Residents in mobile homes told they need to move

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- About 80 families in east Houston are looking for new homes.

The owner of a mobile home park at the corner of Telephone and Griggs Road plans on building apartments on the land some families have called home for decades.

"We're not rich people," Dulce Arellano said. "We're poor. I will have to change schools and start a whole new life."

Arellano and other residents received a letter last week stating they have 90 days to move out. The homes, though, are in no condition to move. Most families own their homes but lease the lots for about $300 per month.

"It's very stressful. Very stressful because we've been looking everywhere to see if there's another place where we could go live, but many places are expensive," Arellano said, "and we don 't have the money to move somewhere else."

A company called Urban Meridian Group bought the land a few years ago with the intention of building apartments. Several families met with the manager Monday but left without a solution.

"They said they would see what they could do about it," Arellano said.

The property manager talked off-camera with Eyewitness News and said he decided to give residents six months instead of three months to move out. Also, he will allow families to pay discounted rent to help with moving expenses.

Residents should receive a letter Wednesday detailing the new agreement.