Ownership Of Fresno Mobile Home Park Still Up In The Air
By Keith Mizuguchi | Source
La Hacienda Mobile Estates is tucked away on a busy street just off Highway 41 in Northeast Fresno. It sits behind a DMV and a battery storage plant. If you drive by, you might miss it. But inside, you’ll find scattered abandoned mobile homes and empty lots alongside trailers where some residents still live.
The park has been home to low income residents, farmworkers and some retired folk. It’s been in rough shape for a few years. Things got worse in 2021 when a series of fires broke out, including one that killed a resident. That’s when the city decided to step in and take over code enforcement from the state.
After several attempts to force the property owner to bring the park up to code, a receiver was appointed to oversee the clean-up. The receiver proposed selling the park. Attorney Mariah Thompson represents a group of people who live there. She says they had just one request. “The only thing we ask is that you do not sell it to Harmony Communities,” they told her. Harmony operates dozens of mobile home parks in California and Oregon. Residents were worried about the company’s history of purchasing mobile home parks, hiking up rent prices and in some cases, evicting tenants.
Despite the residents’ concerns, the city sold the park to Harmony in May 2022. After attempts to increase rent failed in court, residents said Harmony notified them of its plan to redevelop the property. The city also blocked that and then Harmony filed for bankruptcy. In November, a federal judge dismissed the case and appointed a trustee. A non-profit that works with low income families to build affordable housing agreed to purchase the park. But the trustee still has to consider other bids from other investors. And if a corporation decided to outbid the non-profit, the trustee would have to seriously consider it.
