MUSKEGON HEIGHTS, Mich. — Since 4 o’clock Thursday morning, Phyllis Loudermill has been on the phone helping people at Mona Lake Inn at Lot's Landing figure out their next move.
“Where am I going to go? What happened? I don’t have anywhere to go? Where do I live?,” Loudermill said during an interview with FOX 17. “The whole COVID situation because people could not do evictions people are here. And, some of these people are not not only home-ready, house-ready, mentally-able — because of trauma or whatever reasons — to figure this out. And, that’s the most unfortunate.”
Muskegon Heights police knocked on people's doors, letting them know they needed to leave.
Loudermill purchased the motel on Hoyt near Seaway Drive in 2020 when COVID first broke out in Michigan. Mona Lake Inn was created to give people experiencing homelessness and houselessness a roof over their heads at an affordable price.
Some people were able to live there due to the COVID Emergency Relief Assistance. However, on July 1 it ends.
“Today, yes it is heartbreaking because I never wanted to put anyone out,” Loudermill said. “But, I can no longer say ‘if you stay, you pay me later’ because people have stayed and still have not paid me.”
Loudermill said since she bought the building dozens of people have been helped. They’ve gotten jobs and homes. She's held job fairs, three this year, at the building.
However, some people, she said, have decided not to be helped.
“Years of people helping you, there’s no reasons why you cannot help yourself,” she said. “We had an agency here yesterday to give people a job and it was amazing as people said they didn’t want to work.”
Loudermill added that she reached out to a number of agencies letting them know what was happening and that this day was coming. However, she was unsuccessful in reaching them.
“I feel that there’s a gap in communication with agencies that are receiving funds. And, in that gap of communication, as an owner you get to become the recipient of them not communicating,” Loudermill said. “The phone call that I got just now, and it was heated one, the agency said ‘No one told me.’ Well, I understand that their customer needs help. But, I can only do so much.”
Loudermill works with 45 families at Mona Lake Inn, and not all are leaving.
Sherika James arrived there two weeks ago with her three boys and has so far been grateful for it, she said.
“It’s been peaceful. I been peaceful here,” James said who's been searching for stable housing since January. “I’ve been here. I’ve been working. I’m just trying to get on my feet. It’s been hard but I've been doing it.”
James said her goal is to get a house for her family. She added that Loudermill has been helpful since she’s been there.
As for Loudermill, she said she’s going to continue to help those who need it most and keep making phone calls to the agencies.
“I’m going to reach out to those agencies to say what do we do? What is our next step? Because these families can not be displaced,” Loudermill said. “They cannot be and we need to figure out a way to help them the best way we can.”
