Wilton motel close to reopening
WILTON, N.Y. » Owners of a Route 9 motel have made major improvements, but the site still doesn’t comply with some code requirements, town officials said Wednesday.
Crest Inn Suites & Cottages, which primarily houses short-term tenants, was shut down last month after being cited for issues such as raw sewage, poor plumbing, open electrical boxes, and inadequate smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
Fourteen families, which had been living there, have found temporary housing elsewhere.
“Part of the problem is that people live there like they’re apartments,” said Mark Mykins, town code enforcement officer. “Motel units aren’t built like apartments. They don’t have enough outlets for things like microwaves, toasters and hair dryers. You’re overloading the circuits.”
One tenant was forced to vacate the premises on May 16 because of wood rot and unsanitary conditions allegedly stemming from raw sewage coming from a disconnected line.
A week later, the entire facility was closed following a second inspection by Mykins and state Health Department officials.
Motel owner Arslan Hussain has blamed a recently-evicted person, who couldn’t make rent payments, for allegedly vandalizing the
property and then contacting authorities to report problems.
Mykins has said he didn’t find evidence of vandalism.
Hussain had hoped to complete upgrades and reopen by the middle of last week. But inspections were canceled because work wasn’t done.
Town officials inspected the property again Wednesday.
Mykins said conditions are much better. New smoke and carbon monoxide detectors have been installed.
But there were still several minor violations and two serious ones. Ground wires for the electrical system are the wrong size, and a test of sewage lines using water revealed leaks, he said.
There is no raw sewage present because no one is living there, he said.
The 21-unit facility, at the corner of Ernst Road, has a motel unit fronting Route 9 and several cabins in back.
Most residents live there for a few weeks or months while trying to find a regular apartment.
Mykins said he believes the motel should be able to reopen within the next few days.
“They’ve got to fix some stuff and we’ll inspect again,” he said. “There was so much wrong it’s not an easy task.”