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Investors hope to buy trailer park They want to preserve scarce affordable housing By Sara Murphy ASHLAND � A group of private investors have their hearts set on snagging some of the hottest real estate in town: The Pines trailer park. The deal�s not about making money. Instead, it�s about making sure Ashland hangs onto some of its last low-income housing. "Frankly, it�s an extremely attractive property in terms of location," said Russ Dale, who owns the 52-unit park on Ashland Street next to The Beanery. "All of the underground infrastructure is brand-new." Dale, a champion of affordable housing, said he hadn�t planned to put the trailer park on the market, but his partner � who lives in Turkey � wanted to sell. "It�s just been astronomical," Dale said. "I�ve had six offers on the property in three weeks." Three of those offers � the front-runner and two backup offers � are from folks who want to work with the Ashland Community Land Trust to preserve the site for affordable housing. "Three are from individuals who wanted to clear the site as soon as possible and develop it for commercial purchase," Dale said. Though news of the pending sale of The Pines has been kept fairly quiet, negotiations on another Ashland trailer park � the Lower Pines on Ashland Street � have made headlines recently. PremierWest Bank announced earlier this week it had dropped plans to purchase the Lower Pines property from Adams Group LLC and Galpin LLC. PremierWest had planned to build a branch on the site, pending site review approval. The Lower Pines, a 10-unit park on Ashland Street across from Wendy�s, and The Pines were previously owned by a single party. Despite similar names, the two are no longer related. Ashland resident Brad Rupe is spearheading the movement to purchase The Pines, which is listed for $1.35 million. Rupe said he�s "spent two weeks making calls and having lunch with people," trying to secure investors. He has until Tuesday to secure the deal. "I don�t have goals of owning trailer parks," Rupe said. "What we want to do is see if we can buy it and immediately transfer it into the hands of the Community Land Trust." Rupe said "many people" � including Mayor Alan DeBoer � have been willing to help. The investors, he said, will recoup their money when the Land Trust purchases the property. "I�m not asking for donations," he said. "I�m asking for investors to make some community-minded business decisions, and there�s been a wealth of people willing to do that." Rupe commended Dale, developer of the 89-unit Chautauqua Trace community, for his commitment to affordable housing in Ashland. Dale charges $225 monthly rent for space in The Pines. "By benign neglect, or whatever you want to call it, I�ve left the rents way under price," he said. Rupe said he hopes the property will continue to be owned and managed in that spirit. "Rather than that property going on the block and being developed commercially, I think I�d like to go on with what Russ is starting and see people live there," he said. Reach Ashland bureau reporter Sara Murphy at 482-4655, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.