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A massive eviction at the mobile home park Li'l Abner in the city of Sweetwater left hundreds of residents without housing, mostly retirees, immigrants, and people with disabilities, local media reported.
The owner of the land, CREI Holdings, notified over 3,000 residents in 2024 that they needed to vacate their homes within six months.
The measure affected approximately 15% of the population of Sweetwater, a coveted location just minutes away from universities, shopping centers, and other essential services in Miami-Dade, recalled this Wednesday El Nuevo Herald.
Among those affected is Ángel Rogelio Díaz Franco, 58 years old, who suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and is currently living in a van after being evicted from the mobile home where he resided for 19 years.
Díaz Franco and others 200 residents filed a class action lawsuit against the company, alleging violations of state law regarding evictions in mobile home parks, the news outlet explained.
Other affected individuals, such as Lucía Cruz, aged 61, and Carmen, aged 73, reported losing their homes and belongings, and stated that they do not have the resources to rent new residences in the Miami-Dade area, where rental prices exceed an average of 2,500 dollars per month.
The evictions were authorized by a Florida court in September and are still under appeal.
Displaced residents claim to have received insufficient compensation, ranging from 3,000 to 14,000 dollars, while community organizations warn of an increase in similar cases among elderly individuals in South Florida.
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