Mapleton Mobile-izers

Welcome to the archive of Mapleton Hollow's community newsletter!

The Mapleton Mobile-izer is issued quarterly, following the MHA membership meetings. Special editions are issued as needed, for example before a quarterly meeting where MHA members will be voting for executives or making an important decision...


MHA BLOG Volume 8.1 Newsletter of the Mapleton Home Association [MHA] February 2003

Inside this Issue:


Goose Creek Construction Nears End by Douglas Sullivan, Project Manager
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American Civil Constructors (ACC) has begun construction of the 27th Street bridge, and will spend the month of February constructing its various phases. The bridge girders were placed on Tuesday January 27th. There will be five (5) concrete pours associated with the bridge; one deck pour, two wall pours, one pilaster pour and one sidewalk pour. ACC has finished removing dirt from the Goose Creek channel. At this point, ACC will construct the channels two remaining north wall sections, which are located adjacent to the irrigation ditch structure. Upon completion of these walls, ACC will begin utility work and curb and gutter work on the channels north side. ACC will be moving the construction trailer to the south side of the channel for the projects remainder. The construction trailer will be temporarily located on space #81. The construction trailer is being relocated to allow the water and sewer lines to be constructed immediately south of homes #155 and #168. Once the utility work is completed, ACC will construct a new section of road, which will connect the Parks two north streets from Valmont. ACC is scheduled to have the above mentioned tasks completed by the end of February. Upon completion of the bridge, remaining wall sections and the curb and gutter work, ACC will pave the Parks streets inthe vicinity of the channel. The asphalt paving is scheduled for the beginning of March. The projects handrails are not expected to be completed until the end of March. For the month of March, ACC will provide concrete barricades in place of the handrail as a temporary safety measure until all the handrail sections are installed. Park residents will be able to drive on the newly paved streets and the 27th Street bridge once the paving has been completed. The projects landscape component will follow in April/May, once the weather is warmer. The landscape work will be dependent upon the Citys 2003 water restrictions. I will keep the Mapleton Park community apprised of the City's water restrictions and how they might affect the landscape work. Thank you again for your cooperation and patience throughout the Goose Creek Phase IV Construction project.

Update on MHA/TCH/HHS Negotiations by Ben Jensen, MHA Business Committee
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The following Points of Agreement have been taken directly from the minutes of City/Thistle/MHA meetings, the video "Affordable Housing in Mapleton Park" (7/02) and the information packet (7/02) that accompanied the income survey. These points have been approved by all parties.

Affordability Guidelines

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Rents:
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Qualifying Residents for Affordability:
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Winter Quarterly Meeting Minutes of the Mapleton Home Association

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Mark Reeder called the meeting to order at 5:30 pm 1/26/03. Guests for the evening were Etta Habegger, Roger Lewis and Jim Harrington from Thistle. Mark began by reviewing the new format for Quarterly Meetings. Agreement was signified by virtue of all remaining present. The agenda for the meeting included an update on The Goose Creek Construction; Announcement of elections for President and Secretary, and an update on the negotiations to purchase the Park. Mark gave a quick overview of the Goose Creek Construction. ACC should finish the last of the concrete work on the northwall of the dirch and the bridge this January and February. Utilities, sewer and water, and concrete work for gutters and sidewalks will be finished during the month of February. Asphalt paving should be finished sometime early in March. The last of the work--landscaping and installing the rails will be done in April and May. Landscaping will depend upon the long range forecast of weather. If the drowth continues, landscaping will be postponed. No sense in planting trees and shrubs if they're just going to die off. All the heavy work that stirs up the dust and is noisy and hard on the residents, should completed by March.


Alex Wilson then informed attendees about the upcoming elections for President and Secretary. Two residents have stepped forth for the Presidency, Paul Keaton #22, and Dick Wilcoxen #28. Carol Teboe has put her hat in the ring for secretary. All three are long-time residents of Mapleton Park Mark Reeder reminded everyone that anyone interested in running for the posts of Secretary and President should contact Alex Wilson #58. Alex also reminded everyone that last minute nominations can be made from the floor on election day. All candidates must be members of the MHA and resident-homeowners in Mapleton.


