6 | DESIGNED BY STELLA JIA
Mobile Home EVICTION
leading to the official decision to evict residents. The news of Winchester mobile home park photo editor/copy editor eviction closely follows the eviction notices reAs of January, two mobile home parks are ceived by the Westwinds residents. As a result, experiencing the results of the changing condi- roughly 1,600 people will face the pressure tions in the Bay Area. The residents of the Win- of finding affordable housing due to potential chester and Westwinds mobile home park are redevelopment plans in their current mobile being evicted within a week of each other due to home parks. The ever increasing prices in the house redevelopment plans in the area. market of the Bay Area have increased concerns A trailer park is filled with trailers and in the Cupertino High School’s student body. mobile homes that exist either permanently or Junior Camelia Siadat said, “We quickly retemporarily in an allotted area: They are forms of alternative housing primarily for low income alized how expensive living in this area was, and I think this might partially be the reason why individuals or families. The issue is that San Jose has little viable many people have gravitated away from the Bay after college or land for dehigh school.” velopments W h e n leading to ar“We quickly realized how expensive asked about her eas such as the future, Siadat living in this area was, and I think this Winchester said “My worries mobile homes might partially be the reason why many about housing in to be at risk of people have gravitated away from the the future pereviction. As Bay after college or high school.” tain to the cost mobile homes of living. If prices occupy these - Junior Camelia Siadat of houses in the “vestiges of afBay Area continfordable housue to increase, ing” according to City Councilman Lan Diep, there is a push to then the amount of people that can afford the dissolve these communities in favor of building cost of living will decrease.” The growing problem of housing costs in more units of residential housing in those prime the Bay Area seems to be part of the concern on areas. For example,the Winchester mobile home the minds of members of other mobile home park is located only two blocks away from Santa- parks in the community. The news of the mobile home evictions has na Row, an area of valuable land for future developments. This eviction happening in San Jose’s spread fear to residents of other parks as many first mobile home park highlights the struggles fear that their home will become “targets for reof the rising house market prices and lack of suit- development” as said by Martha O’Connell, a able hous- mobile home owner and activist in San Jose in a i n g recent interview with Mercury News. The situation is constantly shifting especially as factors such as population play an avoidable role in developing San Jose further. ARIANA FAHRI
PHOTO COURTESY OF KQED
