Midway resident fights eviction

By By Clif Knight, Hartselle Enquirer
A 79-year-old grandmother is fighting to keep her apartment in Midway Manor in Hartselle after a June 10 fall in which she was injured.
Martha Wildman, who has occupied Apt. 3-B since July 3, 2003, was notified by letter June 29 that her lease would not be renewed when it expires July 29. The letter, signed by resident manager Anna Gable, said five violations of the lease agreement were the reason why it was not being renewed but it didn’t specify the reasons.
my neighbors are friendly. I have always paid my rent on time and they took my July rent without any hesitation.”
Wildman said the resident manager let her see her occupancy file only after she insisted that she had a right to know the violations referenced in the termination letter.
The violations list included complaints made by Wildman and her daughters about the unsafe condition of the sidewalk; the failure of an exterminator to identify himself properly when he made a visit to the apartment; failure to respond immediately to a notice to come to the office to renew the yearly lease; and the report of three pieces of jewelry missing from the apartment to the police department. Wildman said two of the items showed up in her apartment the day after she filed the claim.
Wildman hurt her hand and face in the sidewalk fall and was treated at Decatur General Hospital emergency room. She is still undergoing physical therapy for her hand. The night before, a man in a motorized chair and his walking companion fell on the same sidewalk and had to be treated at a hospital emergency room, she said.
Wildman said she reported the condition of the sidewalk to Mayor Dwight Tankersley after asking the resident manage to use her influence to have it repaired.
Johnson said he inspected the sidewalk and found it to be cracked and bucked up in places because of the settlement of the foundation. He said he reported his findings to the resident manager and suggested repairs needed to be made.
A spokesperson for property manager Sunbelt Properties of Albertville said she is aware of the condition of the sidewalk and is taking steps to have it repaired.
Nicole Moore, property manager, provided a written statement about the matter to the Enquirer. She said, “to protect the privacy of my residents of Midway Manor Apartments, I will not discuss the circumstance s involving my right not to renew the lease of Martha Wildman. The choice had nothing to do with her recent fall on the property.”