Forum Tribune 11/03/05

We would like to thank Mike Schmieman for this quality article regarding the hundreds of mobile home owners in Coral Lake Mobile Home Park in Coconut Creek.

The Forum Serving Coral Springs, Parkland, Margate, Coconut Creek
Thursday, November 3, 2005. Vol. 35 No 38

(Headline) Coral Lake residents get eviction notices

(Teaser) Folks dealing with storm damage have until April to move out.

By MIKE SCHMIEMAN
Forum Staff Writer

(Image Caption) MOVE OR BE MOVED: A mobile home in the Coral Lakes Mobile Home Park is up for sale. The site will be turned into a new condominium development next year. Forum file photo.

(Story) In addition to getting hit by Hurricane Wilma last week, residents at Coral Lake Mobile Home Park in Coconut Creek got hit with eviction notices. The notices to move out came in the wake of a recent decision by a circuit court judge to throw out a suit to overturn the recent rezoning of the park by the city of Coconut Creek. Park residents have until April 30 to move.

In an effort to get home owners to move out early, the Coral LakeMHC Limited Partnership, the managers of the park and WP South Acquisitions LLC, the developers who are buying the park, are offering residents a cash incentive. Owners of a single-wide home can receive $3,000, and owners of a double-wide can receive $4,000 if they move no later than 5 p.m., Jan 16.

This is in addition to a state relocation fund that will reimburse owners of multi-section homes (double wides) $6,000 if they decide to move their homes, or $2,750 if they choose to abandon their homes. A single-section mobile home (single-wide) could receive $3,000 to reimburse relocation costs, or $1,375 if abandoned.

Charles Blanchard of Blanchard's Mobile Home Removal and Transport of Hollywood said the charge to move a mobile home ranges from $1,000 to $4,000, depending on the distance moved.

(Web Master's note: This amount sounds like the price of moving a single wide, not taking apart and rebuilding a double.)

During the hurricane virtually every tree in the park lost limbs and branches and most of the homes lost carports and enclosed screen rooms. Only a few of the houses lost roofs though most have varying degrees of damage to roof shingles and siding stripped away.

"We were hit with the double whammy of damage plus mass eviction," resident Robert Perkis said.

At issue in the law suit is the June 23 passage of city ordinance number 2005-027, which, in effect allowed the owners to sell the property to a developer who plans to demolish the mobile home park and build condominiums on the property.

The ruling forces residents of the mobile home park to begin making plans to find some place else to live.

On Oct. 7, Circuit Court Judge Robert A Rosenberg ruled that the two hearings at which the commission evaluated testimony and evidence regarding the presence of adequate mobile home space or other suitable facilities for relocation of the mobile home owners was enough to satisfy state requirements.

At least one Coral Lake resident disagreed.

"I disagree with Judge Rosenberg's ruling to let the city's rezoning decision stand. I hope Mr. (Aaron) Vantrease (the resident who filed suit) and his attorney can appeal this to a higher court," Jan Ellery said. "There are many issues in this situation that go beyond the fate of the mobile home park. Local cities and developers have been allowed almost unlimited power to do whatever they want."

In a letter to The Forum, Ellery contends that the clause revoking relocation funding if somebody sued to overturn the rezoning was unfair and perhaps illegal.

"Whether or not people agree with my neighbor's law suit, he had the right under the First Amendment to petition the decision of the city. The cancellation of the fund is retaliation or punishment because someone dared to exercise their constitutional right to challenge them. If our community had been blown down by a hurricane, I'm sure the low-income residents would be getting plenty of help. Since we were done in by the developers that seems to be OK," Ellery wrote.

Repeated calls to the park managers were not returned.

It is likely, even probable, that we will appeal Judge Rosenberg's ruling. We are examining our options, but haven't decided anything definite yet." said Legal Aid attorney Janet Riley.

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