Homes at Rancho de Sonoma. RYAN LELY/SONOMA VALLEY SUN
The city of Sonoma will soon face a decision about whether to support mobile home park owner Preston Cooke’s desire to convert Rancho de Sonoma to condominiums, or to support the residents’ desire to prevent it. While the issue has been contentious, efforts at mediation have been drawing the two sides together, if slowly, according to councilmember August Sebastiani, who, with councilmember Steve Barbose, form an ad hoc mediation committee. The over-riding issue, for the residents, is the looming threat of Proposition 98, which would wipe out rent control from the state. The over-riding issue for Cooke is the future of his investment.
“We hammered out a very fair deal for all the residents,” he said. “So the residents have a choice: Do they convert with an agreement, or do I go ahead and convert without their agreement. They’re still all protected under state law. There’s still provision for maintaining a rent control system for everyone.”
Cooke’s attorney, Sue Loftin, a veteran of condo conversion law suits, said, “The hard part is to explain to people that it gives them choice. In a park like Rancho de Sonoma, residents have a true choice to stay and remain in rent and have long term deed restricted rent control–no matter what happens with the propositions or the city. They will have it as long as they live there.”
Fear seems to be playing a big part in the reluctance of residents to accept his offer, which he said is more than required and as generous as possible. ”The fear factor is they’re saying people are going to lose their home. But flat out, that’s not going to happen. The opposite is going to happen. No matter what, agreement or no agreement, nobody’s going to lose their home.”
Mike Warner, head of the Residents’ Association, expressed their fear. “We just finished a survey of about three fourths of the park, and of them, there were 52 coaches “vehemently against” the conversion, and six people for it. There are 84 of 99 coaches available for voting. The only people who are going to benefit from this conversion is Cooke and his partner. What he’s trying to do is break City rent control. If Prop. 98 passes in June, they will have got rid of rent control.”
David Grabell, attorney for the residents, offered another view. “Mobile homes parks in Sonoma represent most of the affordable housing in the city. So some city council members are concerned they may lose that affordable housing if they lose this park and other parks to condominiums. Sure, they may be able to keep the people who are currently there, but after they move out, their spaces would no longer be affordable housing. So the city is quite concerned. And they should be.” The City, as Mayor Joanne Sanders pointed out, cannot afford a lawsuit, and the threat of a law suit – locally, Santa Rosa and Rohnert Park have both been sued by mobile home park owners – is real.
