Mobile Home residents continue to face conflict with management

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - About a month ago we reported on complaints made by residents of Prairie Acres Estates. They claimed requests to repair various things on their lots were unreasonable and inconsistent. On Wednesday, September 20, more tenants came forward to share how the process is affecting them.

When we first reported on this story, the main issue most tenants had was how inconsistent the guidelines for the park were.

The park management claims that repairs are part of the tenants’ lease and management is holding them accountable to that agreement.

Tenants claim repairs are requested and upon completion, they receive another list of repairs.

“We’ve been sitting waiting for over a year for them to do it because they evicted our neighbor over little things with his house and he was working on it too he was working on cleaning up his house and yard and everything and they just booted him,” said Kylee Koller, a resident in Prairie Acres Estates.

Erick Pickar, an attorney representing Prairie Acres Estates says management is willing to be accommodating to tenants who communicate with management. Pickar adds that evictions will always be their last course of action.

Tenants disagree, we spoke with one tenant who says they have been communicating with management and still feel there are no options but to comply or leave.

“I got that paper of fourteen things to do I looked over it I can’t afford to do the things that they want so we decided to just get an apartment ‘cause I don’t really have lots of choices,” said Koller.

Koller isn’t the only tenant who made this decision, we spoke with two others who are also planning to move because of these requirements. They say it simply isn’t worth it to pay for these repairs not knowing what will come next. Those tenants didn’t want to speak on camera, citing a fear of retaliation.

We asked the management at Prairie Acres Estates for documentation verifying these lease requirements but never received a callback. Some tenants claim the only lease they have is from the previous owners and does not include many of the requirements they are now being held to.

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