For years, LaMona Linder has watched town houses and shopping centers replace mobile home parks in Elkridge, destroying hundreds of affordable houses in Howard.
Now, Linder said she fears the same fate for the Elkridge mobile home she has lived in since 2003.
“Someone wants to take all of this away from me, because they want to revitalize,” Linder said, speaking at a meeting of People Acting Together in Howard, an advocacy group of mainly religious organizations.
Residents should have the option to buy the land where their mobile home sits, if the park owner is planning to sell, said PATH members, who pushed for state legislation granting that right.
Six Howard delegates have sponsored legislation requiring mobile home park owners to notify residents of plans to sell and allow the residents to make an offer to buy it.
The measure was prompted by PATH?s advocacy, said Hector Rodriguez, the group?s lead organizer.
Linder?s community of 119 houses at Capitol Mobile Park isn?t on the chopping block, Linder said, but she said she is worried it could soon be threatened.
With a $23,000 annual salary, Linder may not qualify for the county?s moderate-income housing program, making her mobile home her only affordable option, she said.
For example, to qualify to buy a house through Howard?s moderate-income housing program, an individual can make up to 80 percent of the median income, or $51,063.
“The reality is the values of land in Howard County are so high, and it has made it attractive for park owners to sell their properties for other interests,” said Del. Guy Guzzone, D-District 13, a co-sponsor of the bill.
Current law requires park owners only give residents a year to move, Guzzone said.
The need to retain affordable housing options is one impetus behind the measure, but “more importantly, it?s about treating people fairly,” Guzzone said.
Co-sponsor Del. Steven DeBoy, D-District 12A, said the challenge for residents will be coming up with the money for the land, which is becoming more expensive.
In Linder?s case, residents have formed an association, which is necessary to secure a loan, she said.
AT A GLANCE
People Acting Together in Howard outlined several positions on affordable housing in Howard County, including:
» Create a housing initiative trust fund, so the county can apply for state housing trust funding for local initiatives;
» Commit to a policy that each affordable house or apartment lost through development is replaced with another affordable unit;
» Codify into law the current policy that all affordable units required for a new development are placed on site, rather than transferred to another development.
Source: PATH issue agenda
