Arizona Attorney General intervenes after Tucson A/C outages

TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) — Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes announced that her office has issued a cease-and-desist letter to Redwood Mobile Home Park in Tucson.

Mayes’ office said it is continuing to request proof of repairs to air conditioning units and acceptable accommodations for affected residents during this bout of life-threatening heat.

13 News’ Katherine Patterson went out to the mobile home park Monday to hear from residents who made those complaints to Mayes’ office.

“We all finally got together and knew we’ve got to do something about it because it’s going to happen again next year, and the next year,” resident Paul Lopez said.

Lopez is a recent kidney transplant patient, and the heat is difficult for his recovery process. He said like clockwork, the power goes out at the park, and things start to heat up on most afternoons during the summer.

“When the ACs aren’t working, man, it’s terrible,” Lopez said.

Many residents in the park said it’s been happening for so long, they keep a separate thermostat on the wall to track when it gets over 80 degrees to make sure the youngest and oldest in their families are staying safe.

“Mobile homes heat up incredibly fast. These conditions aren’t just dangerous—they’re deadly,” said Mayes said. “And I won’t stand by while landlords take advantage of mobile home tenants by failing to provide a habitable living environment.”

The AG’s letter details repeated and lengthy interruptions to AC throughout 2025 at Redwood Mobile Home Park, leaving residents to seek and pay for alternative accommodations on their own, abandoning their homes, or to stay in the uncooled units at peril to their health and lives.

Mobile homes are particularly susceptible to extreme heat, lacking the insulation of other dwellings. In the last two years, 277 heat-related deaths occurred indoors, in uncooled residences.

“Electricity and AC are life-saving necessities in this heat, particularly for seniors and infants. Mobile home landlords must follow the law,” Mayes’s statement continued.

As of Monday, Aug. 11, Redwood claims to have hired an electrician to do repairs at the park. But according to Mayes, those repairs do not appear to be complete. Mayes insisted Redwood provide access to cooling centers, backup generators, and hotel vouchers for its affected residents, amongst other protections.

“No matter your income level, the type of home you live in, I was elected to protect you. I will use my legal authority to make sure mobile home park communities and apartments maintain electricity and air conditioning,” Mayes said. “The fact that some residents have allegedly been suffering for years, with no warning or alternative accommodations, is completely unacceptable.”

The AG’s Office is continuing to investigate and will take further legal action if the situation is not resolved.

BoaVida Communities, which owns the park, sent a statement to 13 News about the cease-and-desist saying:

“We have been in touch with Attorney General Heather Hamel on this matter over the past week. On Friday August 8th, we inspected each space within the community with a licensed electrician. At that time, it was determined that there were numerous unpermitted alterations made by residents, which cause the power draw to greatly exceed the capacity of the system. These alterations are causing the main fuses to trip, interrupting service for them and their neighbors. Each resident is provided with 50-amp service. By bypassing or altering this without our knowledge or approval, they are drawing more energy than the system can provide. This can and has caused outages either localized to their space or street, or even affecting the entire community.

We will continue to work with licensed electricians to make any repairs or changes needed to ensure the system is being used as designed, and ensure that our residents do not experience interruptions caused by other residents tampering with the system.”

This is the fourth cease-and-desist that Mayes said she’s had to make this summer for similar circumstances. They encourage anyone with similar problems to file a consumer complaint here.

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