'It's horrible': Time's up for Flamingo Park residents facing eviction

Kevin Robinson | Pensacola News Journal

Josh Madai watched with frustration as an excavator tore through the roof of a neighbor's mobile home.

In May, the residents of the Flamingo Park mobile home park at 2001 W. Nine Mile Road were given until Dec. 5 to relocate their trailers and motor homes off the property. Eleven days after the deadline, the only ones left were the half dozen or so folks who didn't have the money to move their domiciles.

Although the stragglers had mostly found family members to take them in or made other short-term living arrangements, they were heartbroken at having to abandon their homes. The property is being rezoned and listed for sale by the owner, and on Monday, demolition crews were on site tearing down the vacated residences.

"It's horrible. I feel bad for Willard. I feel bad for 'preacher man,' " Madai said, referencing two neighbors who had lived on site for more than a decade.

► Elderly, limited-income Flamingo Park tenants have until June 15 to move their homes

► Flamingo Park: Residents get more time to vacate, but costs may still be insurmountable

Most off the park's residents were older folks living on social security checks or other fixed incomes. Most people took in about $700 a month, hardly enough to pay rent elsewhere, let alone to cover gas, utilities, groceries and other needs.

Willard Brigman, who lives in an RV down from Madai's mobile home, said he found another park to relocate his motor home, but it was going to cost him $600 to $700 of his $800 monthly check to get set up there. His more immediate problem was he didn't get paid until Jan. 3, so he was stranded for the time being.

"I got a notice that by the 30th of December, we've all got to be out of here," Brigman said. "We need somebody to give us a helping hand."

Under Florida law, homeowners can receive grants of up to $6,000 to relocate their homes and up to $2,750 if they are forced to abandon them, but approval for the funds is contingent of factors such as the classification and size of the mobile home. RVs, for example, don't qualify, leaving Brigman in dire straits.

"Just to move is one of his paychecks," Madai said of his neighbor. "What is he going to eat? Air?"

Madai said he had found a place to move with his family, but he expressed frustration that the rich were getting richer at the expense of the poor getting poorer.

One of his other neighbors, Jerry Jandrt said he hadn't found anywhere to move his 35-foot motor home, and he was hoping to find someone to buy it off him on a quick turnaround. In the meantime, he loaded his belongings into a van, the most important of which were his mattress and a canoe.

"We're way past the move out date," Jandrt said. "I ain't got nowhere else to go, so I'm going fishing. I'll probably spend the next few days out on the river bank."

Kevin Robinson can be reached at krobinson4@pnj.com or 850-435-8527.