CLEVELAND — Tenants living at the St. Clair Place Apartments in Cleveland report they are tired of living with safety concerns at the complex, and it compelled the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland to file a lawsuit on their behalf. Tenants held an April 10 news conference to outline their complaints.
Tenant Marsha Howard has lived at the complex for 13 years and told News 5 that in the past several months, broken door locks have allowed vagrants to enter the 200-unit HUD-subsidized building at all hours of the day and night.
“I am very uncomfortable when I see someone walking around that doesn’t live in the building that is not supposed to be there," Howard said. "I'm scared, scared, I'm afraid in my home, I’m afraid with the door having been broken for months, homeless, anybody can just walk right in and that’s been going on for a long time now.”
Legal Aid Society of Cleveland Attorney Elizabeth Zak showed News 5 the lawsuit filed in Cleveland Housing Court against Owner's Management Company, alleging safety issues, unfair billing and late fee practices that allegedly don't follow federal HUD guidelines. Zak said residents have reported a series of incidents and thefts at the complex due to unsecured doors and security issues.
“Non-residents sleeping in the hallways or in the stairwells, there have been non-residents engaging in sexual activity or defecating in the stairwells," Zak said. “Some tenants have been confronted or assaulted by non-residents in or around the property, and the bottom line here is the residents here at St. Clair do not feel safe.”
News 5 made two phone calls to Owner's Management Company headquarters on Rockside Road in Bedford, Ohio, for this story, but we're still waiting for a response. However, in a legal document filed by the company in Cleveland Housing Court, apartment management denied many of the safety and billing issue allegations listed in the legal aid lawsuit.
Tenants and legal aid acknowledge apartment complex repair and improvements are ongoing at the property but said they're hoping management will have a community meeting with tenants in the near future to discuss security and safety concerns.
“The residents would like there to be active working security cameras throughout the building, that is one of the things they are requesting as part of this lawsuit," Zak said. “There have been offers in the past by management to sit down with the residents that management has not followed through on.”
A case management conference in the case is set for May 2, but no hearing or official court dates have been set as yet in Cleveland Housing Court.
News 5 will follow through on this developing story.
