Jennifer Sedna, Planner I
Urgency Ordinance Second Extension – Moratorium on Closure or Conversion of Mobile Home Parks
Adopt an urgency ordinance, making findings and extending the temporary moratorium on the closure or conversion of mobile home parks within the Town of Windsor for a period of twelve (12) months to become effective immediately.
The recommended action supports the goal of Livability. Goal Statement: Preserve community character by maximizing the use of existing amenities and creating future opportunities that enhance quality of life for all.
A mobile home is typically owned by its occupant and located on rented space in a mobile home park. Windsor has four mobile home parks with a total of approximately 569 spaces located within Town limits (see October 1, 2025, staff report for further details; Attachment 2). These spaces represent a significant portion of the affordable housing supply within the Town and the most affordable housing that is not deed restricted. Half of the Town’s mobile home parks, and 80% of the spaces, are restricted to seniors, many of whom live on fixed incomes. The tenants and homeowners in mobile home parks make up some of the Town’s most economically vulnerable residents, including seniors and families that qualify as acutely low, extremely low, very low, or low income, immigrants, and individuals with disabilities.
Since the Town’s municipal code section for the closure and conversion of mobile home parks (Ordinance 95-58) was adopted over 30 years ago, it predates modern standards established under State law. Windsor’s General Plan 2040 includes a land use designation for mobile home parks which recognizes the existing land that is devoted to mobile home parks and is intended to preserve its use as a mobile home park. However, Windsor’s Zoning Code, which implements the mobile home park land use designation in the General Plan, is Medium Density Residential which allows for residential uses other than mobile home parks. These outdated regulations fail to recognize the housing constraints presently in the County. Therefore, they cannot ensure that the impacts of proposed closures are fully represented and adequately mitigated in relocation plans. Closure of a mobile home park without adequate notice and lead time for the Town to prepare threatens the public health, safety, and welfare by increasing the risk of homelessness within the community, placing greater demand on local services and resources, destabilizing neighborhoods, and contributing to economic strain and social disruption.
Recently, residents of at least one of the Town’s mobile home parks have attended Town Council meetings to request support in response to proposed rent increases, threatened evictions, and threatened park closure from park ownership.
In response to the outdated regulations and potential risk of housing destabilization for tenants, the Town has taken the following actions:
- On October 1, 2025, the Town Council adopted Urgency Ordinance No. 2025-399 (5-0), establishing a 45-day moratorium on the closure or conversion of mobile home parks (Attachment 3). The October 1, 2025, staff report provides further background and analysis of mobile home parks and their regulation in the Town of Windsor (Attachment 2).
- On November 5, 2025, the Town Council adopted an extension to the Urgency Moratorium, which extended the Moratorium (5-0 vote; Ordinance 2025-401, Attachment 4).
The current Moratorium will expire on September 20, 2026, if no additional action is taken.
Mobile home parks make up a significant share of Windsor’s affordable housing supply and are the Town’s largest source of non-deed-restricted affordable units. An update to the Town’s regulations of mobile home parks is needed to safeguard this important housing resource and to recognize the rights and expectations of park owners. Updating these regulations, as well as extending the Moratorium, would advance Housing Element goals to maintain and improve existing housing stock and implement policies supporting the preservation of mobile home parks (Policies H-15 and H-19). Beyond the direct impacts to residents, permanent closure or conversion of these parks would substantially reduce the Town’s affordable housing inventory and could affect broader policy objectives, including Windsor’s Prohousing Designation status.
Town staff has been working diligently to address these issues. In order to safeguard the at-risk housing while Town regulations are updated, the Town Council took the following actions:
- On October 1, 2025, the Town Council adopted Urgency Ordinance No. 2025-399 (5-0), establishing a 45-day moratorium on the closure or conversion of mobile home parks (Attachment 3). The October 1, 2025, staff report provides further background and analysis of mobile home parks and their regulation in the Town of Windsor (Attachment 2).
- On November 5, 2025, the Town Council adopted an extension to the Urgency Moratorium, which extended the Moratorium to September 20, 2026 (5-0 vote; Ordinance 2025-401, Attachment 4).
Included in this Report is a description of the measures that the Town has taken to alleviate the conditions that necessitate a temporary moratorium on the closure or conversion of mobile home parks, pursuant to Government Code § 65858(d). In addition to the internal analysis that commenced in autumn of 2025, Town staff have taken the following actions, with the goal of updating Town policies and regulations to support both tenants and owners of mobile home parks:
- Met with representatives of mobile home park ownership;
- Several meetings with Sonoma County Legal Aid, Sonoma County Tenants Union, and the North Bay Organizing Project;
- Coordination with representatives of the California Office of the Attorney General;
- Coordination and discussion with other Sonoma County jurisdictions, including meetings of the Community Development Commission and Cities and Towns Advisory Committee Review of best practices within mobile home park ordinances in California; and
- Meetings between elected officials, Town staff, and residents at Town Hall and in mobile home parks.
The Moratorium period established by Urgency Ordinance No. 2025-401 will expire on September 20, 2026, if no further action is taken. Due to limited staff resources, additional time is needed to complete the study and analysis. Extension of the Moratorium would provide the Town with the time required to complete the necessary analysis to amend its municipal codes, zoning code, use permit requirements, and other land use entitlement requirements for mobile home parks.
The proposed Urgency Ordinance requires a 4/5 vote for the Town Council to adopt. If adopted, the Town-wide moratorium would continue to apply to the closure or conversion of all mobile home parks for up to twelve (12) months from the date of adoption, unless repealed sooner by the Town Council. Any proposed zoning code amendments would first be considered by the Planning Commission with recommendations to the Town Council.
There is no direct fiscal impact associated with the recommended action.
The adoption of this Urgency Ordinance extension is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act pursuant to Section 15308 because it is a regulatory action taken by the Town, in accordance with Government Code section 65858, to assure maintenance and protection of the environment pending the evaluation and adoption of contemplated local legislation, regulation, and policies. Additionally, the ordinance is not a “project” within the meaning of Section 15378 of the State CEQA Guidelines, because adoption of a temporary moratorium has no potential to result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment. It temporarily prevents certain physical changes in the environment pending the Town’s study and potential amendments to the municipal code, zoning code, or policies regulating the conversion or closure of mobile home parks.