Protests against a plan to bring in new cottages to a Belle River trailer park may only be the beginning of a conflict between tenants and the park’s ownership.
In May, some residents at Rochester Place Golf Club and resort received an email telling them they needed to move their trailer — or move out — when their contract ends next November.
On Saturday, holding signs that read “Thief,” “Greedy,” and “Buyer Beware,” about a dozen tenants and their supporters demonstrated against this plan, saying owner Paul St. Pierre is acting in bad faith.
Lakeshore, ONT. May 16, 2015 — Rochester Place Resort Inc. owner Paul St. Pierre talks about an ongoing issue with lease holders at the popular golf resort and trailer park on Old Tecumseh Road at the Ruscom River, May 16, 2015. About a dozen residents and their supporters held placards in the rain for several hours to get their message across to visitors and motorists passing by. (NICK BRANCACCIO/The Windsor Star)
“Maybe it’s legal, but it’s also definitely immoral,” said Cathryn Gammon, a Rochester Place resident for 10 summers. “Everything I’ve done to my place was done with the permission of the previous owners, so I’m very upset.”
She showed a Better Business Bureau conflict resolution sheet, which she said concerned residents will be submitting to the bureau in the next few days.
Many of these trailers have added attachments and cannot be moved easily. Residents will need to bear the cost of the move themselves, which some residents say is not fair.
“We’ll be getting legal advice. We’ll see what we can do about getting a lawyer who knows a thing or two about this,” she said.
Paul St. Pierre, who owns the property with his brother Guy, called the protests “unnecessary.”
He said all tenants sign a new one-year contact every season. The semi-permanent add-ons like patios, tool sheds, and decks are not allowed by law and wouldn’t have been allowed under his watch, he said.
“There was never any assumption this was their land,” he said. “It’s not a primary residence and can’t be a primary residence.
“I want to do something different, do something better,” he said. “There was a major golf course revamp, a restaurant revamp, and now the trailer park is getting a revamp.”
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