN
Citizen Staff Writer
STOCK ISLAND
Water's Edge Colony Trailer Park on south
Stock Island is a neighborhood of taxicab drivers, waitresses,
electricians and fishermen.
The maids that fluff pillows and sweep
carpets at upscale Key West hotels live there, as well as many other
service workers who keep the local economy afloat.
"Most of them own the unit and we own the
land," said park stockholder Carolee McReynolds.
Residents of the 66-unit park pay a $510
per month rent that includes cable — a far cry from Old Town rents that
often soar over a $1,000 a month for similar floor space.
Water's Edge is typical of south Stock
Island. The island's 401 trailers make up about 50 percent of the
housing there, according to the Monroe County Property Appraiser, and
are some of the last vestiges of affordable housing in the area.
Twenty-two percent of housing is single-family homes.
"It is fulfilling a very strong need for a
segment of our population," said Marlene Conaway, director of county
planning and environmental services.
Residents say affordability is one reason
they live on the island, but lately, as upscale development seems more
likely, many are becoming worried about the future.
After public meetings and a survey, the
county found that diminishing affordable housing was one of the top
dislikes on the island.
Some of the trailer parks, including
Water's Edge, do have some protection from redevelopment under the law.
They cannot be converted into other forms of housing without changes to
zoning, according to the county's Stock Island Existing Conditions
Report.
Still others could be sold and
redeveloped.
"Due to the changing nature of Stock
Island, it will be necessary to monitor the number of mobile homes being
converted to single family homes," the Existing Conditions Report found.
For Water's Edge and 18 other parks, the
island's new public sewer has created much concern. The neighborhoods
may have to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for sewer upgrades.
The costs would most likely be passed on
to park residents, and could force some out, park owners have warned for
more than a year.
"My residents' concerns are the sewer,"
McReynolds said. "I want to be out of the sewer business."
With such resident concerns in mind,
Conaway and the county growth management department are working on a
long-term land-use plan for the island, the Livable Communikeys Program,
that focuses on protecting affordable housing, among other issues.
All county communities will eventually
create such a plan, but increasing pressure for redevelopment forced the
county to put south Stock Island next in line, Conaway said.
Meanwhile, some county-directed
development has also brought more housing stock to the island, with more
on the way.
Among the projects:
* The 102-unit Meridian West affordable
housing project, on the old dog track property, is steaming toward
completion;
* The Monroe County Housing Authority
project on 5th Avenue at Cross Street provides nine duplexes with a
total of 18 new units, all with covenants that keep the dwellings
affordable;
* A Maloney Avenue housing development
consists of 18 affordable housing units, and will provide access to a
community clubhouse and pool;
* A proposal has been made to build 45
affordable housing units at the intersection of Cross and Seventh
streets.
ttritten@keysnews.com |
