The residents of the Wellington Mobile Home Park have a deadline of January 15 to be out of the park, according to the eviction notice the owner, George Mackie Jr., issued almost six months ago. But a six-week delay in putting together the finances and the plan for residents, who are sharing $375,000 for their moving expenses, plus the difficulties of finding a place for their mobile homes (and some cannot be moved due to age) means that at least seven families remain in the park.
Kenille Baumgardner, one of the local people helping the park residents, reported Monday that three families are still waiting to have their homes moved, another family has been told that someone can move their home but has not been notified of the details, two families still have not found somewhere to move and a single man is without a place to live.
Baumgardner also reported Monday that several men from the Wake Forest Mormon church are planning to go to the park Saturday, Jan. 8 and later if necessary, to help where they can. So far they know someone needs paving stones moved, someone else needs a tanning bed moved and someone else needs help in taking down a carport.
One of the people with Triangle Family Services, which is helping the park residents move and paying their expenses, has been working with Baumgardner and others, so there may be news later this week about others who can move.
“We are actively working with all the folks you mention and while there are things outside of our (anyone’s) control, we do have viable leads we are working in each case. We recognize the timeline may be untenable for some and we will also be coordinating with whatever stakeholders necessary if that becomes an issue. Things evolve daily,” Cari Boram with TFS wrote to Baumgardner Monday.
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2 Responses
Some of the residents are dealing with sewage back up in their yards. According to a long term resident the septic tank has not been pumped out by the property owner in 10 years. The property owner & manager were made aware of the issue.
Three commissioners were contacted. One actually provided a few places we could contact ourselves, but those places were dead ends. They sent us to Josh Stein’s office to get rid of us. Another informed us the city of Raleigh was made aware of it, but the residents haven’t seen anyone come out today. The other commissioner acknowledged the email & said they are going to do what they can.
Personally when I contact a commissioner on an issue like this…. I’m not just asking can you fix the problem. I’m asking can you make a few phone calls. A phone call from a sitting commissioner takes a higher priority than a phone call from a citizen.
I left off the names of these commissioners on purpose. I challenge everyone on the board to spend more time advocating for citizens.
Attending pancake breakfasts, holiday celebrations, & ribbon cuttings are great. Citizens appreciate it when the mayor & commissioners are in attendance. Having an elected official stand up & using their voice to advocate for people would be much more appreciated than attending a fundraiser.
If our elected officials only ran for office for the sole purpose of attending fundraisers & ribbon cuttings then we as voters made a terrible mistake at the polls. So in 2022 I want to encourage those in office to advocate more!
UPDATE: Thank you to Commissioner Sliwinski for getting the problem fixed! The residents are grateful for your help!