KISSIMMEE, Fla. — More than 20 families in Osceola County could soon be on the streets as a hotel on U.S. Highway 192 closes down.

  • According to eviction notice, Lake Cecile Inn closing for renovations
  • More than 20 families were sent notices about the closure 
  • Many of the families say their housing options are limited

The families on their way out of the hotel say their options are limited, as affordable housing is out of reach for them.

Jacquelina Ruiz has receipts upon receipts of all the monthly payments she’s made to Lake Cecile Inn & Suites.

“And the same day that I paid her, she gave me a letter in the door that I have to leave on the 16th,” Ruiz explained.

Ruiz has been served with an eviction notice. She’s packed all of her bags, but said she has nowhere to go. She said she’s a victim of the affordable housing crisis in Osceola County.

“There’s a lot of people on waiting lists,” Ruiz said. “There’s a lot of people that are desperate to get housing, and there is no help at all for these families.”

The eviction notice said the hotel is closing due to renovations.

Ruiz is not alone, as more than 20 families are in the same situation. These residents are calling their living conditions are deplorable — loose railings, mold, faulty ACs, a pool growing algae, and leaky faucets, just to name a few issues.

Orlando attorney, Jeremy Hogan is representing some of these tenants. Hogan said with Ruiz’s lease agreement, she needed to get a full 30 days, but she only got half of that.

“… maybe we can do this without legal action, and so my goal is to talk to the property owner as a person not as a business person and say, ‘Look, I am a lawyer, and you’re a business owner, but maybe we can work something out to help these people,” Hogan said.

Ruiz doesn’t know what her Thanksgiving will look like, but she is hoping to somehow get more time to find a new home.

“I can't even celebrate with my grandkids, because now I have to find a way to find money for rent and save money to find a place to live,” Ruiz said.

Spectrum News 13 has reached out to the landlord/tenant attorney of this property but has not received a response yet.