Parklane Mobile Home Park residents finally own their property.
Residents of the park, just outside the city limits in northeast Fort Collins, formed a nonprofit organization — United Neighbors/Vecinos Unidos — to buy the park shortly after its owner told them it was up for sale in December, according to the news. Dismissal from charity.
The sale closed on Monday. The park is located in the Fort Collins Growth Management Area, just north of East Mulberry Street, the Best Western Kiva Inn and Charco Broller Restaurant.
The residents bought the park for $6.8 million, out of a large investor, said United Neighbors/Vecinos Unidos board member Nicole Armstrong.
The funds came from several sources: Larimer County offered a $1 million forgivable loan using American Rescue Plan funds. Bohemian Foundation lends $2.8 million; And residents received a $3 million loan from the Impact Development Fund. The residents also helped secure funding from neighboring nonprofits — The Genesis Project and Matthews House — and oversee the purchase process, according to the news release.
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Residents knew that selling the park to a new owner could raise rents or replace the park with another development, a sale to residents that would help make the park affordable housing.
“I’ve lived in this community for 15 years,” park resident Evlia Rosas said in a news release. I’m ready. It’s a dream come true for us.
Parklane Mobile Home Park, established in 1958, has 68 mobile homes housing 200 adults and over 100 children. Many families and individuals have lived in the park for more than 20 years, according to the news report.
According to the news release, Parklane is one of six mobile home parks in Colorado that will be owned or operated by residents since the June 2020 amendment to the Colorado Mobile Home Park Act. Although the law aims to make these parks more accessible to residents, only 9% of the 69 parks sold in Colorado as of June 2020 were purchased by residents.
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As of January 2020, about 30% of all mobile home park units in mobile home parks in Larimer County have been sold to new owners, according to the news release. None of these parks were sold to residents or organizations or non-profit organizations representing residents.
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United Neighbors/Vecinos Unidos board member Adri Santiago said in a news release: “We hope that resident ownership and resident management will be rare and that this sale will inspire residents of other parks.” “Our Colorado legislators and our community nonprofits recognize that preserving affordable housing is the biggest and most important challenge we must face.”
Moving forward, residents will first determine rent levels, utilities and maintenance, according to the release. This acquisition provides residents with the future option of transitioning to individual ownership rather than a nonprofit, and the stability to explore different ownership models in the meantime.
