While the stories of the last residents of Soledad Trailer Lodge remain unknown by many, one thing is clear — the abandoned mobile home park will soon be no more.
The property, located on 18300 Soledad Canyon Road in Canyon Country, was surrounded by security guards throughout Friday as demolition work commenced within the perimeters.
By late Friday morning, at least one of the more than 30 mobile homes was torn down. Though quiet and slow activity appeared from the outskirts of the area, trucks and a bulldozer worked quickly throughout the south side of the park, which borders the Santa Clara River and a bike trail. Mattresses, headboards and other household items made up the large piles of debris that once made up part of the standing but deteriorating units.
The city of Santa Clarita, which filed a complaint in October about the park’s condition with the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) — the organization that oversees Soledad Trailer Lodge and all other mobile home parks — was attentive of the area as demolition took place Friday.
“We are monitoring the situation at the mobile home park as it relates to the city’s jurisdiction, which is off-site,” said Communications Manager Carrie Lujan. “We have no jurisdiction on-site.”
As soon as sometime in the next few weeks, an inspection of the mobile home park could take place by HCD, according to city Housing Program Administrator Erin Lay.
The mobile home park owner, Robbco Properties, could have organized the demolition but company owner Ira Robb did not return phone calls or emails to comment on the matter Friday. Soledad Trailer Lodge manager, Pat Crellin, who is listed as a Santa Clarita Realtor, was also unavailable for comment.
Plans for what may become of the mobile home park after its physical destruction have not yet been confirmed, but Councilman Bob Kellar said that, at one point, the goal was to transform the locale into a new development.
“I haven’t spoken to Ira in two years or more,” he said. “There were joined property owners putting together a master plan on building housing two years ago. That plan came apart but there’s no confirmation if that’s the plan right now.”
From a city standpoint, he said the mobile home park’s condition is a “disgusting eyesore for our community. I drove by today, and we have to do something about this mess.”