Brunswick Mobile Home Park Residents Purchased Complex for $26.3 Million Under New 2023 Law, Aided by $3.2 Million State Grant

A group of residents at a mobile home park in Brunswick recently became the first to utilize a new Maine law approved by the Legislature in 2023.

LD 1931 went into law without Gov. Janet Mills (D) signature in July 2023 and required mobile home park owners to notify residents when the properties upon which their homes are located are put up for sale, as well as to “negotiate in good faith” with them.

This law also gives residents ninety days after the execution date of their purchase and sale agreement to secure appropriate financing.

The Blueberry Fields Cooperative — formed by a group of residents at Brunswick’s Linnhaven Mobile Home Complex — met weekly and negotiated a purchase price with the owners of their complex before having their offer accepted in June of this year.

Aiding the Cooperative in this process was the Cooperative Development Institute (CDI), a regional nonprofit organization founded in 1994 that aids in the establishment and support of cooperatives in the Northeast.

The Cooperative closed on the sale this past Thursday at a price of $26.3 million, making this the largest resident-owned community in Maine, according to the New York Times. A total of $27.86 million was gathered by the residents, allowing them to also update the aging septic and water infrastructure on the property.

A vast majority of this funding was sourced through a Maine State Housing Housing financing package, including a $20.6 million loan and a $3.2 million grant from the State’s newly created Mobile Home Community Preservation Fund.

Additional financial support was provided to the Cooperative by the Genesis Fund, M&T Bank, and the Town of Brunswick.

Linnhaven resident and Board President of the Blueberry Fields Cooperative Janet Fournier told WGME shortly after closing on the sale that she and others feared losing their homes when they first learned the property was up for sale in March.

“We were really fearful in the beginning of this process when we knew the owner was going to sell, that it may become unaffordable,” Fournier told the outlet. “If a company from out of state came in here, we’ve heard horror stories about these big companies coming in and they don’t have any personal connection with the folks, with the residents, and they raise the rents and they don’t take care of the property.”

Earlier this week, Mills attended an event at the Linnhaven Mobile Home Park alongside Maine State Housing Director Dan Brennan, Rep. Poppy Arford (D-Brunswick), and Town of Brunswick officials, among others.

“This is exactly the type of outcome that we envisioned when we created the Mobile Home Park Preservation Fund and the Opportunity to Purchase law,” said Mills, according to a Wednesday press release. “We still have more work to do to protect Maine people and mobile home parks from being exploited by companies who want to use them to make a profit, but now we have a model of how we can preserve this vital housing for low and moderate-income people in Maine.”

“Congratulations to the residents of Linnhaven Mobile Home Park, and the Blueberry Fields Cooperative, on becoming owners of your own future,” she continued. “May the example you have set be replicated across our state, and across the country, until every person has the same lasting foundation and safe and affordable place to live as you do.”

“The day that we voted to become a resident-owned community, the members all gathered at the local high school cafeteria to cast their votes,” resident and Board President Fournier said. “As the votes were being counted, the members began banging on the tables in support. When I shouted that the vote was unanimous with 187 voting yes, the roar was deafening. WE DID IT!”

“The Cooperative Development Institute has guided us through every step of this challenging process, always with competence, clear direction, diplomacy, and kindness,” she continued. “We couldn’t have done this without the support of our residents, the Scarponi family, the Town of Brunswick, our State Rep. Poppy Arford, Carol O’Donnell, the folks at MaineHousing and Genesis, and Governor Janet Mills.”

“Our purchase of this property provides a long-term benefit for the lives of more than 275 residents who currently are tenants, but equally important, those who will live in the cooperative long after we’re gone,” Fournier concluded.

Click Here to Read Gov. Mills’ Full Press Release

LD 1931 was sponsored by Rep. Traci Gere (D-Kennebunkport) in May of 2023 and approved nearly along partisan lines in both chambers, with a roll call vote of 81-67 in the House and 22-13 in the Senate.

All Republican members of the State Senate voted against the bill, while all Democratic members voted in support of it.

In the House, Rep. Kevin O’Connell (D-Brewer) crossed party lines and voted against the legislation, while Rep. Jennifer Poirier (R-Skowhegan) did the same when voting in favor of it. Both Independent members of the chamber also voted in support of the bill.

Click Here to Read the Full Text of LD 1931 as Signed into Law

Also approved by lawmakers during the previous legislative session — and ultimately signed into law by Mills — was another bill that changed the law surrounding mobile home park owners and residents.

Although LD 1490 was primarily focused on regulating the fees that landlords can impose upon their current and potential tenants, several guidelines were also extended to encompass the owners of mobile home parks.

The law also prohibited mobile home park owners from charging potential tenants an application fee beyond the cost of a background check, credit check, or other screening process.

[RELATED: New Regulations on Fees Charged by Landlords Signed into Law by Gov. Janet Mills]

In July, Sen. Angus King (I) backed a federal bill designed to encourage owners of manufactured housing parks to sell their land to residents instead of a developer or different landlord.

If approved, this legislation — known as the Manufactured Housing Community Sustainability Act — would establish a 75 percent federal tax credit offsetting capital gains if owners sell their property to a resident cooperative or nonprofit.

[RELATED: Angus King Backs Tax Credit Incentivizing Owners of Manufactured Housing Parks to Sell Land to Residents Instead of Investors]

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT), and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) have signed onto this legislation alongside King.

According to the official Congressional webpage for this bill, it does not appear that any further actions have been taken since its introduction in June.