DETROIT (WXYZ) — Leland House apartment residents in Detroit may not have to move out after all, after the building's management secured new financing Tuesday afternoon and received a one-day extension.
"This is my dad's home and it has been for 20 years, and I know he didn't want to leave," said Lashell Warner, who was helping her father move out.
Watch Jolie Sherman's video report below:
The attorney representing Luis Ramirez, the authorized agent of The Leland, said they filed for bankruptcy last month, which required them to pay a utility deposit of $43,000 to DTE Energy by Wednesday, Dec. 3 or face a power shutoff.
We're told their original lender fell through on Friday, Nov. 28, leaving them without the needed funds. That same day — the day after Thanksgiving — residents received a letter from Leland House management that said they had to vacate by Dec. 3, giving tenants just days to move out.
"We've got people who've been here for 40 years," said Emanuel Hill, a resident of The Leland for 18 years.
However on Tuesday afternoon, attorney Nathan Resnick said they found another lender and obtained the needed financing, which a bankruptcy judge must approve.
A hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 4 at 11 a.m.
"The financing will pay the funds to DTE that are required to be paid by Thursday December 4 to continue power at the building for all the residents and to operate the Leland," Resnick said in a statement.
Meanwhile, DTE Energy said they have been "proactively working with the landlord to find a way to continue servicing the needs of its residents" (and) "provided a 30-day public notice on all entrances and exits of the building to inform tenants of potential disconnect."
DTE Energy also said they are working with the city to secure alternative housing options for Leland House residents.
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