Poulsbo residents urge council to protect manufactured‑home parks, request moratorium and overlay zoning

Three residents of Viking Park and other manufactured‑home communities told the Poulsbo City Council on Jan. 8 that the city should adopt protections for manufactured‑home parks to preserve an important source of affordable housing.

The callers urged the council to adopt a temporary moratorium on redevelopment while the city develops an overlay zoning option that would restrict conversions of parks to market‑rate housing or commercial uses. “Please consider a moratorium on mobile home park redevelopment in our city while a protection overlay ordinance is being developed and approved,” Irene Bowie said during the public‑comment period, identifying herself as a member of the Washington Association of Manufactured Homeowners and a resident of Viking Park.

A local needs‑and‑policy context helps explain why residents sought protections: manufactured‑home parks are often the longest‑standing affordable option for older homeowners who own their units but not the land beneath them. “They are the last bastion of affordable housing in Washington state,” resident Gene Bullock said, urging the council to follow other Washington cities that have enacted manufactured‑home park overlay zones. Another commenter, Haley Hackman, reading for Janet Craven, described how modern manufactured homes are set in place on flatbed trucks and “never to be moved again,” arguing that relocation is impractical for many older residents.

The residents cited examples of other Washington cities that have taken steps to protect parks — including Bellingham, Pullman, Walla Walla, Ellensburg, Kenmore and Sequim — and referenced guidance from the Municipal Research and Services Center that manufactured‑home parks are a frequently overlooked component of affordable‑housing supply.

Council members did not take a formal vote on an ordinance during the meeting. In workshop remarks later in the evening, a city staff member announced a small, off‑site meeting the coming Sunday to continue conversations about manufactured‑home parks and the city’s role; the staff member asked council members to RSVP and said the venue constrained attendance. City staff and council discussed the idea of a needs assessment and additional outreach to better understand local options for preservation and potential funding mechanisms.

What the speakers asked for and what the city plans next: residents asked the council for (1) an interim moratorium on redevelopment while an overlay zone is drafted, and (2) explicit, local code changes to allow a manufactured‑home‑park overlay. Staff signaled follow‑up will include a small stakeholder meeting and additional analysis; no ordinance language, moratorium, or formal council vote on those steps was recorded that evening.

Clarifying details included in residents’ remarks: Viking Park was described as a 55+ park with 89 homes and an average home price near $200,000; speakers emphasized that many of the park’s residents are retired and dependent on Social Security, making relocation financially and practically unfeasible for most.

Councilmembers and staff who spoke during the meeting said they would continue work on housing‑related planning items and reported an upcoming interjurisdictional planning effort on low‑income/STEP housing in North Kitsap. The council’s discussion later in the meeting returned to housing planning and a proposed needs assessment that would include regional partners.

The public‑comment appeals and the staff announcement make manufactured‑home park preservation an item likely to reappear on the council’s agenda for follow‑up analysis and potential code changes.