A longtime Miami trailer park is closing, displacing residents. Here’s what to know
Residents of Silver Court Trailer Park in Miami’s Little Havana have until September to leave after the park’s owner announced plans to close the 65-year-old community. Many homeowners say the buyout offers fall far short of what their trailers are worth, leaving families facing what one called “economic annihilation.”
FULL STORY: Little Havana residents fear ‘economic annihilation’ as trailer park closes
Here are key takeaways:
• Silver Court’s owner, 1989 Sunny Court LLC, notified residents in March that the park would close within six months. The company is part of California-based Marquis Property Company, which bought Silver Court and the Sunnyside/West Haven park in West Miami for a combined $50 million in 2021.
• Park ownership is offering $10,000 to residents who leave by May 31, $5,000 for those who stay through July 15 and $2,500 for those out by the end of August. Florida law adds between $1,375 and $6,000, depending on trailer size and whether owners relocate the home.
• Awilda Suriel, 43, paid $45,000 for her trailer two years ago and put another $20,000 into renovations. She lives there with her partner and three children, paying about $900 a month in lot fees, and says nearby three-bedroom rentals run more than $3,000 a month.
• Many trailers at Silver Court are cemented to the ground, making them effectively immovable or movable only at a five-figure cost. Mobile home owners own their trailers but rent the land beneath them.
• State Sen. Ileana Garcia, R-Miami, said she is “dumbfounded by the lack of protections that mobile homes have” and plans to push for longer notice periods and higher payouts next session. Similar bills died in committee last session.
• Silver Court resident Joseph Madera, a 46-year-old math teacher, is leading homeowners challenging the eviction terms. At a recent meeting, one resident proposed “$60,000 and three years” as a fair buyout.
• The closure follows last year’s shutdown of the Li’l Abner Mobile Home Park in Sweetwater, which displaced thousands and pushed some residents into homelessness.
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