The Brunswick community that is now Blueberry Fields Cooperative, the largest resident-owned mobile home community in Maine, demonstrates what’s possible when the right support and resources are in place.

In 2024, when they learned that what was then Linnhaven Mobile Home Park would be sold, its residents feared corporate investors would buy it. For years, a local family owned the park and kept it well-maintained.

“We’d seen that rents go up and care goes down in parks sold to people who make as much money as they can,” a resident said. “We were scared. But we also knew we had to act.”

With guidance from the Cooperative Development Institute, residents began to organize through a process that had to move quickly—and was emotional. They had to reach agreement, respond to legal and technical requirements, and overcome doubt.

“Some people didn’t think we could do it,” said one resident. “But when it came time to vote, we showed up and we said yes.” The final, unanimous vote for this 278-home community to become a cooperative brought long, loud cheering.

After the residents negotiated a purchase price, Genesis worked with MaineHousing and the Town of Brunswick to put together a $27 million financing package with public funding and community lending.

Resident ownership has preserved a community that “isn’t just a park,” said Janet Fournier, who served as Blueberry Fields board president during the ownership transition. “It’s a community of seniors, veterans, families. And we take care of each other.”