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Residents of Heatherton Apartments gathered with members of Butler County Concerned Citizens and Black Voters Matter on April 19 to voice their frustrations and learn new information about the future of the complex and ongoing soil contamination concerns.

“They came and told us… I guess since we have got the story out there, they have changed it, and said we have till May 2026 to move,” said resident Carolyn Dillard. “Also about the arsenic being why they removed the playground, they said that they did a test in 2019 and found arsenic in the soil, and they didn’t want somebody’s child to fall and get a mouthful of the dirt. But this is 2025, so [they] have hid this for six years instead of letting the residents out here know about it.”

Dillard said that while she is concerned about the contamination, she is most worried about finding a place to live. 

“I’m more worried about finding some place to go,” Dillard said. “A lot of people are even moving out of Greenville because they can’t find anywhere to stay. There is nowhere.”

Acquanetta Poole with Black Voters Matter told the crowd that the fight for Heatherton residents is about basic rights and justice. 

“This is a human rights thing,” Poole said. “Everybody deserves the decency to live. You all deserve the decency to live in a place that’s not contaminated with arsenic… Test results have already proven that there’s something in this soil… We’re going to have to raise our voice and let them know we’re not taking this anymore… But the way we fight back is with our votes and our voices.”

City Councilman Jaeques Brown addressed concerns about the eviction deadline and testing results. 

“At our last council meeting, I requested to be on the agenda along with Isaiah Scott from OCAP (Organized Community Action Program),” Brown said. “I asked what the deadline is, and according to Mr. Scott, right now, there is no deadline. They are not yet in the phase of being awarded the grant, so they haven’t set a deadline yet.”

Brown went on to say, Scott explained that residents were offered a stipend so that if they were concerned or felt that their health was in jeopardy, residents would have some assistance. The deadline for accepting the stipend is May 1, Brown said, and clarified that a move-out deadline had not been set. 

According to Brown, Scott also explained that the soil testing results revealed the soil would need to be directly consumed by an individual to pose any risk.

Brown added that he visited Heatherton to provide clarity to residents.

“As a councilman, I care about the residents and wanted to give them the facts to help steer them in the right direction,” Brown said. “Even though there is no deadline set, there is a housing shortage and you can’t find housing quickly so I would encourage the residents to continue to make plans and look for alternate housing.”