East Blaine residents voice opposition to city council on manufactured home parks

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About 40 east Blaine residents let Blaine City Council know they opposed a proposed change to the city code that would allow large manufactured home parks in east Blaine.
The residents packed into overflow seats at the start of the April 24 city council meeting at city hall. One by one, just over 20 residents took to the podium and spoke for over an hour during public comment period. Concerns were raised on a variety of topics, including potential lack of affordability and landownership, loss of city property tax revenue and watershed impacts.
Last year, the developers of East Harbor Hills requested a zoning text amendment to city code that would allow for manufactured home parks in east Blaine planned unit developments (PUDs), which are five acres or over. Current code allows manufactured home parks in east Blaine, but not in PUDs.
The discussion has been an ongoing debate in the city’s planning commission, which will approve or deny the text amendment. If planning commission votes in favor of the amendment, a recommendation to change the code will be presented before city council for final approval.
A second public hearing was scheduled earlier in April but the city canceled it because it needed to further research the proposed code change’s compliance with the city comprehensive plan and state law. The hearing is anticipated for the Thursday, May 11 planning commission meeting.
East Blaine resident Lenore Onyon said she and her husband own a manufactured home on two acres.
“I’m not against mobile homes, but when you don’t own the property underneath and you might fall on hard times and get evicted, I don’t see the value in that at all,” she said.
East Blaine resident Patrick Scully expressed concern about the financial impact the manufactured homes could have on the city with a loss in property tax revenue.
“The first thing that comes to my mind is what a fiscal disaster it will be for the city and its residents,” Scully said. “The city of Blaine is borrowing money from its reserve. It’s on life support. I hope my fellow citizens understand that they’re borrowing money from the future.”
East Harbor Hills developer Skip Jansen spoke during the public comment period of the meeting.
“The staff directed us to apply for this text amendment to correct this flaw in the zoning code and that is what we’re trying to do,” Jansen said. “We’re trying to correct this flaw that is inconsistent with state law.”
The inconsistencies with manufactured home parks being allowed in east Blaine but excluded in PUDs were erroneously made through several code changes in the early 2000s, Jansen later said. He added PUDs allow greater flexibility and creative design than is possible under regular zoning regulations, which is consistent with the city’s comprehensive plan.
“It’s so frustrating to see the public with such a misconception,” Jansen said. “To me it’s very simple and unfortunately the public is off on a tangent and they’re not understanding what we’re trying to do here.”
Jansen said he envisions a nice manufactured home park that could serve retirees who no longer wanted to maintain their home and have more flexibility to travel. Rental fees could pay for landscaping and a $1 million clubhouse, he said.
At the end of the council meeting, councilmember Richard May suggested the city hold a town hall on the issue. The audience applauded the idea.

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