'Little Jim Bait & Tackle' is not going anywhere thanks to historical designation

Little Jim Bait & Tackle is special to the Fort Pierce community.

The popular bait shop and waterfront restaurant in Fort Pierce was just given a special designation, one designed to halt developers.

"It is a generational place. Kids come here. My mother-in-law comes here. Everyone loves to come here," said Dick Ames, who chose to celebrate his birthday at Little Jim this week.

The owner says the shop just celebrated 80 years in business.

"This is our little spot that just kind of reminds us of the way it was for the last 30-40 years," said Arthur Kowalewski, who has frequented Little Jim for 35 years.

Monday was Epic

Now that the place has been deemed to have historic and local significance, it won't change anytime soon.

The Navy was there during World War II and Little Jim came shortly after they left, following the war.

"This place is amazing, it's got so much history to it," shared Josh Casey, who owns a tiki boat on the shoreline next to little Jim.

However, the land it sits on faced uncertainty, with the lease ending next March.

Saving Little Jim

A was drawn up to preserve it, and more than 17,000 signatures later, Fort Pierce City Commissioners on Monday deemed the land as an historic property and locally significant site.

"Monday was epic," admitted Donna Qvarnstrom, the owner of Little Jim Bait & Tackle. "Everybody's been coming, congratulating all the staff, all of us. It's just been a cool experience to watch it all happen and know that you have that much support behind you."

That means Little Jim can't just be bought by a developer now.

That's good news for longtime visitors like Arthur Kowalewski, who says he's tired of watching developers claim the coastline.

"I'm glad that it's going to be a part of not being developed in other terms," he told CBS12 News. "My wife, she points out areas like 'hey that used to be a park, hey we used to park our boat right there,' now it's nothing but condos, housing areas being developed and it's just like little getaways like this that means a lot to the local community that's been here for over 50-60 years. Just leave it alone, don't touch it."

The owner says she has no intention of going anywhere.

"The vibe here is always good. I mean, it's just a slice of paradise that we have here," Qvarnstrom remarked.