Call to Action: Help Cully Families Avoid Home Displacement

St. Andrew Pastoral Council supports the residents of Oak Leaf Mobile Home Park. Help us keep them from displacement. We are joining St. Charles, other area churches and CASA of Oregon in supporting our Cully neighbors. YOU CAN HELP by coming to the City of Portland's Budget meeting May 12th. The Meeting will be from 6:30-8:30 with a rally in front of City Hall beginning at 6:00.

Here's the situation at hand and how you can help by showing up!

The owner of Oak Leaf is preparing to sell the property. The residents want to buy it before a developer buys it and replaces their homes with higher rental units. We are asking the City of Portland to help.

Since 2008, CASA of Oregon has converted nine parks, representing 580 spaces across Oregon, to resident ownership. CASA is prepared to submit an offer on behalf of Oak Leaf residents to purchase the mobile home park. Under their program, acquisition costs, infrastructure improvements and operating expenses are paid for by space rents and available subsidy.

According to the initial financial analysis, a purchase by residents would require an approximate subsidy of $1.5 million in order to keep rents affordable and preserve the 34-space community so that it cannot be closed or redeveloped. CASA is petitioning Portland City Council to provide a subsidy of $1.5 million for the residents of Oak Leaf in order to keep rents affordable and preserve the 34-space community so that it cannot be closed or redeveloped.

The Oak Leaf’s residents include several military veterans, many older adults, families with small children, and people living with disabilities and chronic and terminal diseases. At the Oak Leaf, residents have found stability and created a tight-knit community. At significant risk to themselves and their families, these residents are now organizing to save their homes and to preserve their community for themselves and for future generations of low-income residents.They need support from other people who are passionate about affordable housing.

Come to the City’s budget meeting on the night of May 12th to support their request that money be set aside in the budget for the purchase of the Oak Leaf Mobile Home Park.