90-year-old Jo Ann Ratliff of Tolar is homeless after a contractor demolished her trailer home. Documents show the contractor didn’t have a valid demolition permit.
TOLAR, Texas — A 90-year-old woman in the small town of Tolar says she’s now homeless after her only home was torn down without her permission and without a valid demolition permit.
Jo Ann Ratliff had lived in the modest trailer with her mother for decades. After her mother’s passing, it was all she had left.
“My mother and I lived there till she died,” Ratliff told WFAA. “It was solid. It wasn’t dangerous.”
But earlier this year, the City of Tolar deemed her trailer unsafe and structurally unsound after neighbors complained about a growing population of feral cats and foul odor around the property. Ratliff was given two options: bring the home up to code or have it torn down.
Ratliff says she hired a contractor, Martin Millwork, to begin repairs, but the structure was quickly demolished without her knowledge or approval. Her belongings were left scattered in the debris.
“I didn’t want the thing torn down,” she said. “I just wanted it brought up to code.”
City records obtained by WFAA show the contractor had submitted an incomplete demolition permit application to the city, but it was missing required signatures. There is no record of a valid permit being approved.
“They claimed it was dangerous, but it wasn’t,” Ratliff said.
Lindy Jones, an attorney for the contractor, David Martin, told WFAA that Martin intended to build Ratliff a new home at no cost, saying he was touched by her situation and simply wanted to help. In a statement, Jones added: “The permit was applied for, and the city verbally said it was approved.”
The City of Tolar declined to comment on the situation.
Now, just weeks from her 91st birthday, Ratliff is living with friends in town who took her in. Her neighbor, Randy Farr, said the entire situation is heartbreaking and unnecessary.
“It just makes me so mad every time I see it…the way they’ve done her,” Farr said.
Despite losing everything, Ratliff is determined to stay strong.
“You can’t just lay down and roll over,” she said. “You gotta stay up. Keep on truckin’. That’s what I do.”