One idea, Detroit. Lots of people in similar situations have ended up in Detroit where large spaces are available for a pittance because of the situation there. Also, other parts of PA. Pittsburgh area for example. Or Cleveland, might have warehouse space to spare.
However, that may be cut off in the future by the price of heating. If the price of natural gas goes up a lot like they say it will, due to exports, its going to be insanely expensive heating a large place, nomatter where it is in the US. Like it is in Europe.
These kinds of situations put people under a kind of stress that even just by itself is neurotoxic. I can't overemphasize the importance of this. A few months of it will statistically double one's chances of serious illness or death for years. Thats the emerging science. Best to cut your losses and move. They won.
If I were her I would try to pare down the bulk of my stuff. If she does that in a well thought out methodical way she'll be able to keep the things that matter to her but she cant be wasting any time hoping its going to change, if a miracle occurs, great but she cant count on that. This huge shift is happening everywhere. It happened to me. I had to give away 3/4 of what I owned. Its impossible to sell things on short notice.
It will not be easy finding another place to live, let alone a 'lab' in an urban area, without a very well paying job and perfect credit. And often they want a little under the table too. Thats what she should focus on. Living space. Its very very hard to find a live work space. The future is people living in
dorm like shared spaces. Basically living like college students again. (Blessedly now, they might be able to find a unit with its own bathroom! That would be almost as good as a small apartment in a city where there are often good, cheap ways to eat out)
It can get really desperate. When I lived in SF several times I had to extricate people from spaces in my building they werent supposed to live in (under the front stairs, where we kept the garbage cans, and old abandoned storage rooms in the damp dark basement. Whos to say if we wont end up in rabbit hutch like "
cage homes" like the poor in Hong Kong do.
When people are trying to drive you out, what can I say.
Its not a safe situation to be in. She could end up in a really bad situation.
Wealthy people don't understand the rest of the human race's values when they have dollar signs in their eyes. They see buying properties, tarting them up and reselling them to make a quick profit as their entitlement. Really. "Everybody else is getting rich", they say, doing this, why not them too? Its like a game for them.
If poor people try to hang on to spaces they have professionals who they hire to come in and drive them out. Professional building clearers. They can make it impossible for anybody who has to keep a job or who needs to sleep, breathe, etc. to live in a building. The stories I could tell people would just blow your minds. I've been through this.
She
really doesn't want to become a speed bump on their highway to riches. If she cannot afford an attorney to fight it out (and it looks like that would be really hard to find, as they are super expensive.) she should just be happy she has some time because of her lease, and move. Try to find another place to live first. Thats the #1 priority. She needs to get on top of it because other things are likely coming that will displace lots of others so soon she will be competing with them. And many of them will likely be better off financially. Still working and needing to stay near jobs, nearing retirements, etc. Thanks to our President, the REAL ESTATE DEVELOPER.
Older people like Fran and myself are still living in another, gentler era. We're not really so realistic. For better or for worse, thats just the way we are.
Fran if you read this, your health is the thing you need to think about, the sooner you decide to deal with this and start finding good places for your stuff and self, the better off you'll be in terms of your chances of finding a new lab too. Don't become a paralyzed 'deer in the headlights', if you do you will sink into despair and not be able to find a new place. Paradoxically, like employment, the more you 'need' something like that the harder it is to find it. All that old equipment may be interesting for historical reasons but its big and bulky and not as useful as newer equipment in a pragmatic electronics sense. You have to move on. Thats how to improve your chances of finding another challenge and maybe you will luck out. Its more likely than not if you rise to the challenge, but if you dont its going to be very hard.