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Landlord buys Ashland home park DeLuca says he plans to keep The Pines as affordable housing By SARA MURPHY ASHLAND — The city’s largest lot of affordable housing will stay that way, according to an Ashland landlord buying the property. Ron DeLuca confirmed Monday he is purchasing The Pines Mobile Home Park on Siskiyou Boulevard, next door to The Beanery coffee shop. The $1.35 million deal with owner Russ Dale is expected to close in early March. DeLuca said he has no plans to redevelop the site. Instead, he intends to preserve the approximately 50-unit trailer park as affordable housing. "I’ve been in business for 30 years in Ashland, fixing up places and keeping them affordable," DeLuca said. "That’s what I do." The spaces now rent for about $225, which Dale previously described as "way under price." Dale is out of his office until March 5 and could not be reached for comment. DeLuca, who owns 15 properties in Ashland, said he plans to keep the tenants’ rent prices stable if possible. "I’m going to try to hold the line as best I can for as long as I can," he said. Oregon Action regional organizer Rich Rohde — who has been mobilizing Pines tenants since news spread last month that the Lower Pines, a nearby trailer park, was slated for development — said he hasn’t yet formed an opinion about DeLuca’s plans to purchase the park. Oregon Action is a statewide group best known for its efforts to establish "living wage" laws. Pines residents are planning to meet with DeLuca soon to discuss the park’s future, Rohde said. "I think everyone in the Pines was interested in the (Ashland Community) Land Trust taking it over," he said. "Short of that, we want to make sure we have a long-term commitment to affordable housing." A group of local investors, led by Ashland resident Brad Roupp, also submitted an offer to purchase The Pines. The group planned to resell the property to the Land Trust — at purchase price, no interest — to preserve it as affordable housing. Dale rejected the group’s full-price offer but accepted an offer from DeLuca, who had been asked to join the investors group but made an individual offer instead. "I normally just don’t do partners," DeLuca said. "I do it on my own or I don’t do it." Roupp said he was disappointed that his offer, which included more than 20 partners, wasn’t accepted. He had hoped the Land Trust would receive the property. "The long-term pressure is the worry," Roupp said. "The pressure to develop will come again on this property unless we can lock it into a land trust to secure long-term affordable housing." Roupp said he was encouraged, however, by the support he received from people who were "willing to put their money where their mouth is." Affordable housing activists are also working to preserve the Lower Pines trailer park on Ashland Street, which has about 10 units. PremierWest Bank, which had planned to build a branch on the site, backed out of a deal to purchase the property earlier this month after residents began organizing. Rohde said he and the residents of that park are scheduled to meet with property owners Gregg Adams and Chris Galpin early next month. "If there’s willingness on the part of the owners to work with everybody for a fair and just solution, it can and will happen," Rohde said. "Short of that, the options get pretty small and remote." Reach Ashland bureau reporter Sara Murphy at 482-4655, or e-mail smurphy@mailtribune.com |
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