Help 98 Families Fight Displacement

They're Buying Their Park from Private Equity. They Need $13M to Close the Deal.

 

FUNDRAISING PROGRESS
85%
Raised $11,100,000
Goal $13,000,000

Meet the Sopris Mountain Collective.

Sopris Mountain Collective

For decades, families have called Cavern Springs mobile home park home. They are teachers, non profit executives, restaurant workers, bus drivers, healthcare staff, construction workers, and veterans who keep the Roaring Fork Valley in Colorado running.

Their park is for sale. They have until October 11, 2026 to close on a $25M purchase. Or- they risk losing their homes to outside investors who will raise rents and displace residents.

The residents have organized into a cooperative corporation. They have secured $11.1M in committed grants and donations — from local governments, foundations, and private donors. They are working with seasoned nonprofit lenders (ROC USA Capital and Impact Development Fund) to finance $12M in below-market loans.

They've done the hard work.

But- Mountain Voices Project and the residents still need to raise $1.9M to close the gap — the final piece needed before the October 11 closing deadline.

Our final goal of $13 Million in equity represents a one-time correction in the housing market to the Cavern Springs residents and will allow them to own their own property and land as a long term, self sustaining cooperative. The $1.9 Million represents the current state of critical and inevitable infrastructure capital improvements that will be undertaken as part of this enterprise, as well as the creation and initiation of a singular one-time fund for rent-assistance for residents. The final loan terms and capital repair costs won't be fully known until due diligence is complete in August. Every dollar raised brings all of the residents closer to a sustainable, self-governed future.

How to Give

Tax-deductible donations are administered through the Housing Justice Fund at Aspen Community Foundation. Please include a donation note that says "Cavern Springs." These unrestricted gifts support the residents now and, if the purchase is unsuccessful, will support other mobile home park residents in the region pursuing the same model of resident-ownership.

GIVE NOW →

Want to stay in the loop? Email our organizer, Katherine Coe, at [email protected]. We'll share our fundraising progress, let you know about additional ways to support as they arise, and celebrate milestones with you as we work toward our goal.

For gifts above $25,000:
Contact Allison Holloran, the Cavern Springs Capital Campaign Manager, at [email protected]. Pledged commitments are only collected if the purchase succeeds -- if the purchase does not close, your commitment is voided.

A Proven Model for Permanent Affordability

Right now, residents own their homes but not the ground beneath them. They've invested their savings in manufactured homes—often $50,000 to $150,000—but they pay monthly lot rent to a landlord who owns the land. This creates profound insecurity: if lot rents skyrocket or the park sells, residents can't simply move. Moving a manufactured home costs $15,000-$30,000 (if it's even structurally possible), and many communities won't accept older homes. So families are trapped—stuck paying whatever rent the landlord demands, or forced to abandon their largest asset and start over.

Becoming a Resident Owned Community (ROC) changes everything. As a cooperative, residents collectively own the land beneath their homes. They become both homeowners AND landlords. They set their own lot rents (just enough to cover operating costs), make decisions democratically, and control their own future. No outside investor can ever force them out or extract profit from their community again.

This isn't an experiment. With support from Thistle ROC, a Colorado nonprofit, multiple mobile home park communities across the state have successfully made this transition. The results are clear:

  • Lot rents stay affordable indefinitely
  • Families build equity and stability
  • No one gets displaced for profit
  • Communities govern themselves democratically

Why This Matters

This is about more than 98 homes. It's about 98 families who belong here.

These residents aren't transient workers—they're longtime community members with deep roots. They coach Little League, volunteer at schools, serve on church councils, and run local businesses. Some have lived here for over two decades. When they're displaced, the community doesn't just lose workers—it loses its social fabric. And when social fabric tears, communities become transactional places where people work but don't stay, where economic activity happens but civic life withers.

The housing crisis in the USA requires both building new units AND preserving what already exists. Mobile home parks are the largest source of unsubsidized affordable housing in the country, and they're disappearing fast. When investors buy parks, lot rents typically jump 40% in the first year alone, forcing families out. We've watched it happen to neighboring parks—residents lose their equity, their stability, and their community overnight.

Your one time investment in Cavern Springs does three things:

  1. Preserves 98 units of affordable housing in perpetuity with zero displacement
  2. Proves the community ownership model works at scale in high-cost luxury resort communities
  3. Builds support for a replicable blueprint for other mobile home parks facing the same threat nationwide

This isn't just a rescue—it's a demonstration project with national implications.

Every dollar brings all 98 families closer to ownership. All committed funds must be received by September 30, 2026. 

About Us

Sopris Mountain Collective is the resident-led board organizing this purchase, in partnership with:

Questions?
Katherine Coe, Organizer, Mountain Voices Project: [email protected] | (203) 321-5922

Cavern Springs Mobile Home Park sits between Glenwood Springs and Carbondale in Garfield County, Colorado. Home to nearly 350 residents—essential workers, families, seniors, and veterans—who power the Roaring Fork Valley.