Trailer park residents staying put

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This article was published 19/03/2010 (5850 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

ST. FRANCOIS XAVIER — Many residents of the White Horse Village aren’t willing to raise a white flag, even when faced with a provincial ultimatum to close down their trailer park.

Despite the province’s decision this week to stop trucking out raw sewage on July 15, which would trigger a health department order stating the area would be unfit to live in, many residents say they don’t want to move from the trailer park near St. Francois Xavier on the Trans-Canada Highway west of Headingley.

It’s because they can’t afford to move, says Doris Lavallee, who has lived in the park for more than 20 years.

"No bank will lend us money," Lavallee said. "There’s no way to move even if we wanted to."

The park’s 40 mobile-home owners, down from about 60 a year ago, have been caught in a more-than-a-year-long battle between the owner of the trailer park and the province.

Manitoba Health has said the owner of the land has to spend close to $1 million to repair or replace the park’s failed sewage plant and water lines or agree to truck out the sewage. Raw sewage had been dumped into the Assiniboine River before the province began trucking it out.

But landlord Linda Baldes has not done the work and the residents say she probably can’t afford to do the upgrades.

Baldes could not be reached for comment Thursday.

The residents say they hope the park will be sold to someone who will do the upgrades.

Many people have already moved their mobile homes off the site. Where once some of the mobile homes stood, now there is just gravel and mud. As well, old tires, lumber and other equipment have been left abandoned on the vacant lots.

But not everyone can afford to relocate.

"We’ve been here for 22 years," Lavallee said.

"It’s not the best place, but it has been our home for 22 years."

Because the issue covers several provincial departments, including health, housing, conservation, residential tenancies and family services, the province has designated Brian Malkowich to co-ordinate its handling of the matter with residents.

Malkowich said it has already cost the province about $350,000 to truck out the sewage since January 2009, and he estimates another $50,000 will be spent by July 15.

"Now our focus has to be on working with the residents," he said.

"We want people to have time to come up with a plan for themselves."

Malkowich said the province will offer some financial assistance "on a case-by-case basis" to help people move.

But Tyrell Lavallee, Doris’s son who lives in another mobile home, said "we need more support than $600 or $700 to move."

Another resident, Marshall Duquette, said his parents have seen the writing on the wall for some time.

"They’re dead certain it will close so they’ve been looking for property for two years," Duquette said.

"It’s too bad because it used to look beautiful here."

Todd Holmes, who moved his mobile home to land near Libau last year, said he’s glad he moved — even though he had to put his moving costs on credit.

"I had over $45,000 worth of debt put directly on my credit cards," Holmes said.

"But the stress of having a family there and a daughter in school — it was no longer healthy. In the end, everything worked out for us, but I know the people who are still there are all stressed."

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca