Fortuna City Council to Hold Closed Session Over Royal Crest Litigation
Fortuna City Council will meet at 5 p.m. at City Hall, 621 11th Street, for a closed session on potential litigation tied to Royal Crest Mobile Home Park and owner Storz Management.
The Fortuna City Council will meet in a special session today, Monday, March 2, at 5 p.m. at City Hall, 621 11th Street, with a posted closed session item to discuss potential litigation connected to Royal Crest Mobile Home Park and its owner, Storz Management. The agenda entry identifies the matter as litigation-related and places the meeting at the municipal chambers.
City records and recent reporting frame the meeting as the latest development in a months-long dispute over space rent increases at Royal Crest. An advocacy group, Save Our Seniors, notified media that members intend to speak during public comment before the council moves into closed session. Save Our Seniors stated in a written message: “Park owner (Storz Management) at Royal Crest is increasing rents beyond affordability and continue to claim that the mobile home owners CAN AFFORD continued increases. Storz is also pressing with the Fortuna City Council that an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding), which is not enforceable and allows for loopholes benefiting the park owner, that it (MOU) will work for all parties.”
Because closed sessions on litigation are confidential under state law, the council’s public materials caution that “it is not known what specific issues the council will address this evening.” That statutory confidentiality is the same provision invoked on other Fortuna agendas that flagged anticipated litigation under Section 54956.9. A city agenda posted for Sept. 24, 2025 included the closed-session text: “CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL—ANTICIPATED LITIGATION Significant exposure to litigation pursuant to paragraph (2) or (3) of subdivision (d) of Section 54956.9: one case. The facts and circumstances involve assertions by the owners of the Royal Crest Mobile Estate, through their counsel, that the City of Fortuna’s adoption of a rent stabilization ordinance for mobilehome parks would be unlawful and subject the City to litigation.” That Sept. 24, 2025 agenda also listed letters to the city manager and to mayor and council from a Storz attorney dated 08/25/25, 09/11/25 and 09/15/25.
Royal Crest residents have previously raised operational and notice issues at council chambers. June 6, 2022 minutes show Royal Crest resident Walt Wilson telling the council, “he hasn't seen a notice for changes to the garbage pick up,” and noting that “residents who live in Royal Crest don't receive water bills from the city, so Regular Meeting Agenda Minutes Monday, June 6, 2022 at 6:00 pm they don't see the notices.” The June 6, 2022 record names City Manager Merritt Perry, Chief of Police Casey Day, Community Services Officer Autumn Wilson and Public Works Director Brendan Byrd, and shows council members Losey, Stanfield, Mayor Pro Tem Trent and Mayor Long voting 4-0 on a separate item with Council Member Johnson absent.
An Instagram excerpt included in public postings reads: “70 residents of the 55 plus mobile home community Royal Crest signed a petition to urge the Fortuna City Council to implement a rent” — the post is truncated in the available copy and does not show the petition’s full text or submission date. The city’s meeting index also lists multiple special and closed sessions across 2024 and 2025, including entries dated March 10, 2025 and document dates such as 07-24-2024 and 03-10-2025.
Because litigation discussion will occur out of public view, it is not known whether the council will provide any report out at the meeting. A recent agenda that addressed anticipated litigation included a “REPORT OUT AND ADJOURN” item; whether the March 2 session will produce a reportable action will depend on the council and legal counsel under state open-meeting rules.
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