Housing is expensive everywhere in the U.S., and in Midland, MI. one 34-year-old woman came up with a unique solution. The problem was, the arrangement was illegal and she was asked to leave.
For about a year, the woman who has not been named in the press lived inside the sign on the rooftop of The Family Fare Supermarket. The sign sits on top of the roof, with about a 10 by 15-foot hollow peak at the top and a small door for access. It’s unclear how the woman’s unique living situation came about. She was noticed, however, when construction workers found an extension cord leading to the door and reported they thought someone might be living there.
A Family Fare spokesperson told USA Today, she’d been seen before ” … and then all of a sudden she would vanish. No one really knew where she went but no one ever indicated or thought that she would be up on top of the roof.” And since she was found out, Midland locals have started calling her the “Rooftop Ninja.”
Her place sounds pretty tricked out
Despite the unusual circumstances, the Rooftop Ninja’s place sounds pretty nice, with flooring, a desk, a computer, a coffee maker, clothing, a houseplant, and food, according to the Detroit Free Press. (A 10 by 15-foot studio apartment with all that, and for free?! San Francisco, eat your heart out.) Reportedly she had a job and a car the entire time, and she didn’t tell the authorities how she came and went from the makeshift residence without being seen.
Once discovered, she was asked to leave and she vacated the premises without incident. It’s not clear where she went. Midland police offered housing assistance information, but she turned them down. She was trespassed from the property but no charges were filed. She took some of her stuff when she left and Family Fare has cooperated with the woman to help her move her remaining property.
“They were like ‘OMG, someone is living in that sign,’” Midland Police Department Public Relations Officer Brennon Warren said, according to Midland Daily News. “I’ve never seen anything like this before in my career. She made it home,” Warren said.