MARSHALL — Legal proceedings are still going in the case of a lawsuit against the owners of the Broadmoor Valley mobile home park, even after a jury mainly decided in favor of the owners.

According to Lyon County District Court records, a judge is now considering motions brought by attorneys on both sides of the lawsuit — including a motion from the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office requesting a new trial.

Meanwhile, separate lawsuits brought against the Broadmoor Valley owners by the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency and the city of Marshall are also still active.

Attorneys for Schierholz & Associates and Paul Schierholz, and attorneys from the Attorney General’s Office, appeared in a hearing with District Court Judge Tricia Zimmer on Friday.

Court documents reveal that the Attorney General’s Office is asking the court to overturn part of the verdict in the January civil trial against the Broadmoor Valley owners. According to court documents, the Attorney General’s Office said it was asking for a ruling finding that Broadmoor residents were charged unlawfully high rent fees, and that roads at the park did not permit normal travel by residents.

In a different motion, the Attorney General’s Office was asking for a new trial in the case based on factors like errors in how the court ruled on evidence at the trial.

Attorneys for Schierholz also had motions they were bringing to the judge, court documents said. One motion asked the court to overturn the one part of the jury’s verdict that was not in Schierholz’s favor. Another motion asked the court to award them attorney’s fees and costs in the case, or to impose monetary sanctions against the Attorney General’s Office for misconduct at the trial.

After hearing motions from both sides of the case on Friday, Zimmer said she would take them under advisement.

The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office sued the Broadmoor Valley owners in 2021. The lawsuit alleged that Schierholz & Associates had failed to maintain the park and its streets to state standards; that residents were charged illegally high fees for late rent payments; and that Schierholz had retaliated against residents.

In January of this year, a civil trial was held in Lyon County District Court. The jury in the trial found that Schierholz & Associates had failed to keep the park in clean, orderly and sanitary conditions at some point since August 2019, but company president Paul Schierholz did not knowingly participate in that failure. The jury’s verdict came down in Schierholz’s favor in four other claims in the lawsuit.

Other Broadmoor lawsuits ongoing

The Attorney General’s lawsuit isn’t the only legal action currently being taken against the Broadmoor Valley owners. The Minnesota Housing Finance Agency and the City of Marshall have each sued Schierholz & Associates this year.

The lawsuit from the city of Marshall alleges that Schierholz & Associates violated city ordinances by installing a locked gate at one of Broadmoor Valley’s only two entrances. Marshall city ordinances require mobile home parks to have at least two entrances onto the public right of way.

Earlier this month, attorneys for the city filed a motion asking the court for a temporary injunction to keep the Broadmoor Valley owners from blocking the park entrance.

On Thursday, attorneys for Schierholz filed a response to the city’s lawsuit, claiming that Marshall city ordinances did not apply to the mobile home park. A development agreement dating back to the 1970s only calls for the park to conform to Minnesota statutes, the response claims.

The response also claimed that the city of Marshall conspired with the Broadmoor Valley resident association and the Attorney General’s Office to force Schierholz to sell the park, and that the city interfered with Schierholz’s grant applications to Minnesota Housing.

The response said Schierholz demanded a jury trial in the case.

A future hearing date in the city’s lawsuit is set for July 16.

The Minnesota Housing Finance Agency’s lawsuit against Schierholz & Associates is also ongoing. Minnesota Housing’s lawsuit claims that by announcing the intent to close Broadmoor Valley, Schierholz & Associates broke the conditions of a grant agreement that awarded them $500,000. The lawsuit also alleges that Schierholz & Associates raised rents at the park by more than 5% without prior approval from Minnesota Housing.

Earlier this month, Minnesota Housing also filed a motion asking the court for a temporary injunction keeping Broadmoor Valley open until the lawsuit is resolved.

A hearing date in the case is set for July 11.