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The DEQ found the sewage lagoons of the Marina del Rey trailer park to be in code violation, forcing residents to move their homes before March 1, 2023. Summer Bryant • The Madill Record -
An abandoned set of stairs left behind by a resident who was forced to move from the Marina del Rey trailer park. Summer Bryant • The Madill Record -
For sale signs can be seen throughout the Marina del Rey trailer after residents learned of the impending closure of the park. Summer Bryant • The Madill Record
The residents of the Marina del Rey trailer park are looking for answers after hearing news of it shutting down. The Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality Standards found the trailer park’s sewage lagoons to be in violation to their requirements.
Garrett Johnson is the owner of the trailer park, and instead of modifying the lagoons, he decided to close them by March 1, 2023. This means that the residents must scramble to find a place to move their homes by that date.
The park’s name is owned by Johnson, but he leases the land from the Army Corps of Engineers. The DEQ issued an administrative order to improve the sewage several years ago. However, the orders were ignored, according to DEQ.
“The issues were not fixed, so the facility did not come into compliance,” DEQ spokesperson Erin Hatfiled saidinaninterview.“Assuch, the DEQ elevated the case to district court.”
An attorney representing the marina said that the upgrades to the sewage lagoons, or even replacing them, doesn’t make sense because of the expense. Johnson was also fined over $100,000 for failing to bring the lagoons up to code.
Residents are left wondering whattheirnextmovesare going to be after learning of the devastating news. Many residents placed their homes in the park because of the affordability and proximity to the lake.
With the price of property skyrocketing over the past year, residents will be hard pressed to find an affordable place for their home. Along with the rising cost of real estate comes the cost to move the home. A basic move can cost between $3,000 and $5.000, and double wide trailers are more.
A resident who wished to remain anonymous said that many residents were planning on retiring in the park and spending more time in their lake homes.
Many residents have been unhappy for quite some time and were hoping that repairs would have been done to the park. They said that even though the lot rent is $350, there have been no improvements made. The roads need repair and the abandoned and rotting trailers need to be moved.
Some residents had interested buyers but had to either slash the asking price in half or lose the sale when the potential buyers found out the home needed to be moved. The other issue is some residents aren’t even aware because they haven’t heard anything from Johnson. This leaves only six months for residents to either find a place to move their homes and come up with the money or find a buyer willing to move the home. That’s for the residents who are aware of the situation.
Residents said Johnson bought the Eagle Ridge trailer park near Marina del Rey and suggested that the residents move their homes to the new park. However, many of the residents said they are gun-shy and will probably continue to find elsewhere to move.
Manyresidentshavequestions for the Army Corps of Engineers, as well., They want to know why the Corps never forced Johnson’s hand and made him fix the sewage problem if they knew for a while.