SARTELL, Minn. — Residents of the Sartell Mobile Home Park and their attorneys filed a class-action lawsuit in Stearns County this week alleging unsanitary living conditions and negligence by current and previous owners dating back to 2014.
The complaint alleges "abusive strategies" that make the park "no longer habitable, with raw sewage spewing into residents' houses, and health and safety violations abounding." Furthermore, the plaintiffs accuse the owners of threatening evictions, making misleading claims about requirements to re-sign leases and overbilling for utilities.
With assistance from Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid and the law firm Robins Kaplan LLP, four residents of the mobile-home community have joined the suit, including Marcie Knox. The retiree has lived in the Sartell Mobile Home Park for seven years. In that time, she said she had to use government stimulus money to pay for sewage cleanup and was significantly overbilled for water services.
"The lot there is beautiful. There's deer, all kinds of wildlife, and I'm going to have to leave. The stress is too much. Can't take it," Knox said. "They put in water meters to monitor our utilities and stuff, which doesn't work. I've had bills range from 2,000 on up to 60,000 gallons — in one month — for two people."
Justin Perl, the litigation director at Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid, said roughly 300 people live at the mobile home park. That includes a large share of low-income and older residents, as well as some people with disabilities.
"These are salt-of-the-earth people who deserve a little respect and dignity," Perl said. "Instead, they're treated like pawns."
The lawsuit names the previous owner, Impact Communities, as well as two individual business leaders from that company named David Reynolds and Frank Rolfe. Additionally, the plaintiffs allege that the current owners, Gemstone Communities, have continued many of the practices since taking over earlier this year. All of those entities and people are based out-of-state.
Neither Impact or Gemstone have responded to requests for comment. KARE 11 also left voicemails with Reynolds and Rolfe, who are considered some of the largest owners of mobile home parks in the country. Neither of those individuals has responded, either, and it's not clear which attorneys will be representing the defendants against the claims.
"We certainly would be willing to sit down and talk, as we always would," Perl said. "But we'll see what happens."
The lawsuit demands that the current owners fix the sewage and maintenance issues, while also seeking money back for residents through monetary damages. Although only four plaintiffs are listed on the complaint, Perl said his team of attorneys will ask the court to "certify the class," meaning the four plaintiffs could then represent all 300 people who live at Sartell Mobile Home Park.
"I just want them to stop doing this crazy stuff," Marcie Knox said.