The Return Home: The Garcias Move Back in After Repairs
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Mr. and Mrs. Garcia live in a home originally built in the 1920s in south San Antonio that had been moved to a different location in the 1970s. The home’s roof leaked for years since the Garcia family moved in, and a large portion of the framing was rotted. “There were roof leaks all over the house. There was some mold, and we would always have allergies,” says Mrs. Garcia.
However, living on a fixed-income, the Garcias found it impossible to make the necessary repairs to their home. “We were always on a budget, and we couldn’t make repairs,” says Mrs. Garcia.
Meredith, the Construction Project Manager at Merced overlooking the repairs on the Garcia’s home found that the home had more issues than just the leaky ceiling and the rotted framing. “The home contained a great deal of lead-based paint, both inside and outside. Before embarking on the project, we let the homeowners know that they would likely have to move out of the home in order for the lead to be removed, and for the ceilings to be replaced,” says Meredith.
The Garcias and their adult son all live with physical or cognitive disabilities. Hospitalized with Covid for an extended period of time, Ms. Garcia also continues to suffer some of the longer-lasting effects of the illness. “Despite these difficulties, the family converted an outbuilding on their property into living quarters and were able to move out of the house completely in a matter of a few weeks,” says Meredith.
The Garcia family’s temporary living situation would last 6 long months, through a freezing winter, and into late spring.
During the course of replacing the roof, it was discovered that the home’s wiring presented a significant fire hazard. The additional repairs now included replacing all of the home’s light fixtures and electrical devices, along with wiring, circuitry and grounding. This further delayed the completion of the home repairs.
Once the electrical work was complete, and power was restored to the house, Merced’s rehab contractor was able to complete the ceiling replacement, as well as repairing and painting the interior walls of the house. Finally, Merced collaborated with CPS Energy to weatherize the house, providing insulation on all 6 sides of the envelope, replacing exterior doors, and sealing windows and walls to guard against air infiltration.
Before the repairs, the Garcias found themselves facing high utility bills. “We had to set the air conditioning to 62 and it still wouldn’t get cool. Now we can set it to 72 on eco and it’ll be cold inside!”
In June, the Garcia family was overjoyed to move back into their home.
“We haven’t had a winter here with the repairs yet, but I’m sure we’re going to be warm,” says Mrs. Garcia.