Report backs saving Duroville

After nearly two months of assessing and emergency repairs, three court-appointed officers have recommended that the Duroville mobile home park remain open and under federal control for three to five years.

The three -- attorney Mark Adams, the provisional receiver, along with two “special masters,” a former diplomat and a businessman -- filed the recommendation to U.S. District Judge Stephen Larson last week. They were not authorized to speak about it Friday.

The report advises appointing a receiver to manage the park and handle its finances until it can be brought up to code and deemed safe for its roughly 4,000 residents, most of whom are farmworkers.

The recommendations included other options, such as closing the park within 60 to 120 days of a court order, closing it over a lengthy period of time or allowing owner Harvey Duro to manage the park under strict supervision.

The U.S. attorney’s office, which wants the park closed for health and safety reasons, had objected to appointing a provisional receiver. After seeing the recommendation, staff filed papers endorsing the option to close the park as soon as possible but said they would support letting Duro manage it if he was closely supervised.

Judge Larson is expected to decide April 28 whether to close the park.

-- David Kelly