Capo Terrace Residents Near Deal to Buy Beleaguered Trailer Park

The residents of a rundown, legally embattled mobile-home park are nearing a deal to buy the 18-acre property from the bankrupt landowner they’ve been fighting for years.

The residents of Capistrano Terrace Mobile Home Park on Valle Road met Tuesday night to discuss a settlement offer made by the owners, Capistrano Terrace Ltd. The residents decided to make a counteroffer this week or early next, said bankruptcy attorney James Hinds, who is representing Capistrano Terrace’s creditors, most of whom are residents at the mobile home park.

“I think we’re in the ballpark. I think with a little tweaking, their offer and counteroffer are a short meeting and a handshake away,” Hinds said. “We are really, really close.”

The lawyer representing the owners could not be reached for comment. Capistrano Terrace Ltd. is registered with the state as a limited partnership and has shared at least one partner with a Lake Forest-based developer, Advanced Real Estate Services, which is building a  next to the mobile-home park.

Having bought the property in 2003, the mobile-home park’s owners have been , Hinds said. But even before that, they neglected many serious maintenance issues, such as sewer problems, slopes that threaten to fall onto coaches and a pool that hasn’t been useable for years.

The situation got so bad that residents sued the owner in 2007. Seventeen settled and another 17 went to trial and won a $1.5-million verdict, which is on appeal.

Meanwhile, “108 other plaintiffs were waiting in the hallway for their day in court," Hinds said.

We’re very upbeat about the likelihood of our being able to own the place and stay. … A lot of us moved here thinking this would be our last place we live.

       – Capistrano Terrace resident Rustin Calisch

The owners' insurance company made a $4.855-million settlement offer for all the residents who sued.

Then owners notified the city in 2010 that they wanted to clear out the park, but everything came to a halt in July , which would allow them to reorganize.

Bankruptcy Judge Mark S. Wallace ordered the parties into mediation in August, and the two sides have been talking ever since.

Before all the legal entanglements began, Capistrano Terrace owners made an offer to sell the property to the homeowners for $11 million, but that was shelved after residents filed the fail-to-maintain lawsuits in 2007. The figures being discussed now are way below that price, Hinds said.

Although he didn’t discuss specifics, Hinds said the 17 residents who are due their trial award are willing to use that money as a down payment to purchase the property. The current owners would then offer seller financing for the rest.

The owners are “going to get a decent interest rate. Money’s money. The residents are willing to borrow money from the devil if the terms are good,” Hinds said.

The residents supported the counteroffer’s terms with a vote of 95 percent, Hinds added.

The residents’ offer is not far off from what the owners recently offered, Hinds added. It comes down to how much down payment the residents pay.

The residents are also feeling optimistic.

“What took place [Tuesday] night was very encouraging because we have agreement between the homeowners and the plaintiffs,” said resident Rus Calisch. “We’re very upbeat about the likelihood of our being able to own the place and stay. … A lot of us moved here thinking this would be our last place we live.”

Sally Rather, who just stepped down after three years as the homeowners association president, agreed.

“It’s a very, very strong offer and a very fair offer,” she said. “It would be a dream come true if we could do this. I think most people in the park feel this way.”

Hinds said if the owners are amenable to the offer, they could be in front of the mediating judge, Judge Scott C. Clarkson, by the end of the month and maybe in front of Wallace in a month.

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