Residents await word on future of their apartments

By Randy Tucker, The Cincinnati Enquirer

A sign outside Juanita Mitchell's building in the Huntington Meadows apartment complex in Bond Hill warns visitors of dangerous asbestos that could cause cancer and lung disease.

Many of the doors leading to basement areas and laundry rooms where mold and raw sewage have reportedly been found are closed and padlocked.

It's a stark reminder of the environmental and health concerns that have already led many tenants to abandon the 1,169-unit complex, leaving it about half full.

But with all its well-publicized problems, Huntington Meadows is still Mrs. Mitchell's home. And she hadn't planned on leaving anytime soon.

"Of course I'm concerned about the problems, although I was told my building wasn't that bad," she said. "I want to move because if something's wrong with the building, who wants to keep paying rent? But it's not like I can pick up and move tomorrow."

But she, and several hundred of her low-income, working neighbors may have no other choice, depending on a judge's decision today on whether to allow Habitat America - the court-appointed receiver managing the property while it's in foreclosure - to shut it down.

Representatives of the Maryland-based Habitat America could not be reached for comment Thursday.

But Habit has said in court documents that the building should be closed because it's a health hazard, and Habitat cannot afford to remedy the problems with mold, asbestos and sewage because it does not collect enough money in rent.

If Habitat gets its way, Mrs. Mitchell; her husband, Anthony; and sons Anthony Jr., 14, and Amos Brown III, will have only a few weeks to raise money for a down payment on a house or apartment, pack 14 years' worth of furniture, clothes and memories and settle into another place.

Mrs. Mitchell and a handful of other residents who formed a tenants association are trying to buy more time with the help of the Legal Aid Society of Greater Cincinnati.

Gary Pieples, an attorney with Legal Aid, will represent the tenants association in court today. He said he believes residents have the right to stay in the building as long as they don't violate their lease agreements.

And he also believes there is not enough evidence that the building is so unsafe that nobody should live there.

Although a study commissioned by Habitat found environmental conditions to be unsafe, the City Health Department has said the asbestos at the complex likely poses no hazard for residents.

The city was to conduct further testing Thursday and present those findings in court today.

"They're trying to terminate tenancies, which can only be terminated for specific reasons," Mr. Pieples said.

Even if the building is unsafe, the tenants should be given more time to move, which is within the power of the magistrate, Mr. Pieples said.

"Asking 600 low-income working families to move in 30 days is just not a fair way to go about this."

Fair or not, many Huntington Meadows tenants are already preparing for the worst.

Patricia Wilson, who has lived in the complex for six years, says she's certain the building will be closed and residents evicted sooner or later.

"We're all just trying to wait and see what happens," she said.

Ms. Wilson was among dozens of Huntington Meadows residents who attended an open house at the Greater Cincinnati Mortgage Counseling Service in nearby Roselawn this week.

Those who attended the event were offered free credit reports, an opportunity to speak with loan officers and Realtors, and information on grants to help with down payments.

Ms. Wilson said she was told that because of her clean credit report, she could qualify to buy an $80,000 home.

"I thought about maybe renting a house, but I never thought about buying one," she said. "But I guess I can."

Still, she said finding a house would take even longer than finding an apartment, and an Aug. 31 deadline wouldn't give her enough time for either.

"It's going to take me that long just to pack," she said. "I've got a lot of things that I've brought into my apartment over the past six years."

< Back