Hilton Head, community organizations help Chimney Cove residents facing eviction

The Town of Hilton Head will host a special meeting next week with the island’s community leaders to assist the 300 tenants being evicted from the Chimney Cove apartment complex.

The town Council called a special meeting set for 9 a.m. Sept. 6 in response to the evictions. Community leaders and organizations that have assisted Chimney Cove residents will brainstorm short- and long-term solutions to finding homes for the evicted tenants, many of whom are low-income and only speak Spanish.

And the Beaufort County School District announced it will parents to keep their children enrolled in Hilton Head schools and provide transportation even if they move off the island.

Town officials have been monitoring the situation, according to an Aug. 26 statement from Mayor John McCann.

Chimney Cove, located at 839 William Hilton Parkway, was one of the few remaining affordable housing options on Hilton Head. With the change of ownership, many of the mostly Hispanic residents are faced with having to move off the island entirely, quit their jobs on Hilton Head or switch their kids’ schools just three weeks into the start of the school year.

Several organizations have already started arranging relief, according to the statement from McCann. Lowcountry Legal Volunteers, a nonprofit that provides legal advice to those who otherwise couldn’t afford it, is helping residents understand their options.

The Beaufort County School District is offering counseling for the 76 children affected by the evictions, according to the statement, and an unnamed person is allowing one of the families to live in his short-term rental for the same $1,400 monthly rate they paid at Chimney Cove.

Since the residents of Chimney Cove received eviction notices on Aug. 12, following the sale of the property, many have scrambled to find new housing on the island. Some were told to leave as early as Sept. 12, threatened with sheriff’s department involvement if they were not out by then.

Christ Lutheran Church, located next door to the apartment complex, and the Deep Well Project have partnered to accept monetary donations for relocation costs, storage rentals and deposits for new apartments.

“We are trying to find temporary housing for as many people as possible,” said Sandy Gilles of the Deep Well Project.

About 90 adults and children attended a meeting at the church Sunday night to give their information to representatives from Deep Well Project and Lowcountry Legal Volunteers as well as several other local community organizations.

Residents and their families, including children in pajama pants who were ready for bedtime, listened closely to the services being offered, first in English, then in Spanish.

“We know it’s such a stressful time for all of you and we are praying and wish the best of all of you,” Christ Lutheran Church Pastor June Wilkins said.

Wilkins said she has been in touch with the owner of the property, Sam Johal, and announced at the meeting that residents with a Sept. 12 move-out date would be getting their deposits back. Johal declined a request for comment from the Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette.

Other local organizations at the meeting offered what they could to try and help

Lowcountry Gullah is offering to connect residents with Hilton Head Gullah families who own land for rent so that residents who are in a position to buy a trailer may park them there, said representative Luana Graves Sellers. Volunteers in Medicine will have medical services available Monday and Wednesday afternoons for residents who are not already patients at the free clinic, Executive Director Dr. John Newman said.

Yanina Sarli Rotti, a student services specialist with the school district, announced that Superintendent Frank Rodriguez would allow parents to keep their children enrolled in Hilton Head schools and provide transportation even if they move off the island via the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, a federal law that ensures equal access to education and resources for students experiencing homelessness.

By keeping students at their schools, the school district hopes to create some sort of “stability.”

“We want you to know we are here for you,” Sarli Rotti said. “We are trying to make this less painful and stressful when it comes to the children’s education. We’re here to help.”