Plainfield mayor: Families displaced by condemned buildings may not be able to return any time soon
PLAINFIELD, N.J. -- There is more bad news for residents of a condemned property in Plainfield.
The mayor now says he doesn't expect them to be able to return any time soon, and it's very likely a neighboring building will have to vacate, too.
CBS New York investigative reporter Tim McNicholas has more on how the city is handling nearly 300 people in need of housing.
READ MORE: Tenants scramble to leave Plainfield building deemed unlivable
The sounds of progress echoed through the property at 7th and Liberty on Monday, but it's nowhere near enough progress to reopen the doors to a condemned building.
The Murillo-Medina family tried but couldn't get in to check for any mail about the upcoming school year.
"She saying school are gonna be sending out letters and whatnot about the uniforms and our school supplies," high school student Joshua Murillo said of his mother, who spoke to CBS New York in Spanish.
They're staying with family and the city of Plainfield says it has placed other affected families in hotels or other temporary homes.
The state has also offered $1.5 million to help displaced families with their housing needs.
"There's a shortage of apartments in the city and around the neighboring counties, but to the extent were able to identify apartments we're going to be placing each affected family in permanent housing units," Mayor Adrian Mapp said.
The mayor blames building owners Charles Aryeh and Aaron Eichorn for the holes in the ceilings, the mold-like stains and the fire hazards the city says it recently discovered after a tenant complaint.
READ MORE: Owner of uninhabitable Plainfield building fires management company
The mayor says the living conditions are so bad he doesn't expect families to be able to move back into the building anytime soon. He also says it's likely the neighboring building, which is owned by the same company, will have to be vacated as well, but added he doesn't know exactly when.
"It's crazy because now we can't think about us staying here. We gotta think about saving up to try to move or try to find help to try to move," said Yesenia Leal, who lives in the neighboring building.
The owners told CBS New York in a statement on Thursday that they're working to fix the problems, but they haven't responded to our questions since then.
They run a company called Cyclone Investment Group, which boasts on its website that's acquired "... roughly $1 billion in multi-family assets..." and one method it uses is "...controllable expense reduction..."
The Murillo-Medina family hopes they can use that money to quickly fix their home.
When asked if he knows where he might stay long term, Joshua Murillo said, "No. I have a summer project, too, and it made it hard on me because, like, its due on the 1st of September."
