60 Families Residing In Tacoma Mobile Home Park Face The Boot As Park Owner Facing Foreclosure Fails To Cure Safety, Health Violations

In Tacoma, Washington, The News Tribune reports:

• They say they pay their rent on time and take pride in their community, but about 60 low-income families in Lakewood may still be out on the streets later this year. The city has identified a litany of safety and health violations at the Fir Acres Mobile Home Park, which is currently in foreclosure, on the 12600 block of Bridgeport Way Southwest. The city plans to evict the tenants at the end of August unless someone emerges with a plan to address the concerns and the money to pay for the work.

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• Fir Acres tenants and the city say the fault lies with the property owner, SLI Associates LLC, for allowing the property to fall into disrepair. Almost all the tenants own their homes and rent their spaces. “It’s like we’re being punished for their mess-up,” said River MystDragon, who has lived at the park for six years.

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• If the tenants are evicted, she said, they may end up in publicly funded housing – or, more likely, homeless. “Most families have invested in their homes and are proud of the fact they’re homeowners,” said [the tenants’ lawyer, Ishbel] Dickens of Columbia Legal Services, which provides legal assistance to low-income people. “They’re trying to be responsible homeowners and responsible parents and yet they’re going to potentially lose their only asset through no fault of their own. The city needs to take that into consideration.”

For more, see Lakewood family: ‘We have nowhere to go' (They say they pay their rent on time and take pride in their community, but about 60 low-income families in Lakewood may still be out on the streets later this year).