Residents of a threatened mobile home park didn't receive their fondest wish this week – keeping their homes – but they did succeed in securing better relocation benefits as they make way for an apartment complex they have vigorously opposed.
The San Diego City Council heard their pleas and, on the fly, helped shape a plan Tuesday that broadened the moving options offered to residents and extended rent subsidies by three years for those who give up their mobile homes.
The apartment developer, Archstone, is calling for a 444-unit building to replace the Mission Valley Village mobile home park in Allied Gardens. The residents are mostly low-income seniors.
Critics say the apartment plan breaks zoning regulations and could harm the prospects of a redevelopment zone in neighboring Grantville. They also argue that the environmental review was inadequate.
Defenders of the proposal say it will boost redevelopment efforts and help the region meet the need for new rental housing, while also creating jobs for the depressed construction sector.
“If ever there was a poster child for redevelopment, this property is it,” said Paul Robinson, an attorney for Archstone.
The sides clashed during nearly two hours of testimony Tuesday. Councilman Jim Madaffer called on Archstone to beef up its relocation offer for those who are forced into rental housing because they cannot move their mobile homes.
The developer agreed, increasing the aid package to seven years from four years. Residents who can move their homes also will receive more monetary help.
About two dozen residents gathered before the meeting for a brief rally, where they accused the developer of failing to take their limited incomes into account. Some have lived at the mobile home park more than 40 years.
The stress has been demoralizing, they said. Carol Mulgrew, 67, a retiree who holds a part-time job, worries that she will have to find full-time work if she needs a new place to live.
“You take all your savings and buy something,” Mulgrew said of her home of 22 years. “You think you're going to be set for life.”
No timetable has been set for the departures.
Jennifer Vigil: (619) 718-5069; jennifer.vigil@uniontrib.com
