Mobile Home Park Law Is Almost Ready : Ordinance: Measure would regulate conversion of 18 Westminster communities to other uses. Concern lingers over possible court challenges.

After nearly eight months, the City Council is close to completing work on an ordinance that would regulate the conversion of mobile home parks to other uses.

Intended to protect the more than 5,000 residents of the city’s 18 mobile home parks, the proposed ordinance outlines the procedure a mobile home park owner would be required to follow before closing down a park and converting the site to commercial use.

In addition, the proposed ordinance would require the mobile home park owner to pay for the relocation of a park’s residents, including the cost of moving them to a comparable mobile home park within a 100-mile radius of the facility being closed down.

A current ordinance, adopted in 1987, does not provide adequate protection, mobile home park residents say, because the city has little control over the conversion process.

Council members say mobile home park owners must follow a strict schedule to protect the residents from the uncertainty of not knowing when they have to move out of the park. The city could deny the option to convert for at least a year if the schedule is not met.

“There must be some kind of sanction to prevent the residents from being put in limbo,” said Councilman Tony Lam.

City Atty. Richard Jones said there is a danger that the proposed ordinance could be challenged in court if a provision is added to deny the mobile home park owner the right to develop the property for failing to meet a conversion schedule.

“A judge could throw out the ordinance,” Jones said. “Our goal is to provide the mobile home (residents) as much notice as possible, but it must be balanced with the property owners’ right to develop their property. The difficulty is in balancing the situation.”

In June, 1992, the owners of the Mission Del Amo Mobile Home Park on Bolsa Avenue notified residents that the park would be closed and converted to commercial use. More than a year later, the park is still open, but more than 40 residents have moved out and several are trying to sell their mobile homes.

The proposed ordinance seeks to prevent a similar situation, said Planning and Building Director Michael Bouvier. “It gives residents a little more safety net,” he said.

“The council is doing the right thing,” said Stan Hirsch, a resident of Del Amo Mobile Home Park who had advocated the adoption of the ordinance. “The ordinance will be fair for everybody.”

After a five-hour study session this week, the council decided to hold another meeting on Dec. 7 to put the final touches on the ordinance, which has been under discussion since April.

The Planning Commission is likely to review the proposed ordinance and conduct a public hearing in January, Bouvier said. The council will take up the measure in February, he said, predicting that if it is approved, the ordinance could be in effect by March.