‘We are all stronger together’: Mobile home park residents launch Idaho’s first tenant union

EAGLE, Idaho — Residents of a Treasure Valley mobile home park made state history Saturday by forming Idaho’s first tenant union, with an overwhelming majority of households joining in what organizers are calling a “supermajority fighting tenant union.”

The Treasure Valley Tenants Union announced that 84% of occupied households at Elevate Eagle Mobile Home Community (formerly Riviera Estates Mobile Home Park) have signed union cards to bargain collectively with their landlord, including at least 32 of 38 units. The launch took place at 3:15 p.m. at the park, located at 1298 Artesian Road in Eagle.

The union is seeking negotiations with Demetre Booker Jr., who owns the property through San Diego, California-based Elevate Commercial. Booker purchased the mobile home park in July, according to the union.

This launch marks the first supermajority tenant union in Idaho history and the first successful organizing effort by the Treasure Valley Tenants Union, founded last summer. The effort places Idaho residents among a growing national wave of tenant unionism, alongside organizations such as the Los Angeles Tenants Union, Bozeman Tenants United, KC Tenants, and the Kentucky Tenant Union.

According to the union’s research, Elevate Commercial owns a portfolio of mobile home communities with at least 2,928 units across the country, mostly concentrated in the Midwest, totaling at least $180.7 million in Assets Under Management. The company also owns Idle Wheels MHC in Ontario, Oregon, and Country Chalet MHC in Ketchum, Idaho.

Mobile homes have traditionally been a way for people on lower incomes, vulnerable populations, and those on fixed incomes to afford a home of their own. However, the myth that owning or renting a mobile home can be more affordable and equitable can be misleading. 

“Sixty-three percent of mobile homeowners rented their lots. Park closures and the valley-wide shortage of mobile home spaces were forcing evictions,” a study by Boise State University stated. “Since 2001 park closures had forced more than 1,300 evictions. Since 2005 at least 315 mobile home households have been forced to abandon their homes or relocate.”

According to the study, there is a significant housing crisis affecting vulnerable populations in Boise, with limited legal recourse and inadequate support systems for displaced residents.

Yet, many people still live in mobile homes.

“In 2007 the industry’s trade association reports that manufactured, mobile, and modular homes now represent one in five newly construction homes, and that 22 million Americans live in 10.5 million mass-produced homes,” the BSU study stated.

Tenant Kaitlyn Smith, a union leader and seven-year resident, said the park has undergone significant changes since the ownership transition in July, including a 40% rent increase, eviction notices, and fines totaling $1,000.

“This 40% increase in our lot rent has been financially devastating for all of us,” Smith said at the launch rally. “And if we sell our homes, the buyer will now pay over $1,400 in lot rent, not including their home loan. That’s double the lot rent I typically see in the Treasure Valley. I truly believe the only way I could sell my home is by cutting its value in half. It is clear to me that Demetre intends to force us out of our homes and replace us with wealthier residents. Call it profiteering, or call it gentrification, but that ain’t right!”

She emphasized that they are all homeowners at the mobile home park.

“Some of us have lived here for over 30 years,” Smith said.

Ashley Grivas, another union leader, described how the situation has affected her family, particularly her children.

“The rent hike and Demetre’s constant use of eviction threats have shattered the peace and comfort we once felt here,” Grivas said. “My husband and I work hard, but it still feels impossible to keep up with Demetre’s profiteering. Because of the rent hike and Demetre’s threats, we no longer know what our future holds. We had planned on living here for another 5 years, but our hopes for a life after Riviera Estates have been demolished. And it isn’t just my husband and I who have suffered.”

She became emotional describing the toll on her children: “My children have cried themselves to sleep, terrified that we will lose our home, and that ain’t right. Because of Demetre, my children have lost days of school because they thought when they came home their stuff would be in the front yard, and that ain’t right.”

Grivas issued a stark warning.

“Because of Demetre, I have to constantly reassure my children. I tell them that we aren’t helpless, and that we and our neighbors are fighting for what’s right,” she said. “And we are. If Demetre fails to respond to our demands by Monday, Nov. 3rd at 5 PM, we are prepared to escalate. We will take whatever action is necessary to bring Demetre to the bargaining table and to finally do the right thing. We are here to stay, and we are fighting to win!”

Smith also addressed the situation’s impact on children in what she described as “the kid house in the neighborhood.”

“The worst part for me is watching these kids become fearful or terrified that they’re going to lose their place to live,” she said. “A lot of their parents have received eviction notices, fines of up to $1,000, and just watching them go from having a wonderful, safe neighborhood where we could all relax, to being afraid every day that they’re going to lose their homes. That’s been the hardest part for me, is how it’s affected our kids.”

Maria Snell, an elderly union member living on a fixed income, shared how the rent increase has affected her quality of life.

“Demetre immediately raised our rent from $705/month to $986/month,” Snell said. “What once felt like a permanent sanctuary has started to feel unaffordable. The limited cushion my fixed income provided us has disappeared. It became difficult to go out with my granddaughter, go out to eat, or do my favorite hobby, crafting. My son Steven, who had once enjoyed freedom of movement, became frightened and anxious.”

