UPDATES

In the last few days, I’ve trimmed this blog from 44 posts to seven.  I hope that makes it less confusing and more inviting for viewers.

I’ll check every couple of days to see if anyone has commented.

When I set up the blog, I assumed that many of you would be eager to share your stories with park folks across the country.  Of course I’m disappointed by the low interest so far.  

But it won’t cost me a penny to keep the blog open for at least a year.  It’s sure not too late for the corpse to revive!

Best wishes to all who at least glance,

David

ABOUT STINKY LINKS

I divide these sidebar links into Churchill Crap and Nationwide Nasties.

Now and then I’ll drop and add links for variety.

By nationwide standards, the Churchill Group barely makes the major leagues.  They  own about 25 parks.  The largest groups own over 150. 

You might look at it this way:  According to Rupert Neate’s excellent Guardian article (click on it in NATIONWIDE NASTIES) about twenty million Americans live in trailer parks.  Surely that suggests that most of us DON’T live in old-fashioned parks owned by Mom and Pop.

Stinky Links (esp. Nationwide Nasties) lead both to tales of evictions, harsh treatment of residents, etc., and to reminders that for people with bucks to spare ‘mobile home parks’ are only another investment opportunity—like stocks or gold.

If you do a little web crawling, you’ll find a few sites like ours—blogs (or whatever) aimed at park residents and park living.   But you’ll find way more sites—some legitimate, many sleazy—that lure investors to make zillions by buying and selling parks.  You’ll turn up resources galore on how to choose the right park, how to select your manager, how to know when to sell . . . blah, blah, blah.

Please note:  I will usually provide only one Stinky Link per story.  If you noodle around on your favorite search engine, you’ll usually turn up more.  For example, a Google search on  “‘Regency Mobile Home Park’ Lousiville” brings up several yummy Louisville stories.  You also get leads for links to Churchill messes elsewhere.

A LOUD REMINDER:

The savvy reader of Stinky Links should always remember:

—Most of us are way likelier to blame than to praise.  

—Bad news stories are more fun for journalists to write.

—They’re more fun to read, too.

—Corrections never q-u-i-t-e catch up with horror stories that descrie and may exaggerate some mess.

—When a mess gets fixed, reports of the repair seldom make juicy news.

—Many of these stories are old.

If I didn’t love slimy stories, I wouldn’t share them.  But I try to remember that many of these tales are old, or lopsided, or whatever. 

—David

SPEAK YOUR MIND, #2

(Speak Your Mind, #1 collects comments made on posts I deleted when I cleaned up this site.) 

Share whatever you like about your park, good or bad.  Ask whatever questions you like about life in other parks.  For example, these questions interest me:

How high is your rent?  How often does it go up?  What services does your park provide?  About how big is it (50 spaces?  300?)  How good is maintenance?  What do you think of the manager? . . . Whatever you want to talk about or ask about is fine.

If this post draws many comments, I’ll start new ones:  Speak Your Mind, #3, #4 . . . and so on. 

Please tell other people about this blog:   Neighbors, friends in other parks, on Facebook, etc.

SPEAK YOUR MIND, #1

These comments and responses were made before I remodeled the blog, on posts now deleted.  I’ve bolded the original post’s title.

I APOLOGIZE!  (I’M EMBARRASSED)

I apologized for not looking at the blog in weeks and missing comments.  I asked for suggested improvements.

“Mel somewhere in Maine” commented:

Hi David:

The site is a great idea, but it's way too complicated--too many posts! Like should I gripe about rent on "Rent" or on the page for my park?? And there's too much "Getting Started" to wade through!

How bout giving the site a trim?

Thanks

I replied:

Thanks, Mel. I think you've got a point. When I have time I'll get out my trimmer.

RENT?

I asked about rent, how often it goes up in your park, etc.

Shandra in Durango Regency answered:

We pay 580 a month. Just went up January 1st from 555. we get trash, water and sewer. I have only been here a year but my parents lived here about 8 years back and paid 530 a month. i do think all residents here pay the same, i am in contact with a few.

I replied:

Hello, Shandra,

I hate to correct a lady, but I'll bet you're wrong about what your parents paid 8 years ago. If they're still alive, you might ask them. Churchill owners are NOT the kind of sweethearts who would raise rent so little in 8 years. Annual or every-other-year rent boosts seem to be routine in their parks.

I won't bother to say $580 sounds outrageous--because that's like saying a black cat isn't white.

PLEASE SAY HELLO

This post asked people to say they had visited the blog.

Anonymous commented:

Hello David thanks for the letter yes you are so right there is a lot of unhappy people at Regency Manor in Des Moines Iowa over priced rent slow to no maintenance..

I answered:

Thanks for commenting. Nice to know SOMEONE looked at the blog! I hope things improve in Des Moines. The range in parks is huge, but even the best could use help

Ed in Minnesota wrote:

Hey David, thanx for starting this blog. Us 'trailer trash' need all the help we can get!

