Detroit woman fights to stay in tiny house she hoped to own, claims eviction is retaliation
18-year-old Samantha Frye from Dover used her college funds to invest in her future
By Kimberly Craig , Matt Dale
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DETROIT (WXYZ) — It’s a fight over a tiny house in Detroit that has already dragged through 36th District Court for over a year. And this week, a judge told Taura Brown she has 10 days to vacate the tiny house on Monterey Street that she thought she’d one day own.
“I love it. I love living here,” Brown said. “It keeps me centered as far as not collecting a lot of things.”
The collection of tiny houses in the area is owned by Cass Community Social Services and part of a program for low-income residents to rent the homes. According to CCSS, anyone who remains in the house for seven years will be “given the opportunity to own the home and property.”
CCSS Executive Director Rev. Faith Fowler has previously gone on record to say that Brown does not spend the majority of the time actually living in the tiny house.
Brown claims she has paid her rent on time every month and she believes CCSS did not renew her lease and moved to evict her because she has been critical of how Fowler and CCSS are managing the properties.
“It’s almost like serfdom here. Everybody here gets a service from her and she uses that to control them,” Brown said. “If you don’t work for her, your food box comes from her. And I don’t take anything from her. By no means am I rich, but yeah, no, I don’t want your food box.”
A year-and-a-half court battle has now ended with a judge ordering Brown to vacate the premises in 10 days.
“We’ll see,” Brown said. “I don’t want to be in a fight with her (Fowler) about this house, but I will.”
Just before 5 p.m. Wednesday, 7 Action News received the following statement from Fowler in favor of Cass Community Social Services:
For over three years, Cass Community Social Services (CCSS) has provided housing for Ms. Taura Brown on Detroit’s west side, where she might live alongside other Detroiters as part of our agency’s anti-poverty program. Sadly, Ms. Brown has chosen from the beginning to make another residence her primary home, violating both the spirit and the conditions of the Tiny Homes program.
Her refusal to surrender the tiny house after her lease was not renewed in January of 2021 has deprived other low-income people the opportunity to live in, and eventually, own the home. Additionally, many people have suffered from her misinformation and slanderous attacks including her neighbors, CCSS staff members and myself.
After hearing Ms. Brown’s motion and Cass Community Social Services’ response, the court ruled on June 1, 2022, that CCSS was indeed justified in not renewing its lease with Ms. Brown. The court ordered her to leave the Tiny Home by July 1, 2022. She appealed the decision. The Third Circuit Court affirmed the lower court’s opinion on September 14, 2022. On October 28, 2022, Ms. Brown filed a motion for reconsideration with the court. A court date was set to hear the motion on December 19, 2022. In that court date, the Judge again affirmed the order and agreed to allow her until January 9, 2023, to vacate the premises. Ms. Brown then filed several motions which were heard on Tuesday, March 22, 2023. Judge Shawn Jacque, 36th District Court, denied her motions, affirmed the ruling of the Court and signed the writ (Order of Eviction) and afforded Ms. Brown an additional ten days to vacate. In addition to the court proceedings Ms. Brown has filed numerous complaints with federal, state and local agencies, all of which were dismissed or the equivalent of dismissed after receiving substantiated proof by CCSS to their illegitimacy.
The Cass Tiny Homes were never intended to serve as second homes or to sit empty. They were designed to provide people with safe and affordable rental housing which would convert into homeownership after seven years. There is no shortage of Detroiters who need this type of housing, not as an investment property, but their primary residence.
CCSS stopped receiving rent from Ms. Brown in February of 2021 (25 months ago). During yesterday’s court proceedings Ms. Brown told Judge Jacque she currently has an account holding the equivalent of all her rent money, what would equal more than $7,500. We wish Ms. Brown well and regret that this issue could not have been resolved in a more respectful manner and without court involvement. In the future, we look forward to working with another person or family and continuing our commitment to our community and people seeking to escape poverty.
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