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Thursday, May 8, 2008
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Downtown Motel closed down
Staff Writer On Thursday, Sheryl Engen and her disabled 16-year-old daughter will be homeless.
Two days ago, Engen and about 20 other tenants of the Downtown Motel in Brainerd, many of whom have lived at the motel for more than a year, were told they would have to move out as the Minnesota Department of Health issued a cease and desist order against the motel's owner, Julian Jayasuriya.
The order gave the motel residents 72 hours to vacate the premises. Engen said Jayasuriya won't refund residents their May rent and she has nowhere to go.
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Joyce Engen (left) and her mother, Sheryl Engen, contemplated having to leave the home they've known for the past year at the Downtown Motel in Brainerd after the motel was ordered closed on Thursday by the Minnesota Department of Health. Sheryl Engen said she cannot afford another place to live. Brainerd Dispatch/Steve Kohls
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"That's where I am angry," Engen said. "I have a handicapped child who's going to be turned to the streets. All of us are packing up but none of us know where to go. We're all scared, all walking on eggshells."
The health department's cease and desist order, posted on the office door at the Downtown Motel, only states the motel must be vacated until violations are corrected.
Doug Schultz, health department spokesman, declined to comment on the specific violations at the Downtown Motel because it is an open case. He said cease and desist orders are issued because of violations of the Minnesota Lodging Code.
"Generally speaking, the closing of a facility is usually not our first choice," Schultz said. "We pursue other means of compliance first. Generally, a closing means there was a risk to the public, as well."
Engen said the health department informed the motel residents that the building was an unsafe structure, a rear wall was crumbling, there were water leaks throughout the motel and mold.
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Mattresses, appliances and even a kitchen sink were stacked on the east wall of the Downtown Motel in Brainerd on Wednesday. Brainerd Dispatch/Steve Kohls
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Dwayne Kerr, who lives in the Downtown Motel office and whose fiancee provides housecleaning services, said Jayasuriya has hired a civil engineer to check the motel.
"It's low-level stuff, just stuff that's been ongoing and they're wanting to get it all done," Kerr said. "They're tired of it being in here, more or less, at least that's what I gathered from it. They're tired of it not being done."
Jayasuriya was unavailable for comment Thursday afternoon.
Residents packing their belongings Thursday didn't believe the motel would ever be reopened. One man, who asked not to be identified, described the motel as a slum. Others said they can't get their May rent refunded in order to find a place to stay.
Brainerd Police Chief John Bolduc said police are investigating but no arrests have been made.
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Water leaks, such as in the bathroom sink in Sheryl Engen's room at the Downtown Motel in Brainerd, are among the reasons the Minnesota Department of Health issued a cease and desist order against the motel's owner. Brainerd Dispatch/Steve Kohls
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The health department also is seeking a temporary restraining order against the owners, listed in court documents as DBM II Partnership, of the Downtown Motel to prevent them from doing business at the site. A hearing on the restraining order is scheduled Thursday in Crow Wing County District Court.
Engen and several other residents said they plan to attend the court hearing. And by 2 p.m. Thursday, they all will be without a home. Engen also is upset with the health department for not issuing its cease and desist order before May 1, when she paid her rent. She said she'd prefer to be able to stay until June 1, when she will have rent money for another place to live.
"I have nowhere to go with my daughter," Engen said. "There are families here, families with children living here, and we all need help."
MATT ERICKSON may be reached at matt.erickson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5857.
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