In Florida, Upwardly Mobile Homes

"See these pockets? They're empty," Dwyer said, a stack of unpaid bills sitting on a table in his single-wide trailer less than 100 yards from the ocean. "I've nickeled and dimed my whole life. I hit the lottery."

Pierson acknowledged that the loss of Briny Breezes means a piece of old Florida will be gone forever. But he said that because of the town's location on a barrier island, a hurricane could eventually wipe out Briny Breezes.

"At some point Briny is going to face a bad storm," he said. "There are other potential threats out there other than development."

Palm Beach County Commissioner Mary McCarty is not so sure it's a done deal because of constraints on zoning, water, sewage and traffic. "I find the developers extremely optimistic to the point of being delusional," she said.

For one thing, the community is in a hurricane evacuation zone and has few ways in or out. Developers will have to clear their plans through the state before any dirt is moved, and neighboring communities will have a chance to weigh in.

"This would be extremely complicated and extremely unpopular," McCarty said. "But people see dollar signs and it sparks the imagination."

John and Gay Sideris, retired teachers from New York who bought their home in 2001, are conflicted.

"It will be good for us because we'll be able to help our family, but this is an amazing place to live. You know all your neighbors. You can walk your dog in your pajamas," said Gay Sideris, 70.

"If you sneeze, a neighbor hands you a napkin," added John Sideris, 71.

The couple paid just $155,000 for their home and now stand to make close to $1.5 million.

"We've been living a beautiful life," John Sideris said, sitting in a chair, staring out his window at his boat tied up to a dock just feet away.

Asked how he would vote, he crossed his legs and breathed a heavy sigh.

"The money is great, but you can't get another place like this to live," he said. "It's like Club Med."