Residents Rally To Save 90-Year-Old's Home

SARASOTA, FL — A 90-year-old Sarasota widow stands to lose her home of 70 years as code violation fines pile up faster than work can be performed to address them.

Residents and business owners, however, are coming together to help Mary Louise Sikorski keep the home she and her late husband moved into when their daughter was just a small child.

The amount of work involved in bringing the home up to code is daunting and the accumulated fines steep, friends say. That's why they've kicked off a fundraising campaign on GoFundMe. The aim is to ensure Sikorski gets to stay in the home she's called her own for seven decades.

The Webber Street home reportedly fell into disrepair after the death of Sikorski's husband 14 years ago. The widow of an Air Force veteran now lives on a fixed income of $1,000 a month, the campaign page explains. Her retirement plans always centered on her living out her life in her family’s home.

All of that began to change about two years ago when neighbors started complaining about Mary Louise’s property to the city. Those complaints resulted in code violations and fines—lots of fines. The estimated total to date is $150,000, but the number keeps rising to the tune of $500 a day, ABC reported.

A neighbor recently stepped in to assist Mary Louise, but the repairs he’s made haven’t been accepted by the city, the gofundme page notes.

“They are required to be completed by a licensed contractor,” the campaign page states. “So, the $500/day fees continue. There is also a possibility that neighbors will lodge new complaints against her property, resulting in new fees.”

Hoping to help Mary Louise stay in her home, fundraising campaign that has four specific goals in mind:

• Tackling additional repairs needed on the home
• Paying the fines to prevent seizure
• Retaining an attorney to help reduce the fines
• Covering the “skyrocketing property taxes”

“Any amount will help this widow stay in her beloved family home,” the page’s author wrote. The goal is the full $150,000.

To raise awareness for Mary Louise’s plight, a sign has been posted in her front yard. It reads:

I’m a 90-year-old widow. I’ve lived here 70 years. Now the city of Sarasota is trying to steal my house. Help! Tell them how you feel 941-954-4156.

The neighbor who has been helping with repairs has only been identified as Miles G., a traveling nurse.

“Someone needed to step in and help her because the city wasn’t going to,” Miles told ABC.

Miles’ efforts seem to be paying off. As of Tuesday, the gofundme had raised nearly $3,000, and local businesses, including Super Pavers, have stopped by Mary Louise’s home to offer help.

The city is also reviewing Mary Louise’s situation and insists it “is not interested in taking anyone’s home,” according to a tweet it issued Monday along with a statement. That same tweet was resent multiple times on Tuesday after Mary Louise's story began circulating.

“The City is involved in response to serious safety concerns/complaints,” the tweet said.

Whether the fines will be reduced remains unclear.

To help with repairs to Mary Louise’s home, visit the gofundme campaign page.

Video and screenshot from YouTube