Detroit seniors ‘sick’ of mold, vermin, lack of heat in rental housing

Seniors living in rental housing in Detroit are dealing with mold infestation, vermin, lack of heat and inadequate security measures.

That’s according to residents and advocates who gathered Monday for a news conference at Gabriel Richard Park alongside Detroit City Council President Mary Sheffield and members of Council Member At-Large Mary Waters’ office. The group said Detroit seniors are facing poor living conditions in apartment complexes throughout the city and called for officials, property owners and community members to provide safe housing and hold negligent landlords accountable.

“Our seniors should be treated with dignity and respect,” Sheffield said. “If they raise concerns within their buildings about issues, they should be addressed expeditiously.”

The District 5 council member said she represents people in more than 26 rental buildings, the majority of which are for seniors, and more than half have issues. There is a lack of cleanliness and safety measures, Sheffield said, and complex managers are slow to respond to complaints.

"What we're hearing is that either it’s not being addressed, or if it is being addressed, it’s substandard, or if it is being addressed, it takes forever,” Sheffield said.

Residents say they feel unsafe and contend there is drug activity and robberies happening in the buildings. They want security and safety measures. At the same time, seniors are afraid to complain for fear of repercussions, speakers said.

“I've seen so many mice. I’ve had roaches. And I'm sick of it,” said Nancy Hall Smith, 71, a five-year tenant of River Towers, a senior apartment complex on East Jefferson Avenue.

Smith said she saw a dead mouse last week and that mice ate through her kitchen’s new baseboard. The mice have been addressed several times but she worries about the critters coming back every day. She also said her building needs a security gate.

Susan Carroll, vice president of Associated Management Company, which manages River Towers, said in an emailed statement that pest issues are responded to immediately, but it takes time to resolve because it requires residents to report the problem and follow instructions throughout the treatment. Carroll said the company works to resolve drug-related issues and that residents found to have illegal drugs are issued a lease violation and could go through the eviction process.

Noise complaints are addressed by management, Carroll said, and the building is part of the city’s Project Green Light (a public-private community safety program) and has attendants in the lobby around the clock.

“We take all concerns raised by our residents seriously and address them promptly. The community has a resident council who meet regularly to discuss issues and concerns. Our staff will attend these meetings when our presence is requested,” Carroll said. “Residents are encouraged to put any concerns in writing and direct them to management. Very few written complaints have been received. We are happy to look into the issues brought up during this meeting.”

She said River Towers has passed all local and state inspections and holds a certificate of compliance from the city of Detroit.

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Detroit tenants have long raised concerns about rental housing in the city. The city's Buildings, Safety Engineering, and Environmental Department (BSEED) has issued thousands of rental blight violation tickets this year and in 2023. Last year, the city of Detroit announced a program for small-scale property owners of duplexes and other types of rentals to get repair grants and rebates for bringing their properties up to code. Landlords can also get trained to understand the dangers of lead paint and lead paint compliance.

"I look forward to working with Council President Sheffield, Council Member Waters and the tenant councils on addressing concerns in apartment buildings, holding property management companies accountable and increasing the quality of life for Detroit's residents," BSEED Director David Bell said in a statement Tuesday.

Sheffield said she plans to convene a roundtable with city officials and 10 building owners and managers within District 5, which has received the most complaints, and then work with them to address issues.

“If they're good actors, then maybe it's just some help that needs to be provided. And if they're bad actors — they just don't want to get things right — then we're going to go actively, aggressively after them. There have been tickets issued in a lot of these situations and sometimes they pay them and they don't fix things,” Sheffield said.

Housing issues are top of mind for other Detroit City Council members, too.

Waters, in a news release, said she is “proud to have led the fight to establish a Tenant’s Rights Commission” in Detroit. That commission will help improve housing quality and access to affordable housing, Waters said.

“We're not saying all landlords are bad landlords, but the ones that are slumlords, these scam lords, these people who are not maintaining their property and treating our residents with disrespect — it's over for that. We have to take action now, not later,” Joanna Underwood, a policy analyst for Waters’ office, said during the news conference Monday.

Last week, staff from Council Member Angela Whitfield-Calloway’s office gathered for an “emergency protest” over complaints and housing violations across apartment complexes in Palmer Park.

Demonstrators there said the owner — Urban Communities — has received hundreds of violations from Detroit’s BSEED and contended that residents have dealt with the loss of heat and hot water, broken locks and windows and a nonfunctioning elevator.

Juwan Outlaw, community relations manager for Whitfield Calloway’s office, said the owner came on his radar in November after calls about no heat. An “avalanche” of other issues and complaints came in.

“This is one of the first times I have come across a landlord completely ignoring tenants, completely ignoring the violations from BSEED,” Outlaw said.

On its website, Urban Communities says it plans to restore the Palmer Park neighborhood “to its full potential.”

Urban Communities did not respond to emails seeking comment. GMS is the property management company, Outlaw said. In an email, GMS said it does not manage the properties and that they were “improperly assigned” to GMS and are under receivership and to contact the receiver law firm. That firm did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Palmer Park Apartment Buildings Historic District is recognized for its distinct and varied architecture. Several apartment buildings in the neighborhood are in clear disrepair, with boarded up doors and windows and chipped and faded columns.

Contact Nushrat Rahman: nrahman@freepress.com; 313-348-7558. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter: @NushratR.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit seniors on rental housing conditions: Mold, vermin, no heat