WATERVILLE — The city has moved a step closer to having a say in how much mobile home park owners can increase lot rental costs to park residents.

The City Council on Tuesday voted 7-0 to approve a mobile home park lot rent stabilization ordinance and must take a second and final vote to make it official.

The council voted 6-0 in September to approve a temporary ban on such increases, effective until April 20, to give city officials time to craft a mobile home lot rental stabilization ordinance.

Park residents, including Loise and Joe Lemieux and their neighbor Diana Combellick of Countryside Mobile Home Park, had complained to the city their lot rental fees have increased every year, and they had received letters from park owners that their fees will go from $500 to $600, which they can’t afford. They said they fear they will be forced to leave their homes with no place to go because apartment rents are high and buying a home is cost prohibitive. Many park residents are retirees on fixed incomes.

Because of the moratorium, that increase has not been imposed.

Waterville’s two parks, , Countryside Mobile Home Park off West River Road and Pooler’s Parkway off Grove Street, are owned by C37 LLC, a private equity firm. They include about 300 mobile homes, most of which are in Countryside. Most residents own their homes but pay rental lot fees and fees for other services including sewer, water, trash disposal, electricity and pets.

C37LLC principals Mark Hsu and George Chen sent a lengthy letter to city officials explaining the reason for the requested lot rental increases, which concludes by asking that the city “rent control” proposal align with the state-level language already adopted in LD 1765 and LD 1723 from the past Legislative session.

“Given we are the only operator of manufactured housing communities in Waterville,” the letter says, “and the current precarious financial situation of the community itself, we hope to have a direct and earnest conversation regarding any deviations from the current State level lot rent statutes, as any additional rental restrictions would only further imperil the viability of the manufactured housing community in its current form.”

Asked for comment Wednesday on Tuesday’s council vote, Hsu provided the letter he and Chen sent the city, to which he said city officials did not respond.

“We never received even an acknowledgement or response,” Hsu said, “so it shows Waterville is both anti-affordable housing and anti-democracy, with their deliberate attempts to circumvent the Legislative process.”

State Rep. Cassie Julia, a Democrat who represents House District 65, including both mobile home parks, worked with residents and city officials on the proposed moratorium to help protect park residents.

City Solicitor William A. Lee III drafted the ordinance, with council input.

Julia sponsored LD 1765, a bill the state Legislature passed in June calling for state officials to draft language for a model rent stabilization ordinance that cities and towns can use as a guide to produce their own ordinances.

In a letter to Chen and Hsu and city officials, Julia said Chen and Hsu’s “letter is filled with some serious misrepresentations.”

Waterville is already aligning with LD 1765, she said, and the proposed lot rent stabilization ordinance is based directly on the model language in that bill. And, she said, the city is on track to do what the park owners are asking for. She said LD 1723 offers a mediation guideline and offers a nonbinding resolution that works only in the favor of park owners.

The claim that the effort amounts to rent control is incorrect, said Julia, who rebutted other points in Chen and Hsu’s letter.

Meanwhile, a new state report to be presented this month to the Housing and Economic Development Committee offers recommendations to help expand existing mobile home parks in Maine and build new ones, allow homeowners to get traditional mortgages at more favorable rates and overhaul state oversight of parks.

At Tuesday’s council meeting, Lee, the city solicitor, cited the highlights of the proposed ordinance, which is intended to help protect the health, safety, and welfare of park residents by preventing unreasonable lot rent fee increases.

The proposal says lot increases may be requested only once a year. If a proposed increase is equal to or less than the last cost of living adjustment made to a Social Security recipient, no hearing is required, Lee said. If it is more than that, a hearing must be held before a five-member rent stabilization board that the city will establish. The park owner must submit a petition for lot increases with supporting documents to the city as well as all park renters, according to the proposed ordinance. The park owner also must notify all renters as to date and time of hearings and provide proof to the stabilization board that notices have been given. Hearings must begin within 30 days of a park owner petition.

Joe Lemieux, who worked on the issue with Julia and has been outspoken about lot fee increases, said he visited many park residents who live in trailers that are in bad shape. They can’t afford to buy food and medical insurance and can barely pay their lot rent while park owners try to raise rents, he said, and it is happening in other states as well.

“These are predator investment firms that are trying to rape us poor folks,” he said.

The council discussed who may serve on the stabilization board, with Lee noting that it would be a conflict of interest for park renters to serve, but said renters have the right to attend hearings and give input. Councilor Spencer Krigbaum, D-Ward 5, recommended that most board members be Waterville residents. People would apply for the positions, Mayor Mike Morris would nominate candidates and the council would confirm them.

Lee said members would have no financial stake in the issues discussed, no familial or employee-related ties with park owners, and would be willing to listen to both sides of a question and evaluate it objectively.

Councilor Rebecca Green, D-Ward 4, said she would be more comfortable if the ordinance stipulated expertise of members, such as those who have been or are landlords or renters, have worked in affordable housing and have an understanding of the issues. What the city is trying to do with an ordinance is balance the need for lot rentals to remain affordable with the rights of park owners to turn a profit, she said, but the whole point is that increases need to be reasonable.

“And we need to see that there is a direct connection between the increase and the benefit to the renters of the land, right?” Green said.

“Yes,” Lee said, “and the park owner has the burden of proof that the requested new increase produces a reasonable rate of return.”

Krigbaum said he thought Green’s recommendation that board members have experience or skills unfairly exempts or excludes people in Waterville. Any reasonable person can be a member, hear evidence presented and make a logical decision, he said.