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Author Archives: Robert Coldren

Trial Court Victory

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March 21, 2012  |  News and Events  |   Robert Coldren

Earlier this month, a Hart, King & Coldren client received good news!  A five-day trial concerning a claim of a party seeking specific performance for the purchase of a mobile home park was decided in favor of Hart, King & Coldren’s client.

Our client, a park owner, owned one of his parks subject to a long term ground lease in favor of the park operator/plaintiff.  Our client had been sued by the park operator, claiming it had a right to purchase the mobilehome park for approximately $2.5 million pursuant to an option agreement.  The property is worth at least $8.0 million.

Hart, King & Coldren demonstrated that the position of the plaintiff was at odds with the intent and understanding of the signatories to the long term lease that contained the option to purchase.  The court voided the demanded $2.5 million sale and released HKC’s client from any obligation to sell the park to the plaintiff for $2.5 million, saving the ground lessor (our client) at least $5.5 million dollars.

Congratulations to our client its client for this hard fought victory and to my partner, trial attorney Bill Dahlin, and the rest of the Hart, King & Coldren staff for a job well done.

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Denial of Subdivision Application Reversed

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November 11, 2011  |  News and Events  |   Robert Coldren

Cavalier Mobile Estates is one of 18 mobilehome parks in the City of Oceanside. The mobile home park owners in Oceanside, including Cavalier, have been suffering under a confiscatory regime of rent control, whereby space rents are half of fair market value.

Cavalier filed an application for a subdivision map so the park could convert to resident ownership. A subdivision allows the park owners to sell the lots to the tenants at fair market value. The law also allows for rents to be raised to market value over time on lots which have not yet sold.

These “conversions” are protected by state law which limits the scope of the local governments’ review of such applications. Sadly, state law has not stopped cities that are politically motivated from attempting to block subdivisions. The Oceanside City Council voted to deny the applications because a majority of residents opposed the subdivision.

Cavalier filed suit in San Diego County Superior Court, challenging the City’s decision. On November 4, 2011, Superior Court Judge Stern reversed the City’s decision and held that the City could not deny the subdivision application based on resident opposition and that the City had to comply with government code.

Cavalier is owned by a large group of family investors, managed by Brian Alex with support of Lillian Chang. These long-time owners will hopefully very soon be able to realize the value of their investment and, in the process, help other owners in Oceanside do the same.

Lillian kindly expressed her appreciation for the work of Mark Alpert and the guidance of Rob Coldren. We appreciate their confidence in Hart, King & Coldren. However, there have been “bumps in the road” to get to this point. We know that progress is only made because park owners are willing to risk precious, limited resources in an effort to protect their property rights. The next time you see Brian or Lillian at an industry meeting, be sure to congratulate them and thank them for their efforts!

For more information please contact myself or Mark Alpert at HK&C at 714-432-8700 or via email at email hidden; JavaScript is required or email hidden; JavaScript is required.

Governor Signs CalChamber Supported Land Use Bill

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July 26, 2011  |  Blog  |   Robert Coldren

(July 20, 2011) Governor Jerry Brown recently signed a California Chamber of Commerce-supported bill that extends the life of active tentative subdivision maps and parcel maps for an additional two years.

AB 208 (Fuentes; D-Sylmar) facilitates the smooth recovery of the housing market by extending the life of active tentative subdivision maps and parcel maps for a period of two years. As an urgency measure, the bill took effect immediately upon being signed.

CalChamber believes that AB 208 will help California’s economy as well as local economies by legislatively extending the expiration date of existing and unexpired tentative tract and parcel maps, including approximately 2,500 tentative maps, containing nearly 330,000 housing units. These maps represent hundreds of construction projects, thousands of construction jobs and significant revenue to the state.
This measure is necessary so that when the economy recovers, the housing sector and construction industry will be poised to recover as well, providing new affordable housing for California’s working families.

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You must act by August 2nd
New Mobilehome Park Regulation

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July 12, 2011  |  Blog  |   Robert Coldren

Don’t shoot the messenger!  The Feds are at it again with new requirements for our industry. An operator of a master meter gas or small propane system, such as those used at mobilehome parks, must develop and implement a written plan that addresses the integrity of gas and propane pipeline systems by August 2, 2011. Inspectors from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) will review begin to review said plans during routine inspections of your gas pipeline system.

The plan must include several elements:
A. Knowledge of System Infrastructure
B. Identify Threats to Pipeline
C. Evaluate and Prioritize Risks to Pipelines
D. Identify and Implement Corrective Actions to Minimize Risks
E. Measure Performance, Monitor Results and Evaluate Effectiveness of Plan
F. Periodic Evaluation and Improvement
G. Report of Results

Park owners may want to contact your utility service provider for assistance in developing this written plan. Park owners can also call the CPUC at 213-576-7020 for more information how this program impacts your park or feel free to give Rob Coldren of HKC a call at 714-432-8700.

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