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62 °F Forecast | Road Cams Saturday, March 5, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend March 5, 2005 Mobile-home park tenants challenge eviction date By MEG LANDERS Mail Tribune A group of Medford mobile home park residents is awaiting word on whether their landlord, the Rogue Valley Manor, will soften the blow of eviction after the City Council voted Thursday to send a letter suggesting mediation between the two. Manor attorney Rob Patridge said until he receives the letter, it’s too soon to say how he’d respond to the council’s suggestion to meet with Crest Imperial Mobile Estates residents as a group. Each tenant has different circumstances, Patridge said. "We’re looking at every case, case by case, individually," said Patridge. "It doesn’t do us a lot of good to negotiate with these people as a group." The manor’s parent group, Pacific Retirement Center, will close the low-income mobile home park at 1090 Ellendale Drive in December to make room for commercial development. Park residents appealed to the council for support in getting the manor to re-negotiate eviction conditions. Advertisement Patridge said Friday the organization has been communicating and working with residents for years. But residents, many of whom are elderly, low-income or minority, say they thought eviction was still several years out, and were surprised to receive a letter in November announcing they had a year to move or demolish their homes. Among the concerns are the fact that older mobile homes are difficult or impossible to move. Tenants say the process might be legal, but it’s not very kind. Rich Rohde of Oregon Action said he’s been attending the meetings between the tenants and the manor from the beginning. "The thing that we’ve been consistently asking for is mediation," he said. He said there’s a list of compromises tenants would like to see considered, including waiving rent so tenants could save money for first and last month’s rent at a new location. Sarah Prewitt, public relations director for the manor and Crest Park, Inc., the park’s owner, said many residents are appreciative of the help they’ve received from the organization. She said 13 tenants have left the park and seven mobile homes have been moved. "We have 33 tenants left in the park," she said. Of the remaining mobile homes, 21 are owner-occupied; 14 of those owners have lived in the park since or before 1999. Those tenants are being offered $2,000 for moving expenses. Tenants who moved in after 1999 knew about the upcoming eviction because it was in the contract they signed, she said. But details of the timeline weren’t revealed, said Rohde. "Why would people move in if they knew it was coming? They didn’t know it was coming (this soon)," said Rohde. The manor purchased the 6.37-acre park in 1995, and the city approved a planned unit development in 1998. When the City Council approved project plans in 2001, a manor spokesperson said it could be 10 to 20 years before the manor moved ahead with the project. Patridge said he understands the situation of the residents, and that’s why the manor is being flexible talking with individuals. He said many tenants are satisfied and have already found new living arrangements. "We’re a compassionate organization that cares," he said, adding that Pacific Retirement Center provides hundreds of affordable housing units all over Southern Oregon. But Rohde said if the landlord is being sensitive and flexible, then why are so many unhappy residents organizing to ask for the city’s help? "They (PRC) should sit down rationally and calmly and say, ‘What should we do to help these people?’ " he said. "They would do well to think about meeting with people with respect, which is at the heart of compassion." Tenants may make appointments with the manor by calling Reva Lohr at 857-7970. Reach reporter Meg Landers at 776-4481 or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. 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