ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. — Residents at Altamonte Terrace Apartments say their lives were turned upside down this week after management gave them less than 48 hours to leave their homes.What You Need To Know John Swafford, who has lived at the complex for years, said the move is especially hard on him. He’s living with lung problems and was placed in a ground-floor unit because of his health. Now, he’s staying in a third-floor hotel room without an elevator.“I barely can do it,&qu...
ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. — Residents at Altamonte Terrace Apartments say their lives were turned upside down this week after management gave them less than 48 hours to leave their homes.
What You Need To Know
John Swafford, who has lived at the complex for years, said the move is especially hard on him. He’s living with lung problems and was placed in a ground-floor unit because of his health. Now, he’s staying in a third-floor hotel room without an elevator.
“I barely can do it," he said. "I’m on the ground floor because of my health. Now I’m on the third floor, no elevator, but we’re making it work."
Adding to the stress was confusion over whether pets would be allowed at the hotel. At first, residents were told no animals would be accepted.
“They told me there would be no dogs allowed, period," Swafford said. "And I said, 'That doesn’t work for me. I’ve got two dogs. I’m not giving my dogs up. I’m losing everything, you want me to give my dogs up too?'”
After pushback, hotel management agreed to allow pets with a deposit.
Manda Pardee, Swafford’s coworker and neighbor, is also adjusting to the sudden change. She’s a single mother of four and said moving with children and clients depending on her was nearly impossible.
“I have four kids. Moving with a job, in between my clients, then go get my kids, take them home, come back here. It’s been really hard,” Pardee said.
The apartment complex's management has covered the cost of hotel rooms for residents for two weeks. But many say they’re left wondering what happens after that.
Property management at Altamonte Terrace Apartments declined to explain the sudden move, but the City of Altamonte Springs confirmed engineers inspected two of the seven buildings at the complex and deemed those unsafe to live in.
Officials with the city also said they’re working on getting the other five buildings inspected. In the meantime, residents say they just want clarity on when, or if, they’ll be able to return home.