Waking up to the smell of mold, and wet carpets. That's every day life for many residents living at the Skyview Apartments. Management is aware of these issues, but so far it continues to be an ongoing issue.
There's definitely a smell you can't ignore, and if you can't smell it you can certainly see the mold.
Tiffany Dismukes says this is only one of the problems residents have been battling for years.
"You can't sleep because, is my ceiling going to fall in? Is my floor going to cave in? Is my toilet going to fall over onto the ground," said Dismukes.
Resident's Ceiling Caves In At Skyview Apartments
These are the questions that keep many residents at Skyview awake at night. Jamika Donaldson knows that feeling all too well, after her ceiling caved in from a water leak Tuesday afternoon.
"I got the feeling of no care, and I don't care what you're saying, and the more and more you keep saying something and the more and more you keep saying something I'm going to evict you," said Donaldson.
NewsChannel 5 reached out to First Cumberland Properties, and didn't receive a response about why these problems have not been fixed. That's why we contacted the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and now it has started an investigation.
On Thursday morning, First Cumberland Properties released the following statement:
"Proper maintenance of our property is our highest priority and we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience delay of this work may have created for our tenants. We are in the process of addressing the problems you reported. Our maintenance crew started work Tuesday evening and will continue until all are repaired. Any mold issues will be remediated by a certified contractor. After your call on Tuesday, we reached out to HUD and are in communication with their local office to provide them with additional information. We are also implementing a unit- by-unit inspection to ensure that no other problems exist."
It's an investigation tenants are happy to hear, after feeling afraid to speak out.
"I got an eviction notice that I can't even be standing here at the moment helping these tenants or talking to any other tenants on the property," said Annette Moore.
But change can only happen when you speak up and do something, and though the tenants are afraid, they say its worth fighting for their health.
"I'm as scared as everyone else not to, and it's my health and safety also," said Moore.
HUD will inspect the property Thursday morning.
Contact the Legal Aid Society if you have questions on what you can do if you are in a similar housing situation.
