IMPROVEMENTS SUMMARY: PHASES I – VII

Phases I – VII – Ongoing plans were put in place in the last 14 years since my father, Joe Guzzetta, was unable to care for the park. Business was handled differently in his day, with no contracts, rules, or regulations. Dad trusted everyone. I’m glad he was trusting, but the world is different today. I had to honor my father’s wishes for me to be a good landlord, so I had to make some hard decisions. I had no choice but to transform it by removing 7 junky trailers, and to create a decent place for his loyal Residents! Many are still here today, and some have been here more than 30 years!

Being on the property now almost 6 years, and in my 14th year of management, I still absolutely love living here. I’ve gotten a handle on how things are done to make improvements. But I’ve hit some snags from 2021 – 2024. The Covid 19 Pandemic is the most obvious, along with some monster hurricanes. But we do live in the south with hot and humid temps, and hurricanes and pandemics don’t make it easy. It’s easy to become complacent but we need to plow through these rough times, like our grandparents & great grandparents. The Pandemic is history, so good riddance! And let’s pray no more Pandemics, monster hurricanes, and that the future is much brighter with better government policies for business growth. We the people at Guiseppi’s Park, LLC deserve it!

In 2024 Phase VI, the plan was to have several lots ready for occupancy. Well, that didn’t happen due to bad government and a terrible economy. Hopefully, 2025 will be brighter and we will be able to afford more river sand, purchase some sod to grow more grass, and possibly limestone driveways for everyone! A push for mobile home skirting and maintenance by Residents will be in the mix, although with money being tight for everyone, we’ll try to encourage a cleaner, fresher look in the spring by offering cleaning supplies as needed. Washing mildewed trailers will be a start. I’d love to welcome a few more nice families into Guiseppi’s Park!

In addition to Phase VI, if there’s money available, 2025 Phase VII, there will be a concentration on the pond areas, to bring out the natural beauty of the park with common areas everyone can enjoy. I look forward to having more fun and activities for the kids too.

IMPROVEMENT DETAILS: PHASES I - VII

Electrical Infrastructure – Badly needed upgrades for the sake of safety were implemented. Slight rental increases were necessary for Residents who had not had their rents raised by management in many years. We knew we had a long hard job ahead, so we purchased many power tools and went to work.

PHASE II – 2014 TO 2015

Tree Cutting/Evictions – Removed rotten trees ahead of hurricane season. We had one trailer on Sixth Street side removed and three evictions of some troublesome tenants happened in this phase. Our aim was to start a vetting process by requiring applications and background checks for all potential Residents, signed Lot Lease Agreements, and Rules & Regulations. This action item proved to be a very good move as people want to live in a decent environment where everyone follows the rules, respect and watch out for one another.

PHASE III – 2016 TO 2017

Electrical & Trailer Demolition/Removal & More Evictions – We upgraded electrical on lots 12 & 13, then the removal of four more older trailers was completed. We evicted three more troublesome tenants who refused to sign leases or follow rules. When these noisy Residents left, the peace and quiet returned.

New Management had many expenses in this phase because previous management didn’t have Lot Lease Agreements or Rules & Regulations in place.

PHASE IV – 2018

Plumbing, Signage, Electrical & Landscaping – Continuing ‘as needed’ infrastructure is ongoing. So far this year we’ve removed 3 more older trailers and 1 troublesome Resident. Another Resident also had her older trailer torn down. A speed limit traffic sign was also installed up front.

Because of an unusually wet summer, we’ve had to hold off on plans designated for landscaping with additional dirt and adding updated electrical panels. More year-end infrastructure will begin as weather permits.

We have future plans in 2019 – 2020 to have the last 2 of 7 trailers torn down or moved out, making way for more progress and Residents at Guiseppi’s Park!

These four phases haven’t been easy with so many worries, disappointments, rain, belt tightening and baloney sandwiches. But there have been many joyful moments too, especially when I think of the opportunity my family entrusted to me to carry out my vision and my father’s wishes.  That vision is to make meaningful improvements for Guiseppi’s Park, the Town of Berwick, and my loyal Residents.

PHASE V – 2019 TO 2020 (for VISION)

Park Manager now on site! We moved to GP on March 8, 2019! Alligator & Rodent Control, Limestone, Drainage, Signage, Skirting, Electrical – Some visions for Phase V have been realized. I moved my mobile home here! LOVE IT AT GUISEPPI’S PARK! I have great neighbors and feel at home, especially after all the hurricanes. The Residents looked after one another’s property when they evacuated, and it was comforting to know people cared about their neighbor.

In 2019 we added a few new Residents, filled targeted potholes with limestone in the main driveway, added more loads of dirt for drainage, dug trenches, improved plumbing, and a total electrical upgrade for one lot. We also offered everyone river sand to fill low spots on their lots. Before Hurricane Barry, about 90% of our Residents had skirting installed. And we finally, and proudly, installed the Guiseppi’s Park, LLC sign up front!

By 2020, we finally had the last two (of seven) trailers torn down or moved out, making way for new Residents to live at Guiseppi’s Park. Slowly but surely, we’re getting things done! We asked for good weather so we could experience even more progression. Then the Pandemic happened, and the park progress came to a screeching halt.

PHASE VI & PHASE VII – 2020 TO 2025

Post the Covid-19 Pandemic, we have plans for additional River Sand, Limestone, Better Drainage, Skirting, Plumbing & Electrical Upgrades – We had high hopes, but are grateful that most of our visions for Phase V have been realized! But there’s so much more to do in Phase VI & VII not completed in 2024. Money was tight coming off the Pandemic, and an extremely slow economy didn’t help, so the emphasis for 2025 was most importantly rental increases across the board. Also, we will have a cleanup campaign in the spring in order to attract new Residents, and moving 1 mobile home to Lot #9 in order to make Guiseppi’s Park have a better look and feel for family living on a low budget. Wish me luck!

If you are interested in renting a lot at Guiseppi’s Park, please call me at 985-384-4084. Thanks!