Roughly 20 households at Ghim Village in Hazel Dell had until the end of Wednesday to move out after getting vacate notices earlier this month, but many families hadn’t secured a new place to live yet.
Some said they’re couch-surfing before moving on to permanent housing. Others were moving to new, more expensive rentals. Those who needed more time had negotiated a few extra days.
Victor Estrada, 26, along with his wife and two kids, are going to stay with his parents, who also live at Ghim Village and haven’t yet received a vacate notice. His parents are trying to buy a house, which Estrada and his family will live in until they’ve saved up enough money for their own place.
“Everything’s going to be all right,” he said while lugging boxes into a pickup.
Many of the people who live in the two-story, two-bedroom units have limited incomes and barriers to securing housing, making their rental search all the more difficult in a tight housing market.
Estrada has lived at Ghim Village since he was 10 years old. Earlier in the year, rumors circulated that the new management would send out vacate notices like they did at Courtyard Village Apartments, another low-income complex where tenants got 20-day notices.
On Sept. 8, Estrada got the note he had been dreading: His family had 22 days to leave.
“What can you do? Keep a smile. That’s all that matters,” he said.
He’s committed to living nearby because he wants to keep his 7-year-old daughter at Sarah J. Anderson Elementary School and eventually enroll his 4-year-old son at the school.
Finding housing
Members of St. John Lutheran Church had boxes, tape and bubble wrap on hand, and were helping people move out throughout the day on Wednesday. Trash and couches surrounded the dumpsters at the back of the complex.
Among the 23 families who received vacate notices at Ghim Village, 21 requested housing assistance from the Council for the Homeless, said executive director Andy Silver. The agency helped relocate 11 families; one of the families is moving to Skamania County, and another family is leaving for Cowlitz County, Silver said.
As for the remaining 10 families who asked for help but haven’t yet found housing, the agency is still trying to figure out options. Residents at Ghim Village said the management has granted extensions to people needing a few more days.
Darla Rowland isn’t able to move into her new apartment until Saturday. After finding a place for her family of four, her car broke down. Now, the 45-year-old has to spend money she set aside for groceries on car repairs.
“All this is really sad,” she said. “Not everybody here has found a place.”
It’s difficult to find housing at Ghim Village’s low price point. Tenants paid somewhere between $525 and $650 monthly before rent was raised in the last couple of months.
Carladine Daly hasn’t gotten a vacate notice yet, but she’s already packing her belongings and getting rid of furniture in preparation for her move. The 75-year-old lives with her son and grandson. They’re looking for a three-bedroom place, preferably in Clark County.
“At least I have a roof over my head,” she said. “I don’t know what I’m going to do yet. I’m just going to have to leave it in God’s hands and hope I get a house.”
Taking donations
Silver said he is pleased that the property’s management and community have helped out Ghim Village residents. The Council for the Homeless is still accepting donations to its emergency fund for Ghim Village families, which covers apartment application fees and deposits.
Morgan Green, the coordinator of Sarah J. Anderson’s family-community resource center, said she’s been impressed with how the families are forging ahead. Although stressed, Ghim Village children have still been at school on time, she said.
“Some kids don’t know how to cope,” Green said.
She was walking around the complex Wednesday, talking with families about leads on apartments and handing out a list of complexes with units that cost less than $850 monthly.
Tiffany Shepherd and her husband have felonies on their record, making it more difficult to find a landlord willing to rent to them. She imagines they’ll end up in Longview or Kelso.
“It is what it is, though. Better than here,” Shepherd said.
Brian Gunderson has family connections to thank for securing a rental. He’s moving to a double-wide manufactured home near Columbia River High School with his wife and son. The home, which has been vacant for eight years, needs to be remodeled and the owner is building a wheelchair ramp for him. Gunderson has lived at Ghim Village for about a year.
“We didn’t want to move here to begin with, but it was hard to find a place,” he said.
Until the home is ready, the Gundersons will live with other family members.
“It’s only going to get better from now,” Gunderson said.
