Jacksonville, FL. — Guests of the Gold Rush Inn had until 5 p.m. Monday to move out of the motel that had been recently shut down by the state of Florida. The motel’s license was suspended after inspectors found unsafe living conditions.
Guests, like Geonetta Riggins, say moving means starting over.
“I just hope that they do what they can, what they say they’re going to do, help us place us somewhere, and make sure that we’re okay for Christmas time,” said Riggins.
A source provided Action News Jax Investigator Ryan Nelson a list of the guests who had been forced to move out. The list showed at least 42 guests whose move out dates were scheduled between December 19th - 21st.
Several agencies responded to the motel Monday morning to assist those may be in need, including the Mental Health Resource Center (MHRC), Changing Homelessness, and the city of Jacksonville. JFRD and JSO were also on scene Monday to assist in facilitating the move out.
Councilman Reggie Gaffney worked for weeks to have the motel shutdown following several violent incidents.
On Monday, Action News Jax Investigates asked Gaffney what comes next for the building.
Gaffney says he’s going to work with city council and the property owner on what the future may hold for the building.
“I got two or three ideas, that I believe it’s too early to talk about,” said Gaffney. “You know the owner had wished to stay here. Perhaps we could get somebody who’s in development to buy it and build townhouses.”
Action News Jax also asked Gaffney what will be done to keep the property safe once guests move out.
“I met this past Thursday with the owners, and my advice to him, because he was worried about his property being vandalized, I said, ‘If I was you, and what I recommend that you do until we solve the issue with you, is put up a fence and have security,’” said Gaffney. “He agreed to do that there.”
The city of Jacksonville provided the following statement discussing the services provided for the guests of the motel, and what the future may hold for the property.
Statement from the City of Jacksonville:
“The City has provided assistance through the Social Services Division and the Housing and Community Development Division for the residents. Employees from those divisions were onsite today along with representatives from a few of our partnering community organizations to make arrangements for housing and transportation.
Also, a JSO Zone Commander has been actively engaged in finding a resolution of this issue for quite some time. He has been working with the City services teams that have been onsite offering options for all residents at the Gold Rush Inn. No one has been denied a safe and accessible option for their housing. We even have reports that the owner who is under great scrutiny and potential legal action, has offered to relocate tenants to other properties he owns.
The City hopes the property owner begins work immediately to remedy the violations that led to its license suspension and Code citations. It is up to the property owner to ensure the work is done promptly so that it can re-open.”