MARSHALL — The owners of the Broadmoor Valley mobile home park in Marshall have given notice that they plan to close the park next year.

Marshall City Administrator Sharon Hanson said the city received notice of the park’s impending closure over a week ago. The issue will come before Marshall City Council on Tuesday, and the council will need to set a date for a public hearing, Hanson said.

“The city of Marshall received notice on November 22, 2024, that Broadmoor Valley ownership intends to cease operations as a manufactured home park on December 1, 2025,” a statement from the city said. “The city of Marshall had no previous knowledge regarding Broadmoor Valley’s intent regarding the park. As a result, the city of Marshall staff currently are taking steps to better understand the notice in light of the requirements under state law and to gather information from park ownership and interested state agencies about the proposed cessation.”

Hanson said a public hearing is one of the steps required by state law when a manufactured home park closes.

On Wednesday, Paul Schierholz, of Schierholz and Associates, said factors like the cost of making updates to Broadmoor Valley were part of the reason for closing down the park.

“I’ve never wanted to close the community,” Schierholz said. “We just don’t have any options.”

The closure notice comes while there is still an ongoing lawsuit against Schierholz and Associates over conditions at Broadmoor Valley and other allegations. Court documents filed this summer said the Attorney General’s Office is seeking a total of $3.87 million in civil penalties against the Broadmoor Valley owners, as well as about $13,970 in restitution to residents, and updates to streets and utilities at the mobile home park.

On Wednesday, a Lyon County District Court judge issued an order saying several issues in the case should go before a jury.

A spokesperson for the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office said they could not yet comment on how news of Broadmoor Valley’s pending closure would affect the lawsuit.

Under Minnesota laws, the owners of a manufactured home park have to give 12 months’ notice before closing the park. Copies of a closure statement must be sent to park residents, as well as the state commissioners of health and the housing finance agency, and the local planning agency. On Wednesday, Schierholz said he had sent notices to Broadmoor Valley residents and the other parties required by law.

State laws also require the Marshall city government to hold a public hearing on the manufactured home park closing. The hearing is a chance for park residents to say how they will be affected by the closure. Displaced residents could be eligible for money for relocation costs from Minnesota’s manufactured home relocation trust fund. At the hearing, the city will also need to appoint a neutral third party to act as an arbitrator for relocation fund payments, state statutes say.

Schierholz said he planned to talk about the planned closure of Broadmoor Valley with tenants at a private meeting Sunday.

Schierholz said part of the reason for the decision to close the mobile home park was the cost of making updates to Broadmoor Valley, and the penalties being sought by the Attorney General’s Office.

“Our company doesn’t have the money,” Schierholz said.

In 2022, the Broadmoor Valley owners received a $500,000 state grant to update streets and infrastructure in the park. Schierholz said they had applied for additional funding in subsequent years, but didn’t receive any.

“I’ve been doing everything I can do,” he said.

Schierholz said he didn’t know what would happen to the Broadmoor Valley property if the mobile home park closes down. He said it was his understanding that the land would not be able to be redeveloped because of a covenant in place stating it had to remain a mobile home park.

A lawsuit brought against Schierholz and his business by the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office over conditions at Broadmoor Valley is still ongoing. The Attorney General’s Office sued the Broadmoor Valley owners in 2021, alleging that they had failed to maintain the streets and mobile home park to state standards. The lawsuit also alleged the owners charged illegally high fees for late rent payments, and retaliated against residents of the park.

This year, both sides of the lawsuit asked a Lyon County District Court judge to rule in the case. However, on Wednesday, Judge Tricia Zimmer issued an order denying many of the motions for summary judgment. Zimmer’s order said several of the issues she was being asked to rule on involved disputes over the facts of the case. Zimmer’s order said those questions of fact should be decided on by a jury.

Currently, Lyon County court records show there is a pre-trial hearing for the lawsuit scheduled for Jan. 3, and jury trial dates from Jan. 21 to Feb. 4.

Brian Evans, press secretary for the Attorney General’s Office, said Wednesday that the office is still working through the news of the park’s closure. Evans said he could not yet speak to the impact it would have on the ongoing lawsuit.

A copy of the closure notice for Broadmoor Valley said there were two manufactured home communities within 25 miles of Marshall. One was the Serenity Estates Mobile Home Community in Minneota, and the other was the Lindsay Mobile Home and RV Park in Cottonwood. The notice said availability of sites at the two parks was unknown.