The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors approved ordinances on Tuesday that aim to protect mobile home parks and seniors who say their age-restricted communities were being changed to all ages.  

One ordinance will apply to all parks in the area and is meant to protect mobile homes as a source of housing. The second will apply to 55-or-older parks and prevent park owners from changing the properties to all ages.

Senior citizens at some local parks raised the issue with the Board of Supervisors last year after they were informed a new owner was considering removing the age limit at senior-living sites.

Gary Halter is one of the seniors who lives at Del Cielo Mobile Estates. He addressed the board during public comment and stressed that Del Cielo is a senior living park.

Halter described the changes to his home since it was acquired by Harmony Communities and said he is not hopeful about the changes. He said Harmony has ignored county orders and denies residents access to the community clubhouse, where seniors take part in exercise classes or meetups.

“They are schoolyard bullies in suits — bigger than me, louder than me, (and) backed by a swarm of people who don’t care about anything but control and their bottom line,” Halter said.

One of the new ordinances will limit development and require that 80% of the sites at the parks be occupied by at least one person age 55 or older. Additionally, park operators will be required to verify the ages of tenants every two years. 

Operators also will be required to make signs and billboards that clearly state that the park is limited to seniors.

According to the county, there is a need for senior housing. The county’s Housing Authority has 3,104 people on its waitlist. The Housing Authority of the City of Santa Barbara has 3,836 people on its waitlist.

According to Lila Spring, a planner for the county, staff will investigate any reports of park operators violating the county ordinance and will work with the park to determine whether any changes violate county code. The county then will have the park correct any violation if one is found.

There are 21 mobile home parks in Santa Barbara County. The first of the two ordinances will affect 19 of the parks. Out of the total parks in the county, only 11 cater to elderly tenants, and they will be protected under the new ordinance.

Across the 19 parks covered, there are 2,383 spaces for mobile homes; 1,865 of those spaces are in senior mobile home parks.

The board approved a temporary moratorium to prevent changes to senior living sites while the county drafted the new ordinances. The Santa Barbara County Planning Commission approved it with changes in May before sending it back to the Board of Supervisors for final approval.

During public comment, Nick Ubaldi, who represents Del Cielo Mobile Estates, compared the new ordinance to redlining. He then claimed that it would hurt families, minorities and other marginalized groups, and open up the park to discrimination lawsuits.

“We do not believe any park should be forced to discriminate against families or minority groups, especially when it comes to affordable housing,” Ubaldi said.

Fifth District Supervisor Steve Lavagnino pushed back against that comment during deliberations and said the position baffled him. He pointed out that some of the seniors supporting the ordinance had young children with them.

“I just would rather have you say, ‘Hey, I can make more money if I made it all ages,’” Lavagnino said.

In the end, the board voted to approve the new ordinances in a 4-0 vote.

Fourth District Supervisor Bob Nelson recused himself from the discussion because of a conflict of interest. He said he inherited a mobile home since the topic was first brought to the board.