NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Neighbors at a trailer park in Antioch are organizing to push for better treatment from their landlords.
“It is an injustice,” Suburban resident Juan expressed.
People who live at the Suburban Trailer Park in Antioch are protesting alongside a local advocacy group and demanding answers from their corporate management company.
One hundred twenty-nine families said they had experienced months of unjust car towing. “They are charging $500 per car whenever they take it,” Juan said.
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Suburban families said there has also been a rent increase, inflated water bills, safety issues, and ignored maintenance requests.
“There have been significant increases in the water bills and irregularities,” one neighbor explained. “For example, I have a water leak that has been left unaddressed for over six months.”
“We want lights in places where they are dark right now, we want speed bumps, and then we want to be able to have cameras and private security,” said Sarah, a resident on the property.
The largest concern was the new rule of just two cars per household. Residents told News 2 that if more than two cars are parked in their driveways, a tow truck costing upwards of $500 is called in.
The Nashville People Power Committee is advocating for this community, saying they need to be able to have at least four cars per household.
“People here are working families,” Cecilia Guerrero, a volunteer translator with the Nashville People Power Committee, said. “Most of them have teens that go to Antioch High School or that go to the colleges nearby. Young people have to work to support their families because for folks here, everybody who is able to work, in a working-class community or working-class family, they have to have a car to be able to work in Nashville.”
“This new rule is really affecting us as young people because it is taking away our opportunity to learn to drive and also to be able to start working,” Antioch High student and resident, Misty agreed.
In partnership with the Nashville People Power Committee and Action North Carolina, a petition of 129 signatures was submitted in person to the management offices in Durham. The community is giving them 15 days to address their complaints and concerns.
The petition includes eleven demands, but a few of their requests are:
- End the towing of cars
- Allow four cars to be parked in designated parking areas, including work vans.
- Establish a physical office for residents to file complaints, ask questions, or pay rent
- Develop a visitor parking section
- Create recreational space for the neighborhood children and a safe area to wait for the school bus.
- Invest in fixing the streets within the complex, including streetlights, speed bumps, and cameras accessible to residents. They are also requesting private security.
- Take responsibility for land maintenance, including tree maintenance to prevent tragedies during storms, proper trash management, and a winter maintenance plan for icy roads
- End rent increases and provide transparency and clarity of water bills
“We want the abuse to stop, and we want them to treat us with respect,” a resident concluded.
News 2 contacted the corporate company for a statement but had not heard back by the time of this article’s publishing.
