HERMANTOWN — Heading into a Tuesday afternoon hearing, Elevated Management LLC and its owner/manager, Steven Schneeberger, faced the prospect of a contempt-of-court ruling by Judge Shawn Pearson for allegedly retaliating against mobile home residents who had brought forward health and safety concerns about the trailer park in which they lived.
But Peter LaCourse, an attorney representing several of the concerned residents, informed Pearson on Tuesday that he had consulted with all but one of his clients, and they had been willing to resolve the case as part of a draft settlement agreement proposed by the defendants. While LaCourse explained that he had yet to consult with one of his clients, he said he would prefer not to move forward with the case until he could and said a settlement agreement likely was within reach.
ADVERTISEMENT
Hermantown City Attorney Gunnar Johnson said he had only been informed about the basic framework of the prospective settlement agreement within the past 90 minutes or so. Until he had an opportunity to review the document in greater detail, Johnson said he was not prepared to drop the case and remained in a legal holding position.
Initially, Judge Pearson ordered Elevated Management to make repairs to the 54-lot Hermantown mobile home park, which had fallen into disrepair. Elevated Management owns and rents mobile homes on 44 of those lots. The remainder were occupied by mobile home owners who leased the land on which the units were situated.
Alethea Huyser, an attorney for the defendants, said that as the cost of needed repairs became evident, her clients determined that it was no longer feasible to continue operating Maple Fields and notified residents of Elevated Management’s intent to close the park.
At this point, Pearson raised concerns that Elevated Management had acted in a retaliatory fashion by threatening to evict tenants who did not move of their own accord, even with the owner’s offers of returned safety deposits and transitional assistance.
Issues flagged at the park included: failed plumbing; sewage spills and backups; unsafe wiring; inadequate egress to ensure fire safety; caved ceilings and floors due to water infiltration; inadequate anchor systems; holes and gaps that let in the cold and rodents; and unreliable access to running potable water.
Johnson said the city of Hermantown takes housing violations seriously throughout the community, whether they involve mobile homes or other types of dwellings, and will take steps to ensure all residents have a healthy and safe place to call home.
Given the current state of affairs at Maple Fields, however, LaCourse said the pending settlement agreement appears the best likely alternative.
ADVERTISEMENT
“For my clients, the agreement will mean moving out and moving on,” he acknowledged.
Judge Pearson has issued a stay, allowing time for additional details of a prospective settlement agreement to be negotiated.
Huyser requested that any questions for her clients be sent via email following the hearing. As of Tuesday evening, neither she nor Schneeberger had responded to queries from the News Tribune. Huyser explained earlier that her clients did not recognize the state of the property and the amount of deferred maintenance that had accrued there when they acquired the park a few years ago.
Maple Fields has been listed for sale since its legal battles began in late 2024.
LaCourse said mobile home parks have long offered a valuable option for people seeking affordable housing in the region and expressed his hopes that Maple Fields could return to operation under new ownership or other such parks may spring up to fill the void left by its closure.
The Trust Project