The floor was then turned over to the guests from Thistle and Mapleton Park's Community Coordinator, Debbie Feustel, for an update on negotiations to purchase the Park. Thistle, with the MHA's help, secured a $625,000 grant approved by City Council to help pay for the Park and infrastructure upgrades. Currently Thistle is working for a grant from the state for $500,000, though the more likely figure is $200,000. This money would go to defray the costs of the infrastructure upgrades. The rest of the financing will most likely come through banks, though Thistle will continue to seek out grants. Thistle is awaiting an appraisal of the Park to close the deal. Banks need an appraisal before they will loan on the property. The City needs an appraisal to confirm their asking price. Currently the City is asking #3.1 million for the property. With the infrastructure renovation conservatively estimated at $2.2 million, that brings the price to $5.3 million. Grants will cover some of this, but the greater portion will be financed by loans from banks. The way to control the costs of the Park purchase lies in the infrastructure. The engineering plans will specify options. By implementing the least costly options, the price of renovation can be kept to a minimum. The infrastructure is currently going forward with work on a preliminary design. Bids will be let out and the whole process could take 6 months before construction begins. The construction will last most likely between 24 - 30 months. The time frame will be impacted by the finances.


Roger Lewis told the meeting that the community has a large responsibility since the type and amount of infrastructure upgrade will be dictated by the residents' choices of the options. Etta Habegger explained that the Thistle/MHA/HHS negotiations are broken out into four groups: Infrastructure, Site Planning, Management, and Affordability. All of the groups are interrelated. For example, the Financial Survey for affordability has information that impacts the infrastructure and what can be spent on upgrades. As soon as numbers for purchase price and the infrastructure renovation are more concrete, Thistle will go to residents and ask for their opinions. Later, residents will be asked to sign off on affordability agreements, infrastructure upgrades, a master land lease between the MHA and Thistle, and individual lot leases between the MHA and residents. (For more information, refer to the handout that came with the income survey of last summer and/or the MHA video. Also, read the related article, The Thistle Corner, in this issue. Eds, note) Debbie Feustel, the interim Community Coordinator, gave the MHA perspective on the costs associated with the infrastructure upgrades,the purchase price of the Park, affordability and leases. The bottom line on infrastructure and purchase price Thistle, MHA and HHS must work together to keep the costs low so that lot rents do not skyrocket. At the same time they must maintain safety and health of the community. The balancing act is difficult but manageable.


Debbie also reported what the MHA's Management Committee has been working on in recent months. Currently they are working on the individual lot leases between residents and the MHA. When the lease is finished, it will be put before the residents for their input. Partly in response to a recent fire at #35b, Hast & Co. has prepared a letter to go out to the residents asking for their cooperation in creating a phone tree in case of an emergency. The Management Committee and Hast are asking for volunteers who would call a few telephone numbers. Those called would then place calls along the phone tree. In the future, Hast & Co. will be working for the MHA. The MHA's Management Committee, with the assistance of Thistle and HHS, will create a management contract to firm up the working relationship between the MHA and Hast. The principle in this contract will guide the relationship between the MHA and Hast. Dick Wilcoxen then made the observation, "What we do in the next six months guides what we do in the next six years." Debbie Feustel ended her report by reminding all present that Thistle has been working on behalf of the Mapleton Park residents and the MHA without a contract to purchase the Park from the City. Residents and the MHA owe them many thanks for their perseverance in this process. Mark Reeder then asked if there was any resident comment. Dick Wilcoxen spoke to the question of hiring a management company. He stressed that we needed to find a company that would be responsive to residents' calls. His own experience was not too good on return calls. He also reminded residents that we need to pay wisely for our choice. The lowest bidder is not necessarily the best for us. Debbie Feustel rebutted Dick's claim that Hast was the lowest bidder. She also reminded the group that once the management company was working for the MHA, they would have different criteria for their working with residents than under the City.

