MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Serenity Towers will soon close its doors for good, and one resident who has taken WREG along on his relocation process says he’s glad to say goodbye to the troubled high-rise.  

Robert Nichols, 73, lived at Serenity Towers for 11 years.

“It’s been going downhill ever since. I’m glad to be gone,” said Nichols.

In April, he turned in paperwork for the relocation process to get his voucher. He is now moving to a new southeast Memphis complex, 20 minutes away from Serenity Towers in Midtown.

He says the difference between the two is that he now has more room at his new apartment.

“It’s nice out here, wasn’t none of this at Serenity,” said Nichols. “I slept real good, let me tell you something, I ain’t worried about spraying my stuff down, keep from getting bit all night.”

Nichols says there are no more elevators or walking up flights of stairs when they were out. He says he plans to spend many of his days on his screened patio, where he has a great view of the courtyard.

The closure of Serenity Towers comes months after a judge deemed the troubled property a chronic public nuisance. Roughly 30 seniors were expected to move out on Thursday and Friday.

“I’ll give them credit, they’ve been trying to look out for you in the process of moving, now, they did that,” said Nichols.

A spokesperson for the Memphis Housing Authority provided WREG with an update on the relocation late Thursday, saying 20 residents are not being relocated to permanent housing immediately. The majority of those have pending inspections and or funding.

We spoke with Special Master Marcus Ward, who explained the units had to undergo a pest control cleaning, and due to previous infestation issues, there might be some items that residents couldn’t carry to their new home.

Below is Ward’s statement in full.

“It is a priority of the relocation team that all tenants are relocated in a safe and sanitary manner. In that connection, the team is certifying to the landlords of the new units that all tenants and their units have been screened for bedbugs prior to relocation. Any furnishings or clothing that cannot pass the screen cannot be moved to the new location.“

For those who don’t have permanent housing, the Memphis Housing Authority says they will be relocated to temporary housing.

Moves will continue over the weekend. Their goal is to have everyone out by Tuesday.

Memphis Housing Attorney also released a statement regarding items that may have been left behind in units, saying that there are some items that tenants may not be allowed to retrieve because of sanitary issues.

“Once residents have a signed lease and move out with the moving company, they are no longer occupants of that unit. For sanitary and security reasons, units are boarded once a move has occurred. Management will be reaching out to recently moved tenants to ensure all of their belongings have been moved. If tenants left something they wanted in the unit, arrangements will be made for them to retrieve those items. However, there are some items, due to sanitary issues, that management may not permit the tenant to retrieve (for example, old mattresses and bedding). Note – new mattresses and bedding or a furniture stipend is being provided to the tenant.”

City of Memphis Special Attorney Carlissa Shaw previously said that the city will use “legal mechanisms” to remove anyone still living on the property after Thursday.

On July 1, a judge will hear a motion to sell the property.