The eviction of tenants from Vista's Green Oak Ranch RV park has cast a shadow over the holiday season for dozens of families—an ironic twist given the plans for the land's new stewards. According to NBC 7, Solutions for Change—a nonprofit organization that assists the homeless in finding permanent housing—will take over the management of the property, ironically displacing current residents in the process. "They are helping people go from homelessness to independent living, but they are in turn making some people here homeless," tenant Carrie Gibbs told NBC 7.
Despite the Vista Mayor's commitment to relocating the impacted residents, many, including families with children, face uncertainty with just days left before the eviction date. "There are some, they don’t have a place to go. I know there are five or seven families that don’t have a place to go. I am freaking out. That is probably why I am sick," Gibbs added in her NBC 7 interview. Solutions for Change has indicated the possibility of tenants returning, but the future remains unclear.
Hubert Reed Jr., a tenant featured in a KPBS report, faces the dilemma of finding a new location for his high-profile tiny home that no mobile park wants to accept due to its size. Costs for moving the house could range between $5,000 to $7,000. "It's just kind of wild that they want me to just get out and be gone by Dec. 1. If I can sell my house, I will have the money to go where I wanted," Reed told KPBS.
The previous land management, Green Oak Ministries, served various community needs, including a men’s rehab program, and hosted the RV park without the necessary permits—a situation that Solutions for Change deems untenable. "We can't go in and assume another operation without permits. We're getting kind of blamed like ... it's our fault for this. My insurance company is not going to insure us going in there and operating something illegally," Solutions for Change CEO Chris Megison explained to KPBS. Despite offering assistance to the evicted tenants, no offers have been accepted.
As Solution for Change prepares to take over, they plan to focus on turning the property into a space supportive of their mission—all while maintaining the rural character of Green Oak Ranch. This transition includes potential development under the Religious Land Use Act, which could simplify the integration of prefabricated units. "We're looking at maintaining the rural character of this. We're not talking about any mass development," Megison assured in the KPBS article.
