Elders deserve compassion and a respectable home

Responding to Wednesday’s article, “Mobile home tenants balk at

proposal:” Thank goodness they did balk.

The study session was heavily attended by lawyers and

representatives of Joe Brown, the owner of Snug Harbor and El Nido

mobile home parks, and an association for mobile home park owners.

Every resident of a mobile home in Costa Mesa needs to beware.

Your homes, your communities and your lifestyle are in grave danger

of being erased from Costa Mesa.

The article on Wednesday, was completely written from the

viewpoint of a city worried about lawsuits and an owner wanting to

build another medical building. Nothing in the article mentioned

destroyed neighborhoods.

This means real residents losing their homes; long time Costa Mesa

residents losing their homes. These are residents who paid mortgage

for an owner who now feels the need to redevelop his property.

Coralee Newman, with Government Solutions -- the consulting firm

hired by Brown -- says the proposed agreement “will alleviate the

issues the tenants are concerned about.” The word “issues” is a

wonderful euphemism for ugly but truthful phrases such as, “kicking

people out of their houses.” Don’t you think the residents have a

right to be concerned? How could the pain of losing your home be

alleviated? Give me break.

Affordable housing in Costa Mesa is an oxymoron. Folks, it just

doesn’t exist. The closure of these two mobile home parks will wipe

out 117 homes, with 53 sites in Snug Harbor and 64 in El Nido.

Some members of the audience suggested a town hall meeting. The

people representing Joe Brown did not want this meeting. They were in

favor of an ad hoc committee. I believe the town hall meeting is the

only way for residents to get their concerns heard. The residents

will be outnumbered and overwhelmed in the formation of an ad hoc

committee and lose out.

This is not an isolated issue. Every mobile home resident needs to

be involved. Be vigilant. Know and protect your rights. Keep your

homes. Attend the City Council and Planning Commission meeting.

SANDY JOHNSON

Costa Mesa

Lolita Harper’s recent column titled “Mobile homes on her mind,”

in which she profiled octogenarian El Nido resident and activist

Irene Shannon, really stuck a chord with me.

In recent months I have watched Shannon speak at Planning

Commission and City Council meetings, calmly pleading her case for

better treatment as she and her fellow residents of the two mobile

home parks in question face eviction, and when I read Harper’s

account it reminded me of a recent event my wife and I experienced

that probably involved one of Shannon’s neighbors.

I first noticed her as I was cruising through the Vons parking

lot, looking for a parking spot near The Omelette Parlor. She came

out of the market scooting her battered, collapsible aluminum walker

ahead of her. I did a double take, because something about the walker

seemed a little strange. As I looked more closely I realized there

were several plastic bags of groceries tied to the walker. I could

make out various items -- a carton of cigarettes, a quart of milk, a

round gallon container of ice cream, among others. Her load might

have filled one paper grocery bag -- but this frail, slightly

stooped, woman couldn’t have carried it.

I paused, assuming she was on her way to her car with the

groceries, so I waited to let her pass in front of me. Instead, she

made a right turn and began to shuffle up the parking lot, heading

for Orange Avenue. She took one or two steps, then slid the walker

ahead, proceeding that way at a snail’s pace. One, two -- slide. One,

two -- slide. After every second or third set she would pause to

catch her breath.

Her pace gave me a chance to get a closer look at her as she

passed me. Clearly, this trip was a real workout for her. Her

weathered face bore the wrinkles of at least seven decades of life,

most of which were likely spent as a smoker. Her white hair was short

and tightly curled and her clothes were clean but by no means new.

Her shoes were efficient cross trainers, designed for comfort and

balance -- well-suited for this journey.

I parked my car and lingered briefly, watching as she continued up

the slight grade in the parking lot before gradually disappearing

around the corner of the building, likely heading for one of the two

mobile home parks behind the shopping center.

As I watched, memories of my mother flashed before my eyes. She,

too, chose to live in a trailer park in her later years. She, too,

showed the effects of a smoker’s life. She, too, suffered anxiety as

the circumstances in her park changed.

I found myself wondering about this woman’s future and the future

of her fellow residents of El Nido who will soon be displaced as the

park is demolished to make way for a planned medical office building.

I wondered if she will be able to find affordable housing in our city

at a location that will permit her to make her way to the market and

drug store without crossing a busy street. I wondered how she will be

able to make such a move, even if a suitable place exists, on the

pittance proposed as a relocation allowance by the property owner.

Even as I wondered about these questions I knew the answer -- she

probably can’t.

As I watched this proud woman struggling to make her way home a

feeling of shame came across me. I felt shame to be part of a

community that can allow this group of seniors to be treated so

callously. I felt shame because we who live in homes worth hundreds

of thousands of dollars don’t seem to be very concerned about those

among us who exist day-to-day on whatever meager retirement and

social security dollars they receive each month. I felt shame

because, rather than revere our elders for the sacrifices they have

made on our behalf and for the wisdom and love they have shown us,

some in our society seem willing to simply ignore their plight. They

seem unable to comprehend that they, too, will be senior citizens one

day and may also need the soft hand of compassion extended to them.

Harper’s column, which outlined Shannon’s quest for a municipal

ordinance covering mobile home park closures that will provide

something approaching fair treatment for residents -- and the

subsequent news articles regarding the mobile home residents --

reminded me that each person in this city can make a positive impact

on the lives of those around them, regardless of age or economic

conditions.

If Shannon -- one member of a geriatric posse seeking better

treatment -- achieves her goal, it will probably not benefit her

directly, but will provide more consistent, even-handed treatment for

others in her situation in the future. One cannot help but admire her

for the effort -- particularly at this time of her life.

We live in a community that helps fund homes for first time

buyers, supports Habitat for Humanity in their efforts to provide

affordable homes and has created a place for canines to romp. As the

balance between the rights of the property owner to make a profit and

the rights of residents to equitable treatment is discussed, I hope

some reasonable resolution can be found for the folks living at El

Nido. After a lifetime of giving, they have earned the right to

expect better treatment.

GEOFF WEST

Costa Mesa