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Hurricanes Devastate Mobile Home Parks, Knock Out at Least Two

Written by on Saturday, November 2, 2024

Our reporter spoke to a resident about her own future, and that of this affordable-housing option.


By Della Hale

Original Air Date: November 1, 2024

Host: Mobile home park residents are usually among those hardest hit by hurricanes. But this storm season has been particularly hard. WSLR News reporter Della Hale has a look at one of the largest mobile home parks in the region, and at two that seemed to have reached the end of the line.

Della Hale: In the aftermath of Hurricanes Milton and Helene, mobile home communities in the Sarasota and Manatee area are struggling to recover.

Susie Wills lives at Tri-Par Estates, one of the biggest mobile home communities in the area. She lost her carport during Milton, but some of her neighbors fared worse.

Residents at the Sandpiper Resort Co-Op at Bradenton Beach. Photo: Courtesy

Susie Wills: I am putting the carport back on my home, because my insurance is covering it. And because the rest of the home is livable. And there are homes in my neighborhood that were just leveled. I mean, just wadded up like a piece of paper. People have had, or it’s obvious that they will not be able to rebuild what they had. It’s clear they would probably have to buy a new mobile home and move it onto the lot.

DH: But what happened at Tri-Par is nothing compared to the situation faced by residents of two Bradenton Beach mobile home parks who were flooded twice. Now they are facing federal flood regulations that can make reconstruction prohibitively expensive. The 50% rule by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) prohibits flood repairs that exceed half of a home’s value, unless the home meets strict flood mitigation rules.

Condemned? The Sandpiper Resort Co-Op at Bradenton Beach. Photo: Still shot promotional video

For the residents of the Sandpiper Resort Co-Op and Pines Trailer Park in Bradenton Beach, this new guidance means that their homes can probably not be rebuilt. Under the city’s guidance, following the FEMA standards, any substantial reconstruction must meet strict elevation requirements intended to protect structures in flood-prone zones. For mobile home owners and park property owners alike, rebuilding to these standards is practically impossible.

All this is prompting questions among residents about whether they’ll be able to return to their homes at all. Many residents rely on affordable housing options like mobile homes, and the cost and feasibility of elevating structures is probably out of reach for the community. The prospect of displacement is causing widespread concern, as options for relocating are limited.

Tri-Par Estates, where Susie Wills lives, is at a higher elevation than the Bradenton Beach mobile home parks. It did not get flooded during the recent storms. Wills has a clear opinion regarding the future of the island parks.

SW: But in general, is that, if you’re in a vulnerable area, it doesn’t make sense to me to put a whole lot of investment into housing, knowing that this is probably going to happen again. I mean, that’s just my personal feeling about it. I wouldn’t want to do it.

DH: Reporting for WSLR News, this is Della Hale.

 

WSLR News aims to keep the local community informed with our 1/2 hour local news show, quarterly newspaper and social media feeds. The local news broadcast airs on Wednesdays and Fridays at 6pm.