By Khalida Sarwari
Almost every resident who lives in San Jose’s Western Trailer Park and has had to endure one calamity or another — whether it be a car collision involving an 8-year-old boy or a fire or sewage flooding their homes — said today that their complaints are going unheard by the property’s management.
The residents of the 90-unit park on Monterey Road have formed a committee called the Residents Committee for a Safer, Healthier, and Happier Western Trailer Park. Some of the committee members held a news conference at the park today to publicize their concerns.
Earlier this year, the committee met with the park’s owner, Ki Hyong Ellis, and the park manager, Jose Herrera, to express their concerns about the poor living conditions at the park.
Mothers complained that due to the narrow spaces between the homes and lack of designated recreation area, their children have nowhere to play and are confined to their homes. Some said the plumbing system is dysfunctional and causes sewage to back up into the homes.
Tears streamed down 42-year-old Maria Mundo’s face as she talked about the impact living at the park for the last 11 years has had on her family.
“My child can’t perform in school. He’s not learning,” Mundo said, referring to her 8-year-old son Rafael who she said was struck three years ago by a car driven by Herrera.
Rafael was not injured, but hasn’t been able to concentrate on his schoolwork since.
She said there is no space for Rafael and his 10-year-old sister, Mary, to play. When she and other mothers expressed this concern to Ellis in February, Ellis told them she would create a play area on the property, Mundo said.
She said when they complained about Herrera’s unavailability, Ellis told them she would talk to him about creating an office schedule.
“Where there is any type of emergency, he is not present. He doesn’t answer our phone calls,” Mundo said.
Nine months later, none of Ellis’ commitments have materialized, Mundo said.
Eva Torres, 50, a resident who has lived at the park with her 14-year-old daughter Keyla for a year, had similar concerns.
She said the residents are hardworking people who pay their rent and don’t cause problems.
“We’re asking that [Ellis] treats us with respect and that she has just a little more concern for us,” Torres said.
Her sister, Maria Carmen Torres, 52, said this summer her home was twice flooded with sewage and when she went to Herrera, he brushed her off, she said.
“He said it’s my problem because it happened in my trailer,” Torres said.
When her home caught on fire in July, Torres said several of her neighbors helped to extinguish the blaze, but Herrera did not show up. At the time, she was in Los Angeles with family and was informed about the fire by her sister.
Torres, who has lived at Western Trailer Park for four years, said the stress of living there caused her to suffer a stroke last year that left her debilitated and unable to continue working.
She said she and others are tired of the harassment they’ve had to endure from Herrera and are asking to be treated with respect and dignity.
Herrera did not return a call seeking comment.
