Star Tribune
Sartell, MN, mobile home park residents sue owners after sewage leaks
The lawsuit pits the residents against the current and former out-of-state owners. The mobile home park, just east of the Mississippi River and tucked between a bowling alley and a car wash, was formed in the 1970s and owned by the same company from 1978-2014.
The park was purchased in 2014 by Colorado-based RV Horizons, run by David Reynolds and Frank Rolfe, who own and operate several parks across the country and lead a training course on how to get rich by owning mobile home parks. Reynolds and Rolfe have faced several lawsuits and compliance complaints over the years, and their Mobile Home University has faced criticism for its focus on raising rents and reducing services to turn a bigger profit — even earning the ire of John Oliver on his HBO show.
Reynolds and Rolfe also operated the park under the name Impact Communities, and sold it to Michigan-based Gemstone Communities in June. Attorneys for the owners are not listed in the state’s public court system, and representatives from the companies did not return requests for comment.
The lawsuit states that after RV Horizons purchased the park, “rents started raising significantly and repeatedly, water bills became outrageous and random, amenities vanished, residents who complained faced retaliation and, worst of all, [residents faced] health and safety concerns as the SMH Park began to seriously deteriorate.”
Residents attempted to buy the park in 2016, but an appraisal showed the park needed significant infrastructure repairs estimated at $1.5 million to bring the property into “average condition,” the lawsuit states. The residents couldn’t get financing so the deal fell through.
The lawsuit is asking the court to order the owners to correct the plumbing and wastewater system failures, as well as fix the park’s faulty system for utility billing.
As October surprises go, the most surprising thing about this one was that anyone saw it.
But someone, somehow, at some point, climbed on top of the unoccupied worksite that is the Minnesota governor’s residence with some paint. There, the timid tagger scribbled a political hot take that only birds, HVAC repair technicians and drone operators could see.
Minneapolis photojournalist Chad Davis spotted the partisan graffiti on the taxpayer-owned building on Wednesday and shared the images — possibly spoiling the vandal’s plans for an Election Day or post-election reveal of “Walz failed” scrawled across a rooftop that belongs to the people of Minnesota, who are now going to have to foot the bill to clean up the mess.
If you’re the tagger in question, remember: This entire rooftop could have been a tweet.
The Minnesota State Patrol has not yet provided an update on the investigation. The state patrol is responsible for the governor’s safety and the security of the governor’s residence — or residences, in this case. The Walz family moved out last year when the $6.3 million renovation project began and into a $330,000-per-year rental. The big brick governor’s mansion on St. Paul’s Summit Avenue has been a work site ever since, complete with scaffolding that might explain how someone could make their way onto the roof.
It wouldn’t be the first time scaffolding on a public building in Minnesota tempted someone into a petty misdemeanor. In 2013, when the Minnesota Legislature had just begun its massive renovation project, an unidentified climber scaled the Capitol dome and led security officers on a nerve-wracking low-speed chase, 223 feet above street level. Eventually, the hooded intruder clambered back down and fled into the night.
Star Tribune
One man shot dead, another wounded near Willmar soon after gunman opened fire from Lyndale Av. balcony
Bystanders observing the scene in Minneapolis recalled hearing the female police negotiator pleading with Matariyeh to surrender. When shots rang out over the phone, the negotiator dropped to her knees and cried. Colleagues could be seen comforting her.
O’Hara said the shots in Minneapolis were fired shortly after an altercation involving Matariyeh’s ex-girlfriend and her current boyfriend, who arrived to the apartment to retrieve some items. Matariyeh and the woman share a child, who was at day care at the time. Police went there to ensure the child’s safety shortly after the suspect fled. The ex-girlfriend and the boyfriend were also not harmed.
The chief said that when police initially responded, it was unclear whether the suspect was still inside the apartment. There is no indication of a domestic violence history between the pair.
At one point after Mayerchak was shot, an officer or dispatcher radioed that the suspect was the man from Minneapolis: “He did say he was willing to shoot cops. Proceed cautiously.”
A short time later, the suspect was leading police on a chase of speeds of more than 100 mph while on the phone with the Minneapolis negotiator, threatening “suicide by cop.”
At about 2:29 p.m., Matariyeh was arrested, and a gun was recovered in the ditch.
He said he would continue to support economic development projects, including one aimed at stabilizing the riverfront and preserving cultural sites that were significant to both the Dakota people and European settlers.
“We want to have good things,” Whiting said. “I’m pretty fiscally conservative for being called the liberal that I am. But, if it makes sense, we’re going to do it.”
Yttreness, who has lived in Shakopee since 1998, spent years with the Fire Department, serving first as a volunteer. He worked most recently as assistant fire chief, a role he left earlier this year.
Yttreness declined to speak in detail about his management of the department, saying, “I’m no longer with them, so that’s the past.”
He said he is running to “get involved in trying to manage the city’s expenses more” and “give some guidance and support to our city employees, public works, police.” He said he believes his knowledge of city operations could be helpful and he wants to “try to do zero tax increases, if possible.”
