Charlie Leighton Park Is Open Again. Does Your Boat Trailer Still Fit?

"It would be sticking way out into the road."

Nick Yahn said that to WPTV in late August. He has launched his boat at Charlie Leighton Park for years, and he took a tape measure to the new parking spaces before the park reopened. His truck and trailer came out longer than the space.

Martin County held the ribbon cutting at 2701 SW Cornell Avenue on Tuesday, September 22, at 9:30 a.m., and the Palm City Chamber of Commerce provided refreshments. The park had been closed for construction since September 2025. Eight days later, the useful question for anyone in Palm City who tows a boat is the one Yahn answered with his tape measure. The county rebuilt this park around organized, standard-size spaces. That makes it a better park for almost everyone who uses the South Fork, and it ties who can launch here to the length of a parking space. In late August, that length was 45 feet, and at the reopening the county said it was working on making the spaces longer.

Forty-Five Feet, for Now

Before the renovation, parking at the ramp was loose. Jessica Ballash, deputy director of Martin County Parks and Recreation, told WPTV that people "would park kind of wherever they could fit." The new layout was meant to change that. "We designed it with safety in mind," she said.

Here's what changed on the trailer side of the lot, according to WPTV's August 29, 2026 report:

Both columns are accurate. There are more spaces than before, and each one comes with a set length. Ballash said typical boat ramp spaces run 40 to 50 feet, "so we're right in the middle at 45." Yahn's concern is about what a too-long rig does to everyone else. "The trailers are going to be sticking out in the middle of the road," he said, "and if someone is parked on this side of the road and they're sticking out, you won't be able to get out of your parking spaces."

WPTV interviewed the boaters and the county before the ramp opened, and no public reporting yet covers how the lot works on a busy weekend morning. For now, the concerns and the county's reasoning are both predictions.

The county has already responded to them in public. At the September ribbon cutting, one speaker acknowledged "some controversy about the width and length of the boat trailer parking spaces" and said, "We're working on making them even longer." The same speaker said the ramp "was not meant to have Royal Caribbean launch from here," and noted that "boats and trucks have gotten larger." The ceremony didn't give a new length or a timeline, so 45 feet is the latest published figure. The spaces may change.

Where the $4.5 Million Went

The money explains the priorities. WPTV put the total project cost at about $4.5 million. Roughly $1.2 million went to the water side, partly paid for by a state grant. The rest went to the park itself and the parking lot. At the ribbon cutting, a speaker also credited $585,000 from the Inland Navigation District toward the project.

On the water side, the county:

• Replaced the boat ramp
• Dredged the area next to it
• Installed floating docks
• Built two piers

On land, the county:

• Reconfigured and repaved the parking lot
• Added picnic areas and gazebos
• Added a walking path and open green space
• Improved traffic flow and added pedestrian connections along the waterfront

Roughly three of every four dollars went to the land side. That's a park built for people who spend the afternoon there, and the county's own description of the reopening reads that way. It pictures visitors "launching a boat, rowing, fishing, taking a walk, enjoying a picnic, or simply spending some time by the water." Boat launching is one use on a list of six, and the parking layout reflects that.

The Lagoon Was Always the Park's Main Strength

Charlie Leighton Park covers four acres on the South Fork of the St. Lucie River. Martin County's tourism listing describes it as a resource-based park. The listing points to a shallow lagoon along the shoreline that suits low-impact water activities: rowing, kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding. It also mentions an ADA-accessible floating dock built for launching kayaks, paddleboards, rowing sculls and other non-motorized craft. That listing was written in August 2025, before construction began, so treat it as a description of the park's long-standing role. It doesn't describe the new build in detail.

That role explains why the new design costs paddlers little. A kayak on a roof rack needs an ordinary car space, and the renovation added floating docks, piers and a walking path along the water. Anyone arriving with a paddleboard, a fishing rod or a picnic gets more than before, and the trailer spaces don't affect them.

Rowers have their own local institution. The Treasure Coast Rowing Club, based at 771 SW 28th Street in Palm City, says its goal is a safe, welcoming place for adult and youth rowers. The club says it welcomes newcomers of any experience level who are "willing to show up and work hard." The quiet water the tourism listing describes for sculls is the kind of water a rowing program relies on. If you're curious about rowing on the river, start with the club's website.

Another named group looks after the water. Martin County credits the 27-80 Paddling Club, a local volunteer group, with helping to monitor designated waterways and maintain public access sites along the county's St. Lucie River paddling trails.

The tourism listing also notes something worth a weekday alarm. Still water and early light over the dock make it a well-known spot for sunrise photos.

If Your Rig Runs Long, the County Already Has a Plan B

For boats that won't fit the new spaces, the county was direct. Martin County suggested that boaters who need longer trailer parking use other county ramps, specifically Jensen Beach and Sandsprit Park.

Sandsprit Park is at 3443 SE St. Lucie Boulevard in Stuart, where Manatee Pocket opens up. The county lists boat ramps and waterfront access there. The county's listing doesn't give trailer-space dimensions or counts for Sandsprit. For a long rig, the ramp to check before a first visit is the one the county recommended. Don't assume the spaces there are long enough for your trailer either.

We couldn't verify the address or parking specifications for the Jensen Beach ramp from county sources. Call Martin County Parks and Recreation before you tow a long trailer there.

For a Palm City boater, Plan B means a drive across the river to Stuart or north to Jensen Beach before you launch. On the other hand, the county kept a close-to-home ramp on the South Fork, and it now has six more designated trailer spaces than it did a year ago.

Before You Hitch Up for a First Launch

The details below are based on the county's figures and on what Yahn found:

1. Measure the whole rig, bumper to trailer tail. The 45-foot figure reported in August is the length of the parking space, and the space has to hold the truck as well as the trailer and boat. Yahn measured the new spaces before the park opened and found his truck and trailer wouldn't fit. Comparing your own rig's length against the space is the quickest way to know.
2. Count on 26 spaces, not unlimited room. The 26 designated spaces are more than the previous 20, but a busy morning can still fill them.
3. Confirm hours and fees directly. We didn't find current hours, launch fees, permit rules or the number of ramp lanes in the county material published so far. The park's listed phone number is (772) 221-1418, and updates are posted at martin.fl.us.
4. Check the speed zones for your route. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission explains that manatee protection rules can limit vessel speed, entry or activity, and it publishes official zone maps on its manatee protection zones page. Look up your route there before running the river from a new ramp.
5. Have Sandsprit in mind before you leave home. If your rig is longer than the spaces, which were 45 feet as of the latest report, 3443 SE St. Lucie Boulevard is the county's own suggestion. Call (772) 221-1418 to ask whether the longer spaces the county mentioned at the reopening are in place yet.

Boater Casey Wallace told WPTV that anything over 20-something feet won't be able to park here. That's a boater's estimate. Measuring your own rig tells you for certain, and a borrowed tape takes five minutes.

At The Quinn Group - Anne Warner & Sean Quinn, we track how boat access on the St. Lucie River changes, from new ramps to parking limits to where the county sends bigger boats. If what fits at your nearest ramp matters to where you keep your boat, talk to a local waterfront expert who follows these details.