NORWOOD, Ohio -- When Norwood police shut down two "nuisance" businesses July 29, they ordered the occupants of six rental units above Sherman Market to leave -- immediately. These tenants had just a few minutes to gather some essential belongings before the area was cordoned off.
A week after the closure, they still have not been let back into their homes.
“We went to the Norwood Police Department and asked them, ‘What do we do now?’” said Paul Johnson, a tenant who was forced to leave the space above Sherman Market along with his family. “They didn’t tell us where to go. They didn’t give us any paperwork saying, ‘This is why this is happening.'"
Johnson said he and his family have been living out of hotels and friends’ houses since the police ordered them to leave their home. Their dogs, which are not allowed in most hotels, stay in the car, and the family has had to keep the car fueled up so the dogs can have air conditioning.
“They kept giving me numbers for people to call, but no matter who I called, they didn’t know what they could do about it,” he said.
He said his daughter hasn’t fully grasped the family’s situation.
“She said, ‘When can I go home and play with my toys?’ That’s sad,” he said. “No kid should have to go through that.”
WCPO reached out to Norwood police and the county prosecutor to ask what will be done for these residents. They have yet to respond.
