INDIANAPOLIS — Hoosiers continue to reach out to WRTV for help with unresolved apartment issues. This time, it's residents from the Indy Indie Artist Colony in downtown Indianapolis. Many of them living there say they have had to deal with water leaks, mold, rodents, unkempt grounds, power that goes on and off, and unresponsive landlords.
"Sadly, a lot of the tenants here seem to be numb to it," Stuart Wetovich, who lives at the Artist Colony, said. He says the maintenance issues are ongoing. On the day we spoke with him, water was pouring out of the ceiling into lobby. The apartments above it were a mess. He says firefighters broke down his door while he was sleeping because they were trying to make sure all the tenants were safe. All the water throughout the building, he says, added to the ongoing mold problem with some residents even reporting mushrooms growing from their floors.
"The last day, I felt sick just breathing in the air. All the walls and ceilings get wet. Everybody else seems like it's normal to them and they should know it's not normal," Wetovich said.
Despite all the issues, Joey Laitala is willing to stay at the Indie Artist Colony if management would respond to their concerns.
"It's a real shame because it's a great community around here but things are constantly breaking around the building," Laitala said. "I'd like to stay here. I'd like to see them lower rent a little bit or at least stop raising it for people who've already been here. They're forcing a lot of people out of their homes."
Below are resources tenants can use if they are dealing with a similar situation.
TENANT RIGHTS IN INDIANA
APPLY FOR FREE LEGAL HELP
You are encouraged to reach out to your health department about ongoing issues if you're a renter. That process does take time. Residents at the Artist Colony want action now. They've formed a tenants union and sent a list of demands to all three property management groups who've owned their building and others this past year.
We reached out to H-I Management, the current group that owns them, to ask how they plan to resolve some of these issues but have not heard back. We will continue pressing them for an answer.
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