Not every problem can be solved by government

It was nearly 40 years ago that the city changed the zoning for Conejo Mobile Home Park from residential to commercial. From that moment on, residents of the park lived there on borrowed time. Reporter Nancy Needham writes an update on page 6. It deals with reality, and sometimes the facts are cold and hard.

Eventually the inevitable happened. A developer bought the land and began working on plans for medical office space and an assisted-living facility for seniors.

It's his land. This is America.

Property owners have rights.

In a perfect world, the city of Thousand Oaks would reimburse for fair market value the owner of every mobile home in the city. Elected officials would enjoy a surge of public approval for their kindness and generosity. We could even have a party at which the rest of the taxpayers of T.O. would get a free round of drinks from happy owners of mobile homes.

Unfortunately, things don't work like that. We live in the real world, not Utopia.

The city isn't in any position to buy a bunch of mobile homes or the land they sit on.

Even if T.O. had pockets full of cash, it wouldn't be fair to other taxpayers for the city to spend millions on just one segment of the population.

It doesn't mean we have to like it. Indeed, it's horrible that people will be forced to pack up their possessions and find new homes somewhere else.

It isn't fair. It's a nightmare and it's reality.

The city will do what it can to soften the blow. While it won't be enough, smart residents will keep the doors open for all options because of one basic fact: There are no perfect answers for every problem in the real world.