Locals question details in Santa Barbara County’s senior mobile home park overlay
Jarrod Zinn
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. – Some local residents are pushing for stricter rent control for senior mobile home parks in Santa Barbara county.
Last month, the Santa Barbara county board of supervisors adopted the senior mobile home park overlay, to protect senior parks from being converted to all-age parks.
“The senior mobile home Park ordinance really gives seniors peace of mind and locking in protections for the 11 senior parks that that overlay is for across the county,” says Santa Barbara county board of supervisors’ representative Kelsey Buttitta.
While most properties in the county have begun following this new ordinance, locals are now ready to talk about rent control.
I’m a long term leaseholder in Sunny Hills Mobile home Park, and my rent started in November 2016, 735,” said Orcutt resident Judy Birch at Tuesday’s board of supervisors’ meeting in Santa Maria. “And now it’s 1057 and it’s going up another 4% in October. So I hope something can be done.”
At Tuesday’s board of supervisors meeting, local residents questioned the lease exemption clause within the new ordinance, saying it only protects affordability for properties who run on month-to-month rent payments.
According to the county’s representative, rent control is a separate issue from the overlay ordinance.
“While the overlay does not establish rent control or set lease rates, it does protect seniors by preventing the conversion of these parks to all ages occupancy, maintaining these communities as a unique and affordable housing option for older adults,” says Buttitta. “Now, any changes to rent or lease protections would require separate action by the board.”
Residents and advocates say anyone with a lease on their mobile home instead of a monthly rental agreement is in danger of being priced out of their homes.
“Last year, the consumer Price index rose three 4.4%,” said another Orcutt resident, Cheryl Fredrickson. “Under rent control, my rent would have increased 2.55%, which would have been covered by the Social Security cost of living adjustment of 2.5%. Unfortunately, my rent in Sunny Hill’s mobile home community went up 4%. My renting neighbors in Knollwood Village went up 7%.”
Locals hope the county’s rent control ordinances can be updated.
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