Snell described a painful conversation with her son.

“After he heard about our neighbors receiving eviction notices, he asked me, ‘Where will we go?’ At the time, I could only tell him to pray for a solution to arrive and to try and keep him from worrying,” she said. “But the truth is, I didn’t know. Now I can say, we won’t be going anywhere. We won’t be going anywhere because we have organized a union and are ready to take action to bring Demetre to the bargaining table. It is because of stories like mine that our union is demanding an immediate reduction in rent and a limit of 2% on all future rent hikes. We will not see our homes taken away from us because of Demetre’s profiteering.”

Nick, a union leader who supports his mother with narcolepsy, described what he characterized as targeted harassment of vulnerable residents.

“Demetre has launched a campaign of harassment and intimidation against my most vulnerable neighbors,” Nick said. “He has weaponized arbitrary fees as high as $1,000 to bully residents into compliance. Demetre has also targeted those with the least support, threatening evictions for rules which were never communicated, or for failing to ‘beautify’ their lots. Many of our neighbors have already been forced out by his cruel tactics.”

Nick described his personal experience trying to communicate with Booker.

“My mom is one of those vulnerable people,” he said. “When I turned 18, my parents divorced, and since then, I have worked to support my mother, who has narcolepsy and lives on a fixed income. I have seen Demetre’s actions cause her stress and anxiety. She constantly asks me for updates about what Demetre is doing to the park, full of fear that we will lose our home. Soon after Demetre purchased the park, I sent him an email asking to speak about the drastic changes to the park and the hostile actions he was taking towards my neighbors. He refused to communicate over email, preferring instead to address my concerns over a ‘quick phone call’. When we finally spoke, he insisted we call around 9 PM, brushed aside my concerns, and cut the call short to attend a dinner. He put fear in the heart of my mother, and then dismissed us, and that ain’t right!”

“I’m standing here today to fight back against the injustice that’s taking place against this community,” he said. “I’m here today to plant the seeds that will sprout into a lasting legacy for our families. We are here today to tell Demetre, this is our community, not his kingdom. We will not subject ourselves to unreasonable treatment or be bullied into selling our homes for pennies on the dollar. Demetre, we are not afraid. We are not backing down. As sure as the sun will rise over what’s left of the trees tomorrow, we are not giving up our community!”

Ashley Damberger, a union leader and mother of a child with special needs, described how rent increases have financially trapped families.

“Our first reaction to Demetre’s actions was to try and sell our home. Several of our neighbors made the same decision,” Damberger said. “While we were attempting to sell, Demetre demanded that we remove a trampoline that our special needs son needed for physical therapy.”

She detailed the financial impact.

“He also immediately raised our rent from $705 to $1,000. That’s a 43% increase, on top of our mortgage and all the upkeep costs on our home,” she said. “The financial cushion we had carefully built up has been destroyed. To be honest, I feel like this rent hike has affected our special needs son more than any of us. We can no longer afford his vision therapy for his double vision, and he constantly asks me for reassurance that we’re safe from Demetre. He had his sense of safety in his own home taken away as a child, and that ain’t right.”

Damberger explained how the rent increase prevented residents from leaving.

“Demetre’s rent hike didn’t just affect our finances; it trapped us here. We quickly realized that with the rent hike, people looking for a home had no interest,” she said. “We turned to real estate investors only to be told that we would get pennies on the dollar. Some of our neighbors who did put their homes on the market were completely obstructed by Demetre, who flat-out refused to approve sales. After we realized we had nowhere to go, we decided we had only one thing to do – stay and fight. Not one cent of our rent should be going to a gentrifier like Demetre. He started this fight, but we’re gonna finish it!”

During the launch, the union shared its demands for negotiations with Elevate Commercial:

• Rent reduction
• Quality and timely maintenance
• Cancellation of back rent
• Transparent rent and fee calculations
• A complete stop to retaliation and intimidation
• A collectively bargained lease

The union has given Booker until Monday, November 3rd, at 5 PM to respond to their demands, with residents prepared to escalate their actions if necessary.

Smith said the union formation has transformed the community’s outlook.

“We’ve come together as a union. We have 84% of the park, and people are joining every day,” she said. “We’re demanding that Elevate Commercial come to the negotiating table. I think that we are all stronger together. Our union balances the power between landlord and tenants.”

She said the organizing effort has empowered residents.

“Everybody here has been incredibly fearful, and today we aren’t afraid anymore,” Smith said. “The mood has shifted, and people are confident in their rights and their power as a community.”

Smith defended the community against potential criticism.

“Our community is beautiful, it’s safe, it’s not rundown,” she said. “Any justifications for the mistreatment of these tenants and my beautiful community, we reject that, and we expect respect, and that goes both ways.”

The Treasure Valley Tenants Union describes itself as a regional organization working toward democratically controlled housing. The group organizes tenants to promote access to safe and affordable housing in the Treasure Valley.

Booker did not respond to requests for comment by the time of publication.