The Westfield Watcher

What would it take to drive you out of your million dollar home?

Westfield is a relatively boring, predominantly white, and upper class town. The most pressing local issues when the Broaddus family signed their contracts was the temporary closure of Trader Joe’s and a “rampant scourge of unconstitutional policing” by which they actually were just referencing parking enforcement. It was June of 2014 and Derek and Maria Broaddus were living the “American dream.” They had just closed on a 6-bedroom house at 657 Boulevard in Westfield, NJ but they had no idea what they were getting themselves into.

Maria herself was raised in Westfield, and her childhood home was just a few blocks away. Derek, on the other hand, grew up in Maine. Working class; slowly moving his way up the ladder at an insurance company in Manhattan and eventually becoming a senior vice-president with a salary large enough to afford the $1.3 million house. Derek had just celebrated his 40th birthday, and their 3 kids were already debating which of the house’s fireplaces Santa Claus would use.

One night, after an evening of painting, Derek checked the mailbox on his way out. There wasn’t much of anything useful but a small white card shaped envelope caught his eye. It was addressed in thick, clunky handwriting to “The New Owner,” and no return…