Glen Elm residents hope to buy trailer park as evictions loom

Chris Edwards · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 21, 2025 7:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

Residents astatine the Glen Elm Mobile Home Community successful Regina accidental they'll find retired connected Tuesday if their connection to bargain the trailer parkland — and debar eviction — has been accepted by the spot owner.

In January, 14 residents of the parkland were fixed eviction notices to permission the assemblage by April 30. The spot proprietor said it was owed to sewer and infrastructure damage, and that their h2o would beryllium chopped disconnected May 1.

A larger question of evictions was distributed connected March 13, telling dozens of different residents to permission by June 30.

The eviction notices person led to a months-long saga of appeals to the spot proprietor and metropolis council, arsenic galore tenants felt the evictions were unfair and not provided with capable notice. Moreover, they say, they person obscurity other to go.

Residents formed the Glen Elm Retirement Community Residents Association to combat the evictions, offering to excavation their wealth and bargain the spot from the owner, Glen Elm Properties Ltd. They sent a authoritative missive of connection successful aboriginal April.

They accidental they'll get a effect to connected April 22. 

"All we privation is to beryllium near alone," said Randall Edge, who lives successful the assemblage and is president of the residents association. Edge has himself been fixed an eviction notice, and says that if the effort to bargain the spot is unsuccessful, he'll beryllium forced to merchantability his trailer and leave.

Since Regina has fewer different areas zoned for mobile homes, the bulk of residents would beryllium forced to permission the metropolis if they wanted to support their homes. 

But according to Edge, a ample fig of mobile homes successful the assemblage person settled into the crushed and are nary longer mobile. Their lone realistic removal enactment is demolition. Residents who chose that enactment volition person $6,000 taken disconnected their removal fee, but 1 nonmigratory said that magnitude would simply screen the outgo of demolition.

"We're being moved into the ranks of the homeless, due to the fact that we person obscurity that we tin legally go," said Edge.

Mobile homes don't person mortgages, and the tenants don't ain the onshore they unrecorded on. If they permission without the trailer, they'll beryllium near with nothing.

The spot proprietor offered $10,000 to each nonmigratory for relocation, but that magnitude is acold little than the worth of galore now-immobile trailers. Edge believes his mobile location is worthy respective times that amount.

"I'm not definite wherefore I find myself successful this condition due to the fact that I cannot determination my location anyplace other successful the metropolis of Regina. We are wherever we are expected to be." 

After Glen Elm residents made a plea to the Regina City Council successful March, assembly unanimously passed a question to let mobile homes to beryllium moved to vacant residential lots. 

SaskPower and the City of Regina person besides volunteered to waive relocation fees and assistance residents use for societal housing.

Tom Stanhope has lived successful the assemblage since 2015. He hasn't been served an eviction announcement himself, but helped signifier the nonmigratory effect due to the fact that helium says helium doesn't privation the assemblage to beryllium destroyed.

"We conscionable consciousness that Mr. Williams has forgotten the quality broadside of these equations," said Stanhope, referring to the spot owner, John Williams. He's "looking astatine getting escaped of a full clump of radical that don't person anyplace to go."

Stanhope says he's had respective conversations with Williams, who has rejected each of their past solutions.

"Yes, you person infrastructure problems. Well, let's find a solution to these problems. Let's hole it, not evict people," said Stanhope.

Stanhope besides said that galore of his neighbours are connected fixed incomes, and don't person the means to unrecorded anyplace else. 

"Everybody needs to spot what large concern does to small people," helium said. "I recognize business. I recognize the mode of making money, but I ne'er forgot the radical that came earlier me."

CBC reached retired to Glen Elm Properties for comment, but did not person a reply anterior to publication.