BishopAccountability.org
	Diocese Sale Worries Residents Mobile Home Park's Seniors Caught up in Church Settlement of Abuse Scandal By Will Evans Sacaramento Bee [Sacramento CA] August 3, 2005 Gayle Clark's late husband had told her it would be a great place to live if she were left alone. Everyone said not to worry about the future of the Lakeview Village mobile home park in Citrus Heights. The Catholic Diocese of Sacramento owns it. But the diocese notified residents last weekend that it intends to sell the upscale 130-acre park to help pay for the $35 million settlement it reached in June on 33 claims of sexual abuse by priests. "This is our home, and we're basically here on our own," said Clark, 65. "It's all very, very scary." The land, with 532 homes and nearly 1,000 senior residents, south of Foothill Golf Center, will now be on the market, fallout of a clergy abuse scandal that goes back decades. "Never in my wildest dreams did I think we'd be part of it," said Clark, as she floated on a purple pool noodle in the clubhouse pool Tuesday afternoon. "Personally, I'm very angry with the church. There's a lot of things they can do," said Clark, who emphasized that she is Catholic. The residents worry whether they have enough money to buy the park themselves. They worry a company will buy it and jack up already-rising rents beyond their means. They worry they might just get kicked out. "I don't think there's any other subject we're talking about right now," said Sue Swearingen, 80 and also a widow, floating on a blue pool noodle. "The most scary thing is we don't have any answers." With scant insurance to cover the legal settlements, the diocese must sell some of its assets, including real estate and securities, said diocese spokesman Kevin Eckery. Much of the diocese's property is restricted to use as churches or schools, he said. "This is the largest unrestricted asset the diocese has," Eckery said. "After looking at what the options were for the diocese, there really wasn't an option for raising $35 million that didn't include selling this parcel." The diocese scheduled a meeting with residents Aug. 15 to discuss the situation. Eckery would not estimate how much the property is worth or might bring in. A normal acre in Citrus Heights that one could build on would sell for around $500,000, said Bill Ayres, land specialist with brokerage company CB Richard Ellis. At 130 acres, that would total $65 million. But land with a mobile home park on it is another matter altogether. The diocese does not anticipate the sale will cover the full $35 million, Eckery said. Most residents of Lakeview Village already own their prefabricated homes, which now can run more than $300,000. They rent the plot and property services for about $400 a month, depending on the house. The wooden houses have permanent foundations, and the groomed yards are decorated with flowers and lawn gnomes. After hearing the news, Clark drove around Saturday, looking at other mobile home parks. "I was sick at the end of it because rents are higher and they're not as nice," she said. Joe Triplett, president of the park's homeowners association, is "madly looking" to figure out how the residents can buy the land themselves. At 79, he is a retired computer and personnel manager for the federal government. He doesn't know much about real estate. Mostly, he's worried about the 25 percent of residents who are 85 and older. "The top level is getting pretty tottery," he said. "I'm worried about what psychologically I'll do to somebody if I say, 'OK, all you guys, (pitch in a lot of money). Half of them of that echelon would have a heart attack before we do anything." Most residents survive on Social Security and retirement checks. Clark said she wouldn't be able to put down money to buy the park. "Let me put it this way - if I had to give 'em $50,000, I'd have to die sooner than I predicted," she said. The surprise news shook many elderly residents who believed they had everything planned out. "We feel kind of stunned. We thought that we were set for life without any problems," said Pat Leonard, 85. "My husband's not well - so I don't talk to him so much about it." Leonard painted a sculpture of a fairy Tuesday afternoon in the clubhouse. She sells some of the figurines she makes to benefit Mercy San Juan Medical Center, where she volunteers. The ceramics workshop is a Tuesday ritual with air conditioning and "That's Amore" playing on the radio. "It's such a wonderful park, and we've had such a wonderful life here. We're just hoping and praying it's not going to change," Leonard said. To move is somewhat unthinkable. As it is, with her husband frail, she does everything herself. They have few family members, and none nearby. She said she was a "spring chicken" when she moved here 18 years ago. "It would be quite a hardship," she said. And Clark is firm - she shall not be moved. "I'm chaining myself to my house," she said. "The next trip out of here better be out of the back end of an ambulance."