Local

New owners of Jacksonville’s Hospitality Inn have plan to help evicted tenants

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Residents at a local extended-stay hotel are no longer facing eviction after Action News Jax kept asking questions.

Residents of the Hospitality Inn thought they would be on the streets by Thursday evening. They had been told with a piece of paper posted on their doors.

>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<

The owner of the hotel decided to sell the building to Vivo Investments several months ago.

Allen Allgood with Vivo told Action News Jax the former owner didn’t follow protocol as he should have.

“He should’ve reached out probably 45 days ahead of time. Given people notice. That wasn’t done,” Allgood said.

RELATED: ‘What the hell?’: Hospitality Inn on Jacksonville’s Westside gives tenants 2 days notice to leave

So when the investor showed up this week ready to start turning the hotel into affordable housing, he instead found a hotel full of residents.

“We were supposed to come here and everything was supposed to be shut down. It was supposed to be vacated so we can start renovation of the property,” Allgood said.

Wednesday evening, he found out these people had been given two days to get out.

RELATED: ‘Nowhere to go’: State Rep. steps in to help tenants told to leave Hospitality Inn in Jacksonville

“I found out last night on your news cast of what was happening,” Allgood said.

On Thursday, we found the manager and owner arguing with the people trying to secure housing for residents and stepped in, but both refused to comment.

The new owners, the Vivo Investment Group, have a new plan: If residents move out before Aug. 1, they will get a $500 stipend to go toward a down payment somewhere else.

READ: 59,000 Florida families getting one-time payments of $450 per child to get ready for back to school

Otherwise, they will have 31 days to be matched with housing through a housing program. They will work with these programs with the help of Rep. Angie Nixon.

“We’re also working with some agencies in the city to figure out what in between we can help.”

Nixon worked to put it together after we told her about the situation, saying, “they were literally supposed to be out on the street today.”

READ: ‘A city on the rise’: Mayor Lenny Curry unveils his final $1.5 billion budget proposal

Nixon, who is running for the 13th district, says it’s part of her job. Now these people have some security to figure out their next moves.