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'Family' emerges from apartment ashes
By MICHAEL SANDLER, Times Staff Writer Carol Doran lost nearly everything she owned in April when a roaring fire gutted her apartment. She and her 16-year-old daughter were without a home, without cherished possessions. And to make matters worse, she had put off taking out a rental insurance policy. New to the area, they thought they had nobody. Then came the movers. Vouchers for hotels and meals followed. Neighbors came out with clothes. Within hours, a community rose from around the ashes of the charred building between Largo and Clearwater at 2100 Nursery Road and found temporary homes for 20 displaced families. "It restored my faith in people," Doran said of the outpouring of support she and the other families received, most of it from the owners, staff and residents at Imperial Gardens apartments. The local chapter of the American Red Cross brought vouchers for clothing, food and mattresses. The owners paid hotel bills and other expenses until they had apartments available in other buildings for the nearly 25 people put out by the April 3 fire, and property manager Frank Sava made sure everyone had some place to go. No one was injured, but the blaze left more than $1-million in damage. "They put us up at the Holiday Inn Express," Doran said. She stayed nearly a month until another apartment became available. "They paid for it all. That's amazing!" JoAnn Matthews lived on the first floor and managed to salvage many of her possessions. She did not have to worry about sorting through the mess to have them safely returned. The owners paid for a moving company to go through each apartment, pack up everything and send it along. Matthews said they even offered to help them unpack. She could not believe Sava had the maintenance staff take shifts watching the building after police left -- just to be certain nothing would be stolen or vandalized. Everyone seemed willing to pitch in. "They just brought us in and made us a family," Matthews said. Jonathan Gaines is a partner in the family run Raleigh management company that has owned the complex since 1968. He felt obliged to do whatever he could to assist people, but he insisted that many of his employees deserve credit for coming forward on their own. He said Sava did more than enough. "We are in the business of providing people with homes," Gaines said and called his decision to shell out money for hotel rooms "good business." He hopes everyone returns when the new building is up in a few months' time. "Part of good business practice is to provide a good living environment for our customers, and that is what we are doing," he said. "Whether it is existing residents, or future residents, or residents who were unfortunately forced out of their home temporarily." So far, Sava said they have found apartments in the complex for 18 of the 20 families. Others are staying with friends, family or at neighboring complexes. Sava said he expects to be able to offer everyone an apartment by August. Laura Cardinal will be among those returning then. After the fire, she stayed with her sister in Largo for two weeks, then went to live at Imperial Pond apartments. She can't wait to return in August, and she said Sava is a rare find. "The manager is old school," Cardinal said Friday while celebrating her 74th birthday. "He cares about people. We have too few people that do that." -- Michael Sandler can be reached at 445-4174 or sandler@sptimes.com.
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From the Times North Pinellas desks Letters |
