Residents of the El Granada Manufactured Home Community are protesting a 7 percent rent hike that is scheduled to go into effect in April, raising the monthly cost for space in the park from $700 to $750. Residents say the increase is inconsistent with the park's designation as affordable housing in the San Mateo County Local Coastal Program (LCP). The latest hike follows a 6 percent increase last year, which raised rents from $660 to $700. The rent is only for the land the homes sit on. All of the residents own their homes, and many make monthly mortgage payments in addition to space rental. The homeowners association has petitioned management to meet with homeowners and address their concerns but has thus far gotten no response. A group of residents met last week with San Mateo County Supervisor Rich Gordon, entreating the county to intervene on their behalf. "People can't afford to live here," Homeowners Association Secretary Lisa Ketchum said. "They are moving out weekly. These are my neighbors, and I can't sit by and watch this happen." As affordable housing, the residents maintain, rents should not be increasing at more than double the local cost of living increase, measured by the consumer price index as 3.4 percent in 2001 and 2.7 percent in 2000. Nate Nelson, account manager with Kingsley Management, said the company raised rent due to market conditions. Supervisor Gordon said he was investigating how the LCP defined affordable housing and what authority the county had to enforce that designation. Complicating the issue is the fact that the mobile home park was established in 1969, before the LCP designation was created. El Granada residents fear the management, which typically makes rent changes in April and/or November, plans to raise rent again, to $800, this fall. New residents are already paying $800 and rents are usually consistent among residents. In addition, the management company may begin charging tenants for water and garbage, costs currently included in the rent. Local plumber Terry Shade confirmed that the company had requested bids to put outside water meters onto the units. "I felt they were testing the waters to see if this was a practical thing to do," he said. "But it is my guess that something like this will come up eventually." Rents at the park have gone up significantly more rapidly than at Hilltop and Canada Cove, the other mobile home communities on the coast. Rents at Hilltop range from $325 to $425. The rents will increase 5 percent in April, the first increase in two years. New rents at Canada Cove are $650 to $680. For other residents, most of whom are on ten-year leases, rents have gone up about 4 percent each year over the last several years, according to Larry Henderson, president of the Canada Cove Homeowners Association. Kingsley Management declined to comment as to whether it was considering future rent increases or changes to water billing. Lifelong Coastside resident Sharon Bertolucci said she was planning to sell and move out of her mobile home because she could no longer afford the rent along with her $600 monthly house payment. Bertolucci, who suffers from Hepatitis C, lives on social security payments of $1250 a month. "For me to make a major decision and have the energy to move when I'm sick is really hard. I don't know where I'm going to go, " she said. "My kids were raised here. I was raised here. My parents live in Moss Beach. I'm going to have to end up moving out of the area." Bertolucci said she applied for one of 27 available units at Main Street Housing, an affordable housing complex in Half Moon Bay. "I was told there were 400 applicants. I was number 252." Rents for one, two and three bedroom apartments at Main Street range from $469 to $814 a month. Another resident, Kathryn Murdock, said she had applied for space in Half Moon Bay Village and is hoping to move out as soon as possible. "My choice is either this or homelessness," she said.
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