By Jennifer Sawhney

Residents from Little Woods Mobile Villa received a report last week that signified a major step toward the mobile home park owner’s long-stated intentions to close the park.

Under state and city laws, park owners must pay for a “relocation impact report” for the park’s closure to move forward. Notably, the gathered data is used to determine if the closure will contribute to the affordable housing shortage in the area. Ultimately, Petaluma City Council will make the final decision later this year.

Tucked along Lakeville Highway across from the Petaluma Marina, the 78-space mobile home park is one of three Petaluma parks at the center of a yearslong fight balancing manageable rents for residents with adequate profits for park owners, amid the backdrop of a statewide affordable housing crisis.

“The closure of the Park will result in the loss of 78 functionally affordable units and displacement of 71 households, of which 77% of the residents interviewed were extremely low income,” the report said – meaning a household of four earns no more than $45,300.

Since 2023, Stockton-based Harmony Communities repeatedly stated its intention to close the manufactured home community and twice sought to increase rents – by more than $1,500 per month in the first instance. Owners have questioned the city’s rent stabilization ordinance, which went into effect in 1993 and was updated in 2023. 

The park is all-ages, with a large population of Latinos and senior residents. Nearly half of the households reported having children in local schools.

Residents own the structures, but pay rent for the property below their units and utilities.

According to California and city codes, if a mobile home can’t be relocated to a comparable space in another park, the park owner must pay for the fair market value of the home.

The report includes data on the average age of the homes (37 years), the individual value of the mobile homes’ property values ($40,000 for a one-bedroom single-wide to $265,000 for a three-bedroom double-wide), resident profiles, the state of mobile home units for sale in the region, and the city’s housing profile, along with other data.

The total assessed value of all the homes is about $12 million, with the land itself worth about $2.6 million. Owners could also be subject to other mitigating costs.

“There are no available vacant mobile home spaces for lease within (Sonoma) County as of December 2025,” according to the report.

Emotional test

The last four years have been emotionally turbulent for many longtime locals who wonder if their investment – one of the last forms of affordable housing that isn't government-subsidized – was worth it.

“We feel fearful and anxious, but we also have a hope that they (the city council) will see there are many of us and that we shouldn’t end up homeless. Because, where are we going to live?” said Gisela Ruiz, who lives with her two teenage sons.

She said management has unfairly pressured residents over repairs and taken away parking – forcing families to park far away at night – and added to worries of losing their homes.

Ruiz said the stress has been felt by all, and she added that it was especially acute among several senior residents who died, including Katherine Bobrowski, who repeatedly voiced her concerns at city council meetings. The longtime Petaluman did not want park owners to own her home, but having no next of kin, that may come true, Ruiz said.

Over the years, there have been three arbitrations for Little Woods that resulted in zero awards (with a fourth coming soon), and owners at this and other parks have filed ten lawsuits in county and federal courts challenging the city’s housing protection rules (with the city and Fannie Mae both countersuing). Just this year, Little Woods’ owners filed two lawsuits against the city, one disputing the relocation report cost of $264,220 and another alleging delays to the report’s publication.

Petaluma Voice did not immediately hear back from a park owner and a lawyer after seeking comment.

After the report was released last week, residents met at one Little Woods home to review the document. Beneath the awning outside the residence, they sat in white folding chairs and leaned forward with interest as they listened, many with arms crossed.

Leading the meeting was Jodi Johnson, a longtime mobile home advocate and resident at Youngstown Mobile Home Park. She said the report was in their favor, considering the housing conditions, but encouraged residents to go to the final city meeting to make their voices heard. Also in attendance, supporting the residents, was Eric Vazquez, a candidate for City Council District 3, which includes the park community.

Many of the attendees stepped forward to drop $10, $20, and $50 bills into a clear ziplock bag to go toward a $1,000 legal fee. Some neighbors encouraged each other to stay in the fight, sensing a collective exhaustion.

At the time of the report, the property owners haven’t formally proposed any changes in use of the property, which is currently zoned for a mobile home park.

“There is no formal timetable for closure at this time,” the report states. California law requires owners to give at least six months of written notice after the council approves any changes to the property’s allowable use.

“I know you’re tired – we’re tired," said one resident who declined to share her name out of concern over possible retribution. "Four years. I understand that. Four years and people say, ‘But we’re still in the same place, in the same place, in the same place.’ But now we’ve reached the final stretch where they’ll vote on whether it stays or closes. Please, if we’re in the final stretch, fight until the very end.”

Moving forward, the residents will have a chance to meet with city staff about the report Nov. 6, before the Petaluma City Council decides whether to approve or deny the park’s closure in a vote tentatively scheduled for Dec. 14.

Correction Oct. 21 at 10:27 p.m: There have been three arbitrations that resulted in a zero awards, with a fourth one expected to start later this year.

Jennifer Sawhney is a reporter and co-founder of Petaluma Voice. She can be reached at jsawhney@petalumavoice.org.