MONROE, N.C. — Records from the city of Monroe show code enforcement was at an apartment complex three times this year to look into complaints.
Neighbors said they reached out because they felt their calls for repairs weren’t being heard by management.
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“It wasn’t a gush, it was drip-drop at first,” one tenant said.
This tenant, who didn’t want to be identified, walked Channel 9 through the water damage in her bedroom closet. She lives in the Village Square Apartments in Monroe.
“A lot of my clothes got messed up,” she said. “I had to throw away my clothes.”
She said she submitted a maintenance request through the apartment’s portal Friday, but when no one showed up, she called code enforcement.
The city said, “the leak was being repaired by management when they arrived” and that the “drywall would need to be replaced.” The report also said the neighboring units are scheduled for renovation. Both also had water damage.
“She’s like, ‘Mom, I’m putting in maintenance requests, I’m doing work orders.’ She was like, ‘No one is coming out,’” said Sharie Maye, an advocate for her daughter who’s a former tenant of the complex.
The City of Monroe said they opened a case on Sept. 11. A tenant, Chiquita Mungo, told Channel 9 that she was evicted after she withheld rent due to an unfilled maintenance request. She expressed issues with bugs, mold, and water damage. She said maintenance never addressed those issues.
“I moved out of a trailer— to come out here to give my kids a better life but because the stuff going on in the apartment.. I didn’t want to cook.. I couldn’t cook because of the roaches everywhere.” Said Mungo. The city said, “Code Enforcement inspected and found no violations except there were no smoke detectors.” The city said after Mungo moved out, the apartment was cleaned and smoke detectors were replaced. It was cleared for rental.
The City of Monroe said Code Enforcement also inspected another apartment on Oct. 6. A spokesperson said they found, “that holes were left in the walls, a few missing outlet covers and a leak in the ceiling in the bathroom.” The city said repairs were scheduled to begin on Oct. 6, and that management was to notify Code Enforcement upon completion for reinspection before renting.
Maye said her daughter used to live in this apartment before she was evicted in late September. She said her daughter tried to withhold rent in an attempt to get the leak in the bathroom fixed.
“When she was evicted there was a still a whole in the bathroom—led to the whole ceiling falling down now because the problem was never fixed. If you were to go in there now, the bathroom ceiling is down, the bedroom ceiling is down…,” said Maye.
A video from inside shows the bedroom ceiling has since collapsed.
Channel 9’s Gina Esposito visited the front office to get some answers.
Village Square Apartments put out the following statement:
Hello, Resident submit work order requests through their resident portal and they are completed by our maintenance or a contractor is contacted if needed. Our property is on quarterly treatment schedule contract with Palmetto Pest Control, they visit the property on biweekly schedule for treatments. There are no open work orders regarding leaks or mold at this time, we are unsure what you are referring to and would encourage whoever had an issue to contact the office immediately so it can be addressed. There are no city code violations. We have owned Village Square for over 12 years and we have never had an issue or complaint of this manner. This is something we take seriously, as it is important for all our residents to have a safe and comfortable home.
Thank you,
Village Square Apartments
But a tenant showed Channel 9 her work order for the water damage, which said it’s still pending.
After we spoke with the apartment management, the tenant with the most recent water damage said they went to her apartment to see her closet. They also brought a humidifier and said someone would come out and potentially make repairs.
VIDEO: Hickory apartment complex working to restore water after line damage
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