Johnson County investigates substandard conditions at mobile home park

After years of complaints about the management of Regency Mobile Home Park, residents may finally be getting some relief.

The Johnson County Sheriff's Office has opened an investigation into the park, which is south of Iowa City just outside of city limits and has more than 200 lots.

And the county's Board of Supervisors are considering two ordinances that would give the county more power to require that rural property, like Regency, be maintained to certain standards.

The moves are tied to the substandard living conditions at Regency and questionable sales of homes by the park's corporate owner, Colorado-based Churchill Group.

“I'm just amazed how predatory this whole situation is with these people out there,” said Sally Stutsman, chairwoman of the Board of Supervisors. “Basically, people are just taking advantage of some very, very vulnerable people, and it's just unconscionable.”

Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek said his office has opened an investigation of the park following stories in the Des Moines Register this week. He said the focus of the investigation is unclear at this time, but the newspaper reported that Regency has sold old mobile homes without clear titles and without making buyers aware of unpaid back taxes.

The newspaper also reported on poor living conditions at the park, including issues with the water supply and abandoned trailers. That's something that has been well known for years – for example, The Gazette has published at least seven stories in the past four years about Regency's problems  – and residents and local officials have long expressed their frustration about the park's management.

Local authorities have little power to force Regency to clean up. It is outside city limits, and Johnson County does not have a housing code.

Officials found some relief four years ago when the Iowa City Housing Authority, which has jurisdiction over the county's housing assistance program, told several Regency tenants they must move to keep their assistance, unless Regency was cleaned.

The owners made the repairs, but the fix was short-lived and for more than three years the Housing Authority has denied all housing assistance requests for anyone wanting to live in Regency, primarily because of concerns about water quality, Housing Administrator Steven Rackis said.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources this week sent a report to Churchill Group that theatens to revoke the drinking water permit at Regency unless issues with the water supply are addressed in 90 days, said Dennis Ostwinkle, a DNR regional supervisor. That could result in the park being closed, although that's not a DNR decision.

This past spring, the supervisors first discussed a property maintenance ordinance that would give the county the authority to force owners to fix up nuisance properties, like those that have abandoned structures or junk vehicles on the lawn.

The supervisors will talk about that ordinance and a proposed rental code, which would have similar requirements for rental properties, at a July 28 meeting.

Supervisors said the county has had problems with other properties and the proposed ordinances are not aimed just at Regency, but Stutsman said the problems at the mobile home park have brought the issue to a head after years of complaints.

Supervisor Rod Sullivan said what is especially frustrating about Regency is that many people there don't have anywhere else to live. Many of the mobile homes are not mobile, and other lots will not accept some of the older homes.

Sullivan admitted it's fair to say the county could have acted sooner, but he said it's a complex issue and state law gives mobile home park owners a lot of leeway. For example, tenants can be evicted for a variety of reasons on very short notice.

“I think their (Churchill's) record is abysmal, and I think their management speaks for itself,” he said.

A message left at Churchill's headquarters was not immediately returned. In the past, Churchill representatives have been dismissive of residents' complaints.

Last September, Richard Walker, the company's director of operations, told The Gazette: “You can never make all the residents happy. And a lot of them want to stir the pot.”

The Register quoted a Churchill official as saying they would not comment but had read an article in that paper and “had a good laugh.”