Flood Evacuees 'Picking Up the Pieces' at Capitola Inn with Help from the Community

Three weeks to the day since the Noble Gulch Creek pipe burst, turning Pacific Cove Mobile Home Park into a muddy Venetian scene, 17 of the park’s 26 displaced residents are still staying at the . 

While those residents were self-described as “terrified” and “traumatized” upon their arrival at the inn on March 25, the group has found some stability, thanks to plenty of support from the community.

Leading the way as an advocate for the truly mobile park residents is former Mayor Gayle Ortiz, co-owner of  in Capitola. Along with resident Kim Hogan, Ortiz has organized lunches and dinners for the park residents since their arrival at the Capitola Inn.

“Capitola is so small that you feel like anybody who lives here is your neighbor,” Ortiz said. “It’s something that you would do for your neighbor, because who else is going to do it for them? These guys were really traumatized when they first came. They are doing a lot better now. They are starting to pick up the pieces.”

While Gayle’s Bakery has provided a number of meals over the three-week span, several other businesses and organizations have chipped in as well, with Ortiz’s organizational help. Those groups include, but are not limited to, , , , , the United Methodist Church of Aptos, Twin Lakes Baptist Church, the Church of Latter-day Saints and a local Jewish temple. 

“They’ve been very good to us,” displaced park resident , 78, said. “Gayle has been really good.”

On top of the food, many of the residents are pleased with their new temporary accommodations. For the time being, the American Red Cross is paying for all 17 residents to put down roots at the Capitola Inn, with the city of Capitola committed to reimbursing the Red Cross down the line.

“They are doing very well keeping us here,” said one resident who asked not to be named. “Hank, the manager, is so nice and so helpful.”

Considering the demands of housing such a group, resident had nothing but nice things to say about the inn.

“When we first arrived the day after the flooding, there were 17 of us that same afternoon, some with walkers, some with pets," she said. "We needed handicapped rooms and pet-friendly rooms. Right off the bat, people needed special help. How often, this time of year, do 17 people check in on the same afternoon, unexpected, with no reservations? We arrived muddy with lots of needs, and they have bent over backward to help us. They are terrific people.”

Like the rose born from concrete, a bit of good has arisen from an otherwise calamitous situation. The rose, in this case, is the fact that close quarters and a shared experience have brought the Pacific Cove community together in a way that they had never experienced before.

“You’ve got to stick by each other’s side,” said resident Jeanne Welton. “We’re all neighbors here, and we love each other. Now we’re coming together and we’re getting stronger.”

Freitas suspects that this new-found community may stay connected long after they leave the Capitola Inn.

“The people weren’t this close in the park," he said. "We would just say “Hello,” with no other conversation. Here, everybody got to know everybody, because of the disaster. We’ll go back and we’ll stick together.”

No one knows exactly when they’ll go back. The date on everyone’s calendars, though, is April 28, when the City Council will discuss the status of the Pacific Cove Mobile Home Park and, effectively, its Capitola Inn refugees.