Phoenix City Council chambers erupted this week at a contentious meeting.
Yelling could be heard Wednesday after Councilwoman Debra Stark made a motion to not allow public comment.
The agenda item would have blocked development on the land where three mobile home parks now sit.
The vote on the moratorium failed, but the motion to not allow public comment passed.
People at all three parks have been told they will have to leave, with the land set to be redeveloped.
“I could not contain myself because I was being silenced,” said Alondra Ruiz.
She was one of the people who ended up yelling at the council, letting members know how they felt.
“The least you could do is listen to people that are going to be evicted from their homes,” said Councilman Carlos Garcia.
Some council members were left in disbelief, while others like Councilman Sal DiCiccio agreed with the motion.
“The seven hours of testimony that we had at the last meeting, that we had one week ago, was just going to be rehashed,” said Councilman DiCiccio.
He said despite there being legal concerns, the agenda item blocking the development of the land would not prevent evictions.
“They are going to be outraged whenever you see people getting evicted,” said Councilman DiCiccio when asked about the emotions after the meeting. “How could you not feel upset about that?”
“Again, it goes back to they have received more money than anyone has ever received,” said Councilman DiCiccio. “They have had since 2016 to prepare for this.”
“How do we have years to figure this out if we didn’t know about it?” said Ruiz.
She lives in the Periwinkle mobile home park. Like many, her mobile home is too old to be moved.
Ruiz said Wednesday some people from the parks left council chambers but did go back in to speak during regular public comment.
While Grand Canyon University told ABC15 their plans to build student housing there have been clear for years, neighbors in the park say they didn’t know.
At least one of the other two parks, Weldon Court, was only alerted to the sale of their land last fall.
“It’s hard to just look at your property and be told to pack your stuff and go,” said Ruiz. “This is our home. We own our home.”
Walking through the park, Ruiz said seeing some of the empty spaces is hard.
“We are still here. We are destroyed emotionally,” said Ruiz.
In the last few months, a new state law has been passed to give families more money to relocate.
City and state funding may also be available to those who are eligible.
GCU has also pledged assistance to those in Periwinkle.
But Ruiz said the money isn’t enough long term.
“It’s so hard to find affordable housing,” said Ruiz. “This is our affordable housing.”
All three mobile home parks currently have eviction days set in the next few months.
