20-05-2025
Sweetwater mobile home park residents defy eviction notice, vow to stay until forcibly removed
The remaining residents of the Li'l Abner Mobile Home Park in Sweetwater are refusing to move out, a day after the deadline passed for them to do so.
Six months ago, the residents of the park were told the owner sold the land and 900 families were informed that they would have to leave.
The families, who own their mobile homes, rent the land beneath them.
Three out of four families who agreed to leave by January 31 received a $14,000 compensation offer, but many, like Enrique Zelaya, stayed, saying the offer was not enough.
'Many of us feel betrayed because in my case, we came here four months before the eviction note," he said.
Zelaya said when he purchased his home, he asked if there were any planned changes for the park property and he was told no. He added that the owner was aware of the impending sale at the time.
On Tuesday, two things were happening in the park.
Demolition crews continued to tear down vacant mobile homes, making space for a new development.
Those who defied the eviction notice were still there and vowed not to leave until they were forcibly removed.
David Winker, the attorney representing remaining residents, filed a lawsuit against the park's owner and questioned the methods used in the demolition, claiming that protocols like water suppression, a key safeguard against airborne asbestos, were not being followed.
"At this point nothing is going to happen, because now it's their turn, they're going to have to go to court," he said.
In late March, the company faced $108,466 in fines after asbestos was found in demolition debris. County officials tested 24 samples of debris from four homes that were demolished last year and found asbestos in some of the samples.
