Landlord to extend eviction process for blind woman

SANDUSKY — Over the weekend, a local official informed the Register about a developing situation involving a blind woman getting evicted from her Sandusky home. "The landlord is granting her one more week to find a place," said Sue Daugherty, the executive director of Serving Our Seniors. Daugherty's announcement follows Register coverage of this issue, which was first published on the newspaper's website on Friday. In the Aug. 6-7 Weekender newspaper, the Register printed a story about how Cheree Heppe, who's blind, expected to be evicted from her home today. Heppe said she had nowhere else to go. "I have no idea what I'm going to do," Cheree Heppe said on Friday. She lives in the 1500 block of Lindsley St. in Sandusky. "My things will be thrown out in the street. I'm blind. I have no way to drive. I don't have people or family here that can help me. I don't know what's going on." Heppe considers herself a good tenant who pays her rent on time and keeps to herself. But a dispute involving Heppe's landlord resulted in the property management group no longer wanting to rent out its house to her. Heppe did file a complaint with Sandusky's code enforcement department earlier this year. It's possible, she believes, that's why the property owner took this action. An attorney representing the property owner declined to address that question or provide any specific details about what led to her eviction. Heppe and/or her legal representation signed a document agreeing to this outcome, the lawyer said. She fears an eviction on her rental record could have grave repercussions. "I just as well might be Frankenstein's daughter in terms of rentals," Heppe said. "If this goes down, I will be painted in a very unflattering light." For the past month, Serving Our Seniors representatives have worked with Heppe to find a new housing solution. But, with a high-demand housing market in play, no options have materialized. "I'm working with Ms. Heppe to locate alternative housing," said Anna Moses, a senior advocate for the senior-based organization. "We have found that appropriate housing that would meet her needed requirements for safety and security is scarce to come by." Moses said people can contact her at 419-624-1856 or annam@servingourseniors.org for suggestions.