The Saga of the Firs Motor-Home Park Eviction Continues and how that community can remain intact

A year ago, in March 2018, three young female filmmakers (ages 13–15) made a short film to call attention to how their largely Hispanic low-income community in the Firs Motor-Home Park in SeaTac was being threatened with demolition. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Wh8SgblKXM&feature=youtu.be

The owner planned on building a hotel and apartments on the park and evict the 170-some residents, including 90 children. Most of them attend the Madrona Elementary school across the street, which has over 50% Latino students, and all who attend are eligible for the low-income 100% free lunch program. It’s a school that will help open the doors for more opportunities to them since it provides a dual language program and assists their children with special needs.

To keep the community together and their children attending this school, State Representative Mia Gregerson and Tenants Union organizers, helped the community raise money from the film and from many other activities to force the owner to either change his plans or provide sufficient funds for the residents to find a new location for the entire community. In particular they wanted to create nonprofit or community-ownership model for the park that promotes community control and self-determination while…