I answered:

Ed, how right you are! Trailers are sensible housing for lots of us; and for some just about the only affordable housing. Yet we're made to feel crappy about living in them. People who would never use "the N word" or belittle other minorities don't hesitate to be snide about mobile home dwellers.

Anonymous (who is probably Shandra in Durango) wrote:

Hi David, Thank you for doing this! Getting these things up and running is always a tough project. I agree with Ed, we need to stick together and we need to stay informed! I am at the park in Durango Colorado. I just finished writing a 2 page letter of complaint. I may eventually post it here so that my neighbors may have the benefit of all the facts. Thank you again!

I answered:

You are most welcome--now that I've seen a few replies, I feel way better about the whole project. I hope you post your 2-page letter. I'm wondering if you're the same person who signs another comment as "Shandra," since she also speaks of such a letter.

Before I trimmed, each park had its post.

DURANGO REGENCY, CO.

I mentioned that I thought Durango might be one of the best parks.

Janet straightened me out:

One of the best? We're in a beautiful area. But our roads are HORRIBLE with ice and have been for weeks. MUCH worse the lights by the mailboxes are lousy. . And this is BEAR COUNTRY!! My husband won't let me or the kids pick up mail after twilight, except in the middle of winter when the bears are asleep.

And Shandra wrote:

Hello Neighbors!

Thank you David for putting this blog up. i am circulating your letter. Janet is right, our road plowing situation is deplorable. if you dont have 4 wheel drive you might not be able to get out of the park in the winter. Our management is horrible! i just finished a 2 page complaint letter. i am curious if it will do any good, but i have to try. i will put updates here :)

I answered:

Hi, Shandra,

Thanks for circulating the letter. I'm curious about why you say management stinks. 

I added a few lines suggesting she use an alias, since “Shandra” in Durango would be easy for any bastard spying for Churchill to track down.

B & R MOBILE HOME PARK, ROCKS SPRINGS, WY.

Jane Doe commented:

Helloo.. I ran across this blog on fb someone shared it.. I lived out in b and r in wyoming for a few years... a few years of hell!!!!

I wrote back to ask her to be more specific, but she hasn’t replied.

ALPINE REGENCY, SC

Anonymous wrote:

Why don't you just move if you don't like it? I have always wondered why people love to bitch but they do nothing to fix their situation!!!

I should have ignored him, but tried a polite reply:

I HALF agree. A lot of people would rather bitch than do anything. 

BUT some people flat out can't afford to move. Or there may be some special family or job situation that keeps them in a place they hate..... And I have no idea what housing in your area is like.

from Durango, “La Plata Larry” gave a better answer:

David: What you said was ok, but you were WAY too nice to this knucklehead. Articles in our paper (Durango, CO) about our great local soup kitchen say that there are families who have to get some meals there though the parents hold down two jobs EACH. If that kind of family gets into a park, they aren't going to get up and move very damn easy. But if maintenance sucks they have a right to bitch.

PLEASE START HERE

WELCOME ABOARD THIS DOUBLE-WIDE BLOG

This site is a place for mobile home park residents to share our stories of park life—good and bad.  A place for pad-renters from Maine to Oregon to listen and support one another.  

Like a double-wide, this site bonds two halfs:  My park is in group of about 25, mostly called “Regency.”  I started the blog as a place for Regency people to share our gripes.  . . . But the more I roamed the internet, the more I realized how little is out there to help people in any parks to get together.

So some of the site pitches mostly at Regency people.  But everyone is welcome to comment on any post or anyone else’s comments.

—You are welcome to make long comments as well as short, as you share your park gripes and joys.  

—Remember:  People a thousand miles away know almost nothing about your park.   Please sprinkle in local details.

—Protect your privacy!  Pick an alias that hides you, but identifies your park or town or state.   Or you can comment anonymously.

—Google piensa que habla español. (Algunos dicen que sí, otros dicen que no...) Un traductor en la parte inferior de la página tratará de convertirlo a cualquier idioma de Afrikaans al zulú.

Or, as we say in English:

Google thinks it speaks Spanish.  (Some say yes, some say no . . .) A translator at the bottom of the page will try to convert the blog to any language from Afrikaans to Zulu.

—A post labeled “2 DAVID tells you a little about me.

BLOG GROUND RULES

—STICK TO OUR TOPIC.   You and I the folks in far-away parks differ in hundreds of ways. We share concern about our parks and how we’re treated.   Let’s stick to that.

 —Sexism, racism and religious talk are off limits. Politics are relevant only regarding parks, tenants’ rights, etc.

—Profanity can be a good spice, but it’s a lousy main course:   Once every few days is often enough to call the bastard who manages your park a bastard. 

 —Please separate rumor from what you know.  We yearn to hear your wicked gossip.  But don't call your story Truth unless you would swear to it in court.   Do you believe the manager sleeps with a sow behind the office, or do you know it?

—Officers in the Churchill Group or other park owners must identify themselves if they wish to comment.

