Owner dials back rent hike after protests

The new owner of a senior mobile home park straddling the border of Fullerton and Anaheim is pulling back on monthly rent increases of more than $200 for nearly 400 residents until at least Sept. 1, saying the company had done too much, too soon. The increasing concerns that were being voiced by the residents required a pause and an opportunity to initiate a dialogue with those residents to better understand their concerns, said Peter Whittingham, a spokesman for Saunders Property Company, which purchased the Rancho La Paz Mobile Home Park in February. The reversal announced March 27 came after Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu organized a meeting early last week between residents and the owner. The company is planning further meetings with residents to see how it can increase rents in a way that s least impactful, Whittingham said. For weeks, the residents about 150 in Fullerton and 240 in Anaheim have gone to city council meetings in both cities, calliI m happy they are at least negotiating with us, said Lupe Ramirez, 67, a five-year resident of the park. We have to continue to push forward some kind of protection with the city because nobody needs to go through what we ve gone through. Anaheim Councilman Jose Moreno requested city staffers write up an ordinance for the council, which it was set to consider Tuesday, calling for a moratorium on rent spikes at all mobile home parks. The Fullerton City Council also was expected Thesday to discuss the issue. While the immediate crisis is resolved, it is a matter of time until we hit the next crisis with another mobile home park with extreme rent hikes, Moreno said. Anaheim played host to WonderCon 2019 at the convention center over the weekend. The Anaheim comic book convention was a whirlwind three days of cosplay, comics and commerce as the fans lined up to show off their costumed finery, movie and TV companies showed off their upcoming films and aares with the fans who love it. Spotted were an array of amazing female heroes, villains and creative cosplayers and a bevy of Batmaniacs celebrating the Gaped Crusaders 80th birthday. Also spied were some special Spider Man and other related Spidey spinoffs.