Herald & Review (Decatur, IL)
January 22, 2009
DECATUR - Mary Fetrow has lived in her double-wide mobile home at 2284 N. 36th St. in the Garfield Estates mobile home park for the past 19 years.
She and her late husband, Bill, put the
sort of work into the property that makes it a home rather than just a
house: a long deck, a shed and a rocky pathway her husband dug himself.
Fetrow hosted 27 people there for Christmas Eve.
"Bill's put so much work into it," she said, sitting in the kitchen of
her house, surrounded by the possessions she and her husband
accumulated over a long life. "This is our home. We've lived here for
19 years."
Soon, she will need to leave it all behind.
Fetrow was watching television this month when she heard a knock at the
door. She answered it to find the property's maintenance worker holding
a letter that informed her the property owners were selling Garfield Estates. The property will cease operations in January 2010.
The property, owned by Michigan-based Choice Properties, is immediately
north of Faries Parkway off Brush College Road. Representatives of
Choice Properties would not disclose who has purchased the property.
The Jan. 8 letter from manager Kamal Shouhayib informs residents of an opportunity to relocate at the landlord's expense.
"It is the landlord's objective to improve both economically and
physically, the living situation of each resident who takes advantage
of this unprecedented proposal," the letter reads.
Meeting with representatives of the company, Fetrow found herself with few options.
"Some of the things they threw at us, they were just trying to ramrod us," she said.
The relocation agreement, which promises residents a $400 cash
incentive and up to $2,000 in moving costs for a mobile home or $4,000
for a double-wide, comes with conditions that Fetrow said gave
residents little time to think. The deadline for signing up originally
was set for Jan. 20 but has been extended to Saturday, said John
Rogosich, Choice Properties senior regional manager.
The relocation agreement states that the incentives are only granted
if, among other things, mobile home owners opt to move to either the
Park City or Hyde Park mobile home communities, both of which are owned
by Choice Properties.
Residents had only until Tuesday to sign the agreement, giving them
less than a week to decide if they would opt into the deal. The deal
also requires that the move be completed by July 15.
"I can adapt, but that's not the point; it's just that they're trying
to rush us through," Fetrow said. "This is just such a blow to me,
because it's not even a week. I ordinarily can handle things pretty
well, but this had been something else."
There are other difficulties for people who have invested a great deal
of effort into their mobile homes. Fetrow said movers will not
transport things such as her deck and shed, which she and her husband
spent time, effort and money installing.
Sheila Clinger is another homeowner at Garfield Estates who feels unfairly treated by the sudden announcement. She and her husband, Frank, have lived at Garfield Estates since 1974.
Frank Clinger said Wednesday that he and his wife would not be signing
the agreement. Sheila Clinger said the agreement came up too quickly,
and she felt forced into making a decision that would benefit the
property owners.
"They expected you to sign within two days," she said. "They weren't
going to give you time to think about it or nothing. The only way
they're going to help you is if you move to one or the other of their
two trailer parks or, if your trailer is not good enough to move, buy
through them. If you want to do anything else, you're on your own."
Rogosich said efforts are being made to try to accommodate the needs of Garfield Estates residents.
"We understand that a lot of people have lived here 10, 15, 20 years."
he said. "The president of our company and founder of our company, him
and myself have spent the whole week last week here talking with
people, making explanation. We will help them in the best way possible
so they will have less pain."
Rogosich said the deadline for opting into the relocation agreement
could be extended again in the interest of helping residents.
"We are proud to be providing affordable housing for low-income people," he said.
klowe@herald-review.com 421-7985
Herald & Review photos/Stephen Haas
Mary Fetrow wonders where she will be this summer. Management of Garfield Estates
Trailer Park sold the grounds and gave residents until July to get out.
They were offered a relocation package but tenants were told they only
had two days to accept it.
Frank and Sheila Clinger have been told they have to move from Garfield Estates Trailer Park where they have lived for 34 years.
Heather Fetrow hands out fliers about a meeting for residents to
discuss their options after being told they have to leave by July.
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Section: News
Page: A1
Entire neighborhood evicted
Longtime residents given 2 days to accept mobile home park's relocation offer
KENNETH LOWE
H&R Staff Writer
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