'Act of good faith': Tenants union calls off rent strike, eyes better future with new mobile home parks owners

Three weeks after authorizing a historic rent strike, the residents of King Arthur Park and Mountain Meadows Estate voted to call it off in hopes of building a better rapport with the mobile home parks’ new owners.

“On Saturday, the union met to determine a path forward and ultimately voted to de-escalate from (a) strike as an act of good faith to Cabrillo,” a May 18 press release from Bozeman Tenants United states.

After decades of ownership under Gary Oakland, head of a Billings-based company, the properties were sold earlier this month to California-based firm Cabrillo Management. After the sale, the new property manager communicated to residents that a previous 11% rent increase would not be rescinded. In response, the tenants voted to continue their strike.

As the tenants withheld their rent, resulting in a loss of more than $50,000 in May, Cabrillo proceeded with necessary infrastructure repairs. Though the rent increase still stands, Debi Rooks, a King Arthur Park resident and union bargaining team member, said the quick repairs seem like a good sign.

“A lot of the power poles that have been threatening to fall over are being replaced and repaired. There have been a couple sewer issues that they’ve been really quick about handling as well,” Rooks said. “That’s a 180-degree turnaround from what we had been experiencing (with Oakland).”

While Cabrillo refused to drop the rent increase, its initial communication did offer residents a bit of relief in the form of a two-week grace period to pay rent without fees or penalties in light of the ongoing strike.

“Which was also extending a hand to see if we can work together,” Rooks said. “Not in a charity way, but more of a neighborly way.”

With the new owners seemingly making steps toward a harmonious new chapter, Rooks said the union voted to de-escalate the strike in an effort to do the same.

“We want to make sure we’re responding appropriately without turning it into a war situation,” Rooks said. “We want this to be a neighborhood where we’re all working together, owners and residents. Not an us versus them.”

However, Rooks said, not all residents were on the same page because the core of the issue has not changed. Some residents simply cannot afford to pay a lot rent of $950 and wanted to continue the strike until the most recent hike was dropped.

“I get it. They wanted to hold out because they just can’t pay it,” Rooks said. “We do have the strike fund to be able to help those people out while we work to try to come up with a solution to keep everyone in their homes at a rate we can all afford.”

Since voting to end the strike, the union has extended an invitation and hopes Cabrillo will come to the bargaining table. According to the recent press release, Cabrillo plans to issue new leases in mid-June and the union will send its proposals in advance.

But if the two parties hit a dead end, the union is prepared to strike again.

“In any kind of union negotiation, the union asks for something. And if we don’t get heard or they’re not coming to the table, we can choose to escalate again,” Rooks said. “But we want to escalate as appropriate.”