There are about 10 mobile homes currently occupied in the area. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

By Derek Cornet

housing

Council looks at drafting new mobile home parks bylaw, increasing fees

Jun 26, 2024 | 11:38 AM

Work could soon begin by La Ronge administration at drafting a new bylaw governing mobile home parks.

The proposal was discussed last night at a regular town council meeting. Documents prepared ahead of the meeting state a review of other communities with trailer park bylaws found that municipal rates are considerably low by today’s standards, which can be expected given the fees have not been changed for 35 years (1989).

“For example, a local mobile home of 70-square-feet would result $23.16 per month in revenue, while the other communities in the study were in the range of $56 to $96 per month,” the document noted.

“The exception is Moose Jaw, who does have a lower or more comparable to La Ronge when looking at older trailers that are classified as very small. While the town is trying to attract new residential development, administration proposes that the fees be updated (and/or reviewed annually).”

There are many size categories and rates in the current bylaw, and while this is common practice, it can create some confusion as to what fee applies. Currently, only the three lowest size categories in the bylaw are used in La Ronge mobile home parks.

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The difference in fees between these three mobile home sizes is $6.64 per month. Of note, one community from the comparison links the fees to a specific assessment amount and rate.

Mobile home fees, which are paid in lieu of land taxes, could be increased per year on a five-year basis. Once the increases are made, they could then possibly be tied to the rate of annual inflation, so council doesn’t need to continue revisiting the new bylaw annually.

“For example, a five per cent increase per year for five years would see the average fee rate go from $39.32 per month to $50.18 per month at the end of the five-year period,” the document adds.

As per the current bylaw, the owner of a mobile home park has their vacant lots, pads, other lands, and permanent structures assessed and taxed as one property. The individual lots are then leased to residents, and homes are moved onto the property. The town collects water, sewer, and a mobile home fees from the mobile home park owner based on the number of occupied lots each month.

There is currently no language in the bylaw regarding a timeline for billing or regarding late payment penalties.

“It’s a very unique situation mobile homes parks in the sense the owner of the park is collecting fees and taxes on our behalf, essentially,” said La Ronge chief administrative officer Lyle Hannan.

La Ronge council seemed to agree that a new bylaw governing mobile home parks should be implement. They directed council to reach out to the town’s mobile home park owner to gather their insight on the potential for a new bylaw.

In December 2021, Tia Watt purchased the La Ronge Mobile Home Park along Bedford Drive through Mid-City, a company she co-owns with her husband, Jonathan Watt. Since then, a clean-up of the area has been completed, which included removing abandoned trailer homes.

larongeNOW reached out to Tia Watt for comment on this article, but she deferred an interview until she become better informed on the matter.

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com