Ask a VENDOR THIS COLUMN IS A PLACE FOR DENVER VOICE VENDORS TO RESPOND TO QUESTIONS FROM OUR READERS AND STAFF. Why do you think homelessness has existed for so long? Q A JERRY ROSEN It has existed so long due to economic situations. A lot of people cannot afford housing, as some people don’t make that much money. A lot of people want to save money, and they don’t want to spend it on housing. RODNEY WOOLFOLK Lack of compassion. I was homeless for many years, and no one would help me. Everywhere I’d go, the answer was, “No!” But these days, eyes are opening because homelessness is now in their backyard. JOHN ALEXANDER “Things are bad, and they are going to get worse before they get better.” These are the words from our leaders and experts. With this kind of attitude, homelessness will always be around. One reason homelessness has existed so long is greatly because of negative attitudes and lack of understanding – especially among our leaders and so-called experts. Our society, as a whole, must understand that there is no big mystery about where homeless people come from. Simply put, homelessness is caused when an individual is faced with situations beyond their control. Homelessness can and does happen to anyone, regardless of age, color, gender, political affiliation, etc. You show me someone that has experienced homelessness, and I will show you a person who has experienced a difficult situation they had no control over. What do YOU want to ask? If you have a question or issue you would like vendors to discuss, please email community@denvervoice.org. 4 DENVER VOICE February 2021 MOBILE HOMES ARE SEEN AT THE BELLA-B MOBILE HOME PARK, WHERE OWNER YACOV SINAI DECREASED RENTS BY $225, OR ABOUT 27%, TO HELP RESIDENTS IN DIFFICULT ECONOMIC SITUATIONS DUE TO THE COVID-19 OUTBREAK, IN SEATTLE, WASHINGTON. CREDIT: REUTERS/DAVID RYDER “UNOFFICIAL” ALLIANCE COMES TO MOBILE HOME RESIDENTS’ AID BY ROBERT DAVIS AMANDA COBB COULDN’T FIND THE EMERGENCY CONTACT for Denver’s Front Range Mobile Home Park after her gas was inadvertently shut off on December 26. So, she turned to her friends in a Facebook group, the Colorado Mobile Home Residents Alliance (CMHRA). Within an hour, she was in contact with the manager. “We went the whole weekend without gas. Luckily it was nice that weekend, but we still couldn’t cook, shower, or heat our home,” she told the Denver VOICE. Little wins like Cobb’s success with reaching CMHRA are exactly what the group is about, according to its founder, Billy Bear Jarrett. He describes CMHRA as an unofficial residents’ union because the group has helped members win legal battles, find jobs, furnish their homes, and understand their rights as manufactured home residents under Colorado law. Jarrett said a 2019 lawsuit filed against Kingsley Management, a Utah-based corporation that owned several manufactured home parks in Colorado, really solidified the group’s resolve. In the lawsuit, plaintiffs claimed Kingsley should return unwarranted fees it charged tenants. In response to the lawsuit, Jarrett said the management company sent residents outrageous water bills, and that he and other group leaders were also subjected to intimidation tactics. An investigation by Colorado’s Consumer Protection Division revealed Kingsley had wrongfully held security deposits and collected more than $20,000 in excessive fees. The lawsuit was settled in October 2020, with state Attorney General Phil Weiser returning a $150,000 settlement. Jarett said the victory doesn’t change the fact that several families were illegally removed from their homes, but it is progress. “Before this, and even for the first couple of years, I had no clue that mutual aid existed. I thought it was just us vs. them. If that had been true, CMHRA wouldn’t exist at all. I would hope that we’ve been of some help to all of [the families] in return. I know I do my best to jump to assist any time any of them have a need, and a lot of others do too.” PROTECTIONS FOR MOBILE HOME RESIDENTS A decade ago, Jarrett may not have been able to bring the lawsuit against Kingsley. Colorado law simply didn’t have a mechanism for mobile home renters — who are often lowwage earners — to bring claims against landlords without paying for a lawyer. In 2019, Colorado’s Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) released a sunset review recommending lawmakers update the Mobile Home Park Act (MHPA), a bill from 1985, that outlines the rights and responsibilities of mobile home landlords. Shortly thereafter, legislators like Edie Hooton (D-Boulder) got to work. During the 2019 legislative session, lawmakers passed HB-1309, which allows both park owners and residents to file complaints with DORA’s Division of Housing. Before the law passed, park residents could only request a voluntary mediation with the owners. “MHPA set the standards for park living before 2019, but it lacked teeth because there was no public enforcement mechanism,” Hooton told the VOICE. “With the Dispute Resolution and Enforcement Program, every homeowner in a park can now file a complaint if they believe their rights have been violated, even if they don’t have the money for an attorney.” During the 2020 regular session, lawmakers passed two bills strengthening other protections for mobile home residents. HB-1196 increases the time a homeowner or renter has to cure instances of noncompliance from 30 days to 90 days, and HB-1201 requires landlords to provide a notice of impending sale or land-use change. It also allows renters a 90-day window in which they may purchase the rental property from their landlord if it is put up for sale. Hooton said her team isn’t working on any legislation specific to manufactured homes for the 2021 session, but they are considering taking action to continue protecting renters from eviction. She added that these policy decisions will be guided largely by both state and federal approaches to evictions. During the 2020 extraordinary session, held between November 30 and December 3, lawmakers passed a housing relief bill that provided $60 million in direct rental and mortgage assistance. “The pandemic has led to serious economic problems, which has taken a great toll on people of fixed or lower incomes. Increases in homelessness right now will only make the public health impacts of the pandemic worse, especially during our cold weather months,” Hooten said. “This is a time when we as a society need to make sure as many Coloradans as possible have warmth, running water, and shelter,” she added. FAIR SHAKE Jarrett thinks mobile home residents are better off now than they were because of the new laws, but there are still several issues to resolve. Chief among them is housing affordability. “It’s hard enough overcoming the park owners, now we’re contending with major developers too, who are building $300,000 ‘low income’ housing they think will be subsidized when in truth, there are really no subsidies left,” Jarrett said. But simply lowering the cost of homes is just the start. Once people like Jarret can afford to move into other neighborhoods, the community needs to be willing to accept them. “I don’t know if we’ll ever actually see fair treatment across the board. The parks see us as an exploitable commodity, most of the city governments consider us ‘trailer trash’ and uneducated LOCAL NEWS
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