—Park managers or other employees may comment anonymously to guard their privacy, but must name their jobs:  “I manage a park.”

CAN YOU SPARE A MINUTE?

I’ve spent only a couple hundred bucks on this project—mainly on postage and supplies.  I’ve mostly spent Time.  Time researching, time setting up this blog, time sending a letter to a some of you . . .  And now time trying to improve the blog.

And time is what I ask you to donate:

—Take time to tell people about the blog.  Lots of people:  Your neighbors, your friends on Facebook.  Your cousin who lives  in another park . . . Anyone who might be interested.

—Do you know people who left your park for reasons worth hearing about?  Please track them down:  We want their stories.

—Better still, do you know a former manager or other park employee with tales to share?

—If you are fluent in another language that residents in your park speak, please volunteer to translate.

—If you know resources that will help us track down good information about parks, or good blogs for us to know . . . or whatever, please share it. 

—This is my first blog.  I’m a clunky amateur.   If you’re an experienced blogger, please help me make this site spiffy.

THE CHURCHILL GROUP AND REGENCY PARKS

(What little I know)

They are a family of corporations, with an office in Carbondale, CO.   Each corp. does business as “Regency of  . . .”  For example, “Regency of Georgia, Inc.”  One man, Peter Bakos, is vice president of a bunch of Regency corporations.  (Wow!  What a l-o-n-g Peter!)

Churchill is owned by Barbi Benton Gradow (yes, that Barbi Benton).  Her husband George seems to be retired.  They also own self-storage places—maybe about 15?

Holding about 25 parks, Churchill is not at all one of the biggest players:  Other groups or corporations own over 100.

Because they are “closely held corporations” (meaning no outsider owns stock), they aren’t required to reveal much:  I don’t know if four people or 75 work in the home office.

The best goody I’ve found on line was posted by a group that made a loan of over half a billion dollars (!) to Churchill in 2014.  The document lists these parks as loan collateral—from most valuable to least:

Durango Regency, CO

Canby Regency, OR

Brookdale Estates, Rapid City,SD

B & R Mobile Home Park, Rock Springs, WY

Oxford Pines Regency, ME

Thunderbolt Regency Estates, GA

San Marcos Regency, TX

St. Marys/Colerain Oaks Rental Homes, GA  (the only all-rentals park)

Douglasville Regency, GA

Junction City Regency, KS

Eagle Lake Regency, MN

Mora Regency, MN

Iowa City Regency, IA

Dickson Regency, TN

Sioux City Regency, IA

Montgomery Regency, AL

Alpine Regency, Columbia, SC

Old Town Regency, ME

Willmar West Regency, MN

Wichita Regency, KS 

The loan document states that Barbi Gradow then owned five other parks—not named because they didn’t serve as collateral.  I’m nearly certain these three are Churchill properties.

Fort Wayne Regency, IN

Kokomo Regency, IN

Des Moines Regency, IA

I’m fuzzy about some other parks:

—The document includes a picture of “Village Green Regency,” but it’s not listed as collateral and I can’t find it on the net

Here and there on the net I’ve found references to Churchill parks in:

—Henryetta, Oklahoma

—Hutchinson, Kansas

—Pendleton, Indiana

Please tell us if you live in one I missed or am not sure about!  This is NOT easy stuff to track down.

ABOUT "DAVID STONEMAN"

DAVID STONEMAN AND THE FIRST DAVID

Parks  are gossipy.  (Me, too.)  If I revealed much about myself,  my neighbors might guess who I am.  Soon a whisper would reach our park office,. . . . And how long would it take them to find an excuse to kick me out?

So I’ll say only what you could easily guess from my writing:   I’m Anglo, not as young as I wish. . . . and persistent as hell when I believe in something.

I will claim to be male.  But I would love it if men and women in a dozen Regency parks were accused of being “the real David Stoneman.”

Last, I cheerfully plead guilty to fibbing:  To guard myself, there’s one Churchill park about which I must always play dumb:  If talk about it comes up, I have to sound every bit as ignorant about my own park as about any other. 

*   *   *   *   *

Though I’m not religious,  I chose my alias in honor of the Biblical David.  You don’t have to be a believer to love the tale of the young giant killer.  (The story is told in 1 Samuel, ch. 17.)

The Bible says David chose “five smooth stones” for ammunition. Apparently one stone did the job.  Do you suppose we park dwellers can find targets for the other four?

So David was a great ‘stone-man.’  But my last name is also a nod to Genl. George Stoneman, a Union soldier who did a lot of damage. . . . Here’s the lament of an old Reb who worked on a Virginia railroad, “Till Stoneman’s cavalry came/ And tore up the tracks again”:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jREUrbGGrgM

And here’s the picture (by Caravaggio) I use as my computer wallpaper—for inspiration.

—Best regards,

David Stoneman

p.s.  Blush, blush:  As I later learned, it turns out my “Goliath” is kinda puny.  Click on “ABOUT STINKY LINKS” to read about what a small player the Churchill Group is in the Wonderful World of mobile home parks.