Problem complex lags on repairs
Residents of Carriage Houseof Columbus on the Northeast Side say neglect and a lack of response to maintenance requests arejeopardizing their living conditions.
Fadumo Issack, a tenant of the 192-unittownhouse complex, pulled a lighter from a kitchen drawer recently and lit her semi-functioning stove.
“The smell of gas is too strong, and she’s worried it might explode,” said her 25-year-old son, Mohamed Abdi, translating for her.
There are 93 activeviolations on file for the complex at 3535 Derbyshire Drive, according tocity code enforcement records.
With 43 notices over the past two years, Carriage House alsomade the city’s most recent list of the 10 most problematic landlords in November.the list is compiled each year based on points accumulated through code violations and any civil or criminal court cases filed on properties.
The property houses a large
number of immigrants.
Hassan Omar, president of the Somali Community Association of Ohio, estimated that about70% of the residents are Somali immigrants.
“Property managers aren’t treating them equal,” Omar said. “They don’t speak the language or know the law. They can’t defend themselves, and it has been a huge challenge.”
He added that anyone with a language barrier is “affected by such mistreatment.”
As of July 2, there were 81 interior housing violations, nine environmental violations, two exterior housing violations and a zoning violation with the cityat Carriage House. The violations included damaged doors, windows and screens; water leaks; damaged floors and ceilings; infestations and parking lot maintenance problems.
“We are working diligently with the
city’s code enforcement office to cure all violations,” said Valerie Jerome, a spokeswoman for Millennia Housing Management, the Cleveland-based company that owns the property.
As longas management works withthe citytoward compliance, the complexwill continue to be inspected every other week, said Heather Truesdell, Columbus’ code enforcement administrator. “If they don’t, we will consult the city attorney’s office and take court actions.”
In May, the Legal Aid Society of Columbus filed a civil lawsuit against Carriage House in Franklin County Municipal Court on behalf of12 tenants and theohio Neighborhood Preservation Association. The complaintsmirror the violations filed by the city’scode enforcement office.
“We have negotiated an agreement with Carriage House and its management to remedy the outstanding code violation notices,” said Melissa Benson, a Legal Aid staff attorney
working on the case.
Units participating in the Housing Choice Voucher program by Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority, a program that provides housing assistance to low-income families, also have to undergo inspections to meet housing quality standards, said Chad Meek, vice president of the program. Of the 49 Carriage House units where residents use vouchers, he said, three failed the latest inspection.
Abdi said the problems at the complex started about three years ago when the management changed hands.
The complex was bought by Millennia Housing Management in April 2016. There were five city code violation cases on file in July 2016. But two years later, inspectors filed 161 cases, which prompted the city’s Department of Development’s Proactive Code Enforcement team to do routine inspections starting in early 2019.
Some residents say that thepoor conditions of the property pose a health risk.
“Every two to three days, my kids get sick,” said Idin Ali, who has been a tenant formore thaneight years. She and her family moved into their current house over a year ago after seven years in a different unit in the same complex.
“The rug is so dirty,” Ali said pointing to the carpet in the living room. “My son’s asthma has worsened.”
Ali’s 13-year-old daughter, Sumeya, pointed to numerous problemsas she walked around the house.
“When we complain, (the staff) write it on paper, come inspect it, say they’ll fix it and then don’t fix it,” Ali said. “I’m tired of this.”
However, not all thetenants have had bad experiences.
Toni Coles, who has been living in the complex for about six months, saidher maintenance requests have been correctedin a timely manner.
“So far, I haven’t had any problems,” she said.