Two Dozen Families Facing Eviction From Decaying Auburn Complex
AUBURN (CBS13) — Two dozen families in Auburn have been told to leave their homes. They live in an old, rundown apartment building, and most if not all of them are poor.
Placer County says it has no choice but to demolish the Bell Gardens apartment complex because of safety reasons. but some families say they'll have nowhere else to go.
The county has documented the living conditions at the neglected and decaying 25-unit apartment, but for the 70 tenants Bell Gardens is home, sweet home.
Many of them feel lucky because they're some of the few who pay less than $500 in rent a month in the area.
"These are some of the lowest-income tenants in Placer County," said Herb Whitaker with Legal Services of Northern California.
But in the last few months they've lived in uncertainty. The building is owned by the county, which leases it to a private landlord who says it's just not worth the money to maintain the former military hospital anymore.
"I think everybody agrees that the buildings are at the end of their useful lives," said Jim Durfee with the county.
The county plans to evict the tenants and is proposing $50,000 to be split among the residents for relocation expenses. But Legal Services attorneys, who represent some of the renters, argue the money the county is proposing could force some of them on the streets, so the county agreed to take a closer look at the proposal.
"I have every confidence that we'll be able to fund whatever's decided at the end of the day," Durfee said.
Eventually tenants say they'll find a new home, but they've been told there isn't any housing as inexpensive as Bell Gardens.
"Nobody wants to move," resident Emilio Sierra said.
And tenants like Emilio say until they find out how much money the county will give them, they can't make any plans to move.