Thistle Corner

by Jim Harrington

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Working together in the spirit of partnership, Thistle, the Mapleton Home Association (MHA) and Housing and Human Services (HHS), are making progress towards the shared goal of a resident controlled and permanently affordable mobile home park. To help purchase Mapleton Park, the City of Boulder has awarded Thistle/MHA $625,000 in grants and $600,000 in loans. In addition, Colorado's State Division of Housing has awarded $360,000 in grants, bringing the total to $1.585 million in state and city help for the purchase. Following this news, First National Bank of Colorado is ready to commit to a major loan, enabling Thistle to purchase the Park this summer. None of this could be possible without resident involvement and the coordinated efforts of the three partners. Over the last two years, MHA, HHS and Thistle have met in Big Group Meetings and in four active working groups: Site, Management, Acquisition and Affordability. Each group has the following responsibilities: o The Site group deals with Mapleton Park's renovation. Currently the members are planning resident meetings to present infrastructure design options. The choices residents make will be reflected in the final Park infrastructure. The design work may take 6 - 9 months to complete. Construction is estimated to take an additional 16 - 22 months o The Management group is developing a resident self-management plan They are also drafting revised lot leases. o The Acquisition group deals with issues related to the purchase of the Park including fundraising. o The affordability group helps to set rents and guidelines to maintain Park affordability for today and for future generations. They are also working on resale provisions which will govern the sale of mobile homes once Mapleton Park becomes a part of the Thistle CLT. These provisions, which residents must agree to in order to receive a below market lot rent, includes the resale formula and the resale process. MHA and Thistle will review the proposed formula and process and present it to the residents this spring. Mapleton residents will be asked for feedback on the proposed resale provisions. In order to receive the necessary funding for the acquisition and rehab of the Park, at least 80% of the Park residents will need to agree to these resale provisions before closing. This 80% is part of the MHA's non profit status and guides Thistle and MHA in securing funding.

General Information Notice from Thistle Community Housing by Roger Lewis, TCH Asset Manager
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Dear Mapleton Mobile Home Park Residents, Thistle Community Housing is working with the Mapleton Home Association (MHA)to purchase the land you occupy at 2635 Mapleton Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80304. On January 1, 2003, Thistle Community Housing submitted an application to the State Division of Housing for financial assistance to purchase the Park. The State grant as well as the City grant comes from Federal sources, and thus you are protected by the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 as amended. MHA and Thistle are committed in not displacing the residents. The grant funds require that we inform you in writing that you will not be displaced. This notice guarantees you the following: 1. You will be able to lease and occupy your present lot or another suitable, decent, safe and sanitary lot in the same mobile home park. You must comply with the reasonable terms and conditions of your lot lease. 2. Over the next few months, we will be working on the final design of the infrastructure. We will make our best efforts to minimize the need for temporary relocation. However, if you must move temporarily due to this infrastructure rehab project, then you will be reimbursed for your extra expenses, including the cost of moving to and from the temporarily occupied unit and any additional housing costs. The temporary unit will be decent, safe and sanitary, and all other conditions of the temporary move will be reasonable. 3. If you elect to move for your own reasons, you will not receive any relocation assistance. We will make every effort to accommodate your needs and to minimize the need for temporary moves. We will work closely with you throughout the acquisition and rehab to assure that this issue of relocation is addressed. During the period from March through September, there will be a series of meetings with the design team to review the infrastructure work and to set the final implementation plans. If you have any questions, please contact MHA Community Coordinator Debbie Feustel at (303) 247-0658 or Thistle Special Project Coordinator Jim Harrington at (303) 443-0007 x117, 1845 Folsom, Boulder, CO 80302.

Thistle, Mapleton and City Council Win Large State Grant By Silvia Gentile

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On Tuesday, February 11, the MHA, Thistle Community Housing and Boulder's City Council made a presentation to Colorado's State Funding Board and came away all smiles. Their hard work paid off in a $360,000 grant to be used for Mapleton. Mapleton and Thistle put together a meaningful and influential booklet that turned the decision in our favor. Many thanks to Julie Morris for her info on problems with the streets, sewer and electrical power; to Silvia Gentile for putting the presentation together; to Enzo Gentile for taking good pictures of our decaying utilities; to Debbie Feustel for writing the text with help from Silvia Gentile and Mark Reeder; to Dick Wilcoxen for his research on the age of the infrastructure in the Park and cataloging its problem areas; to Roger Lewis, Etta Habegger, Jim Harrington, Jerry McNally and Jonie Lynch of Thistle for their leadership and putting the grant together; to Mark Rozzin, Boulder City Councilman, for his part in the presentation; and finally to the MHA's Alex Wilson, Paul Keaton, Ben Jensen and Alex Sanchez for traveling to the State Board to support the group in its winning effort.

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The Mapleton Mobile-izer is published quarterly by the Mapleton Home Association and is distributed free to all residents of Mapleton Mobile Home Park.