Residents considering Pines Trailer Park purchase

BY JOE HENDRICKS

SUN CORRESPONDENT | jhendricks@amisun.com

BRADENTON BEACH –

Residents of the Pines Trailer Park must soon decide if they have the desire and the means to collectively purchase for $16 million the 2.78-acre waterfront property their mobile homes sit upon.

In late January, the Jackson Partnership LLLP that has long owned the mobile home park informed residents and the residents association of its desire to sell.

Under state law, the potentially impacted mobile home owners must be given the first opportunity to buy the mobile home park property before it can be sold to anyone else.

According to three Pines residents who spoke on the condition of anonymity, at least two sales-related community meetings have been held in the Pines Trailer Park community building. During those meetings, residents were informed that they’d have ap- proximately 45 days to determine if they can secure the $16 million needed to purchase the park.

The park contains 87 individual lots, which equates to $183,908 per lot. Some residents live in the park yearround and others reside there on a seasonal basis. It is not clear what would happen to the existing mobile homes if the homeowners are unable to buy the park, or whether another potential buyer is waiting in the wings. The park’s management and park residents have not responded to requests for onthe-record comments regarding the potential sale.

State Statute

Section 723 of Florida Statutes addresses the sale of mobile home parks and reads as follows: “If a mobile home park owner offers a mobile home park for sale, she or he shall notify the officers of the homeowners’ association of the offer, stating the price and the terms and conditions of sale. The mobile home owners shall have the right to purchase the park, provided the home owners meet the price and terms and conditions of the mobile home park owner by executing a contract with the park owner within 45 days,