south park is digging in

One of Anchorage's oldest mobile home parks is digging in.

South Park Estates near Arctic and Benson in midtown is slated to come down. The owner wants to clear the land and build 150 market rate townhomes in its place.

The park has sat on that midtown corner since around the time Alaska became a state. Residents own their homes but rent the lots underneath. So when the eviction timeline dropped, a lot of folks had nowhere to move and not enough cash to make it happen.

Now they're showing up together. A group of South Park residents came to the assembly meeting on Tuesday asking for fair compensation and more time, some even refusing to leave altogether.

While the new housing in development is designed to be affordable, unit leases will cost at least double the lot rent currently does. The owner is offering funds to families willing to relocate, but for some, that isn’t enough.