INDIANAPOLIS — Feces and holes in the wall remain in the sixth-floor stairwell at Lugar Tower four months after WRTV first investigated.
But that’s not the only concern for residents — They say mold, mice and roaches can be found in the vicinity.
“We are paying rent. They don’t have to pay and sometimes they might just jump in your bed,” Walter Vancleave said.
Vancleave is begging for help. He would like to move into another unit.
The Indianapolis Housing Agency stopped managing Lugar Tower last December. The Bradley Company has since taken over.
“At that time, the building really got out of control. Things have progressed, but we still have a long way to go,” Paula Lasley said.
WRTV has reported on the health and safety conditions at the downtown Indianapolis apartment houses for months.
WRTV first spoke to the tenants in January, when they called for help after nearly a month of no hot water.
In April, residents filed a lawsuit citing unsafe and unsanitary conditions at the apartment, including lack of security at night, crime, roach and bed bug infestations, trash pile-ups and doors being unlocked.
Residents told WRTV they felt IHA abandoned them.
PREVIOUS | Lugar Tower residents file lawsuit citing unsafe and unsanitary conditions (wrtv.com)
“I am sickened by it,” Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita said. “40 complaints were generated in a short amount of time. That put up alarm bells for us and we started our investigation.”
Rokita is now demanding the Indianapolis Housing Agency to report to the Attorney General’s office quarterly for the next two years to make sure residents are getting services they pay for.
He says people shouldn’t have to live in fear.
“If you are paying your rent then you should get the service provided,” Rokita said.
Lasley is thankful higher powers have stepped in to help, but she feels it shouldn’t have taken this long.
“The thing you need to remember is would you want your family or your mother living in these conditions?” Lasley said. “It’s not where you live, it’s how you live. There are a lot of us here who want our building to be in excellent condition and feel safe.”
The Indianapolis Housing Agency issued the following statement to WRTV:
We are grateful for the Attorney General’s willingness to work with the Indianapolis Housing Agency through the Assurance of Voluntary Compliance. We have been working hard with the Lugar Tower property management company we engaged over the past several months to address resident concerns and improve living conditions. We are confident going forward that we will maintain compliance under the terms of the agreement.
We take any complaints we receive seriously and respond in a timely manner. The current IHA administration has worked with other stakeholders to develop and implement new management operation improvement plans for several of the other properties in the portfolio, that will allow for better living conditions for the families that we serve.
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