Lakyn, Ashlyn and Caitlyn pose with their mother Lisa Sanders and grandmother Betty Bovee for a photo in their home in Oxford, Miss., Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2014. DM Photo | Cady Herring
Lisa Sanders and her three daughters have lived in Ewing Park Community at the intersection of West Jackson and West Oxford Loop for 11 years. It costs $210 to rent the plot of land her trailer is on, plus about $40 a month for water. Sanders, who works for The University of Mississippi in the physical plant, lives in a regular size mobile home with seven cats, two dogs and a rabbit.
Sanders’ mother, Betty Bovee, lives in her own mobile home just a few doors down. She has also lived here for 11 years, but soon, they may have to move due to the development of a proposed mall on the land they rent.
The Oxford Galleria II is scheduled to be built in March 2015 with an estimated cost of $42 million, said developer John Trezevant, the president of Memphis-based Trezevant Realty Corporation.
“We’re not buying the trailer park,” Trezevant said. “We’re buying 21 acres of ground. I haven’t seen any leases on any of the tenants, (and I) don’t know any of their names. When we buy the property, the leases will be terminated. They’re all month-to-month leases, so at the end of a 30 day period, just like any apartment complex or condo, when the termination day hits, that’s when you are supposed to be out.”
There are currently 57 homes on the property, and many tenants are concerned about where they are going to go or what they are going to do about moving their homes. Other tenants are not so upset about the land being sold as they are about not being involved in the process.
“We keep asking what is going on, but no one is telling us anything,” said tenant Stella Lewis, 56, who works at Ward’s Short Stop on Old Taylor Road and has lived in the park for 16 years. “The landlord has yet to come and say what is what. It’s OK to sell it, but talk to the people. Give us a chance. It’s not the idea that people are upset that you are selling it because it’s your right. That’s fine, but talk to us.”
Several tenants, according to Lewis, Sanders and Bovee, are disabled and don’t have much family around to help them move. Others can’t afford to move because a good number of them have fixed income. Two more tenants voiced similar concerns but refused to give names for fear of being asked to leave the trailer park early or being treated in a negative way.
When asked who would help move the trailers off the land, Doug Ewing, who is one of the landlords and property owners, said, “I don’t know that. We’re in the position that we are just gonna sell, but we do feel for our customers. We’ve got customers that’s been here for 25 years. When it gets more definite (that people need to move), I am going to check around, and I’ve called around a little bit now to try to find some places.”
The Ewing family has been under contract to sell the land to Trezevant Realty Corporation for just under a year, Trezevant said. While both parties said they want the deal to go through, this site development plan must go before the Board of Aldermen three times to be approved.
According to several tenants, the Ewings had mobile homes on a property that is now occupied by Home Depot. The Ewings helped people move to the other side of the property instead of forcing them to figure it out on their own.
“We moved them over here free of charge because we had a place for them to go,” Ewing said.
Doug Ewing and his family have full-time jobs and families to look after. They are ready to focus on their own jobs and families without having to worry about the land as well.
Forrest Jenkins, an attorney who works at the Ole Miss law school, said, “Once a lease expires, the law does not require the landlord to renew the lease or continue offering the property for rent. So, expired leases and a landlord who won’t accept rent equals almost zero protection for that tenant.”
She also said mobile homes are treated as personal property, and because tenants do not own the land their home is on, it is a riskier way of living. If a tenant is asked to leave, and they don’t do it by the date they are given, they could face a fine or legal action.
The Oxford Galleria II will be comprised of 14 buildings, Trezevant said. There will be a variety of shops, restaurants and entertainment. As of October 2014, there will be 198,770 square feet of retail space and 10,000 square feet of restaurant space. There are to be 956 parking spaces added along with them.
“There’s going to be major cosmetics, major women’s ready-to-wear, a lot of department story activity, dining and probably another sports bar similar to Buffalo Wild Wings, so just a general mix,” Trezevant said.
A public hearing about the development will take place in City Hall in the upstairs courtroom Jan. 6. At this meeting, anyone who wants to speak for or against the development can plead their case to the aldermen. On Jan. 20, the Board of Aldermen are expected to decide whether or not to approve or deny the building of the Oxford Galleria II.
