COLUMBIA, Tenn. (WTVF) — Homeowners in Columbia's Taylor Landing neighborhood say they are still fighting for answers and repairs after a NewsChannel 5 investigation revealed missing HVAC inspections and state re-inspections that failed 70% of homes in the community.
The investigation began after a house fire just before Christmas, which the Columbia Fire Department confirmed started in the attic with the home's HVAC unit. After that blaze, neighbors contacted NewsChannel 5 with reports of melted and damaged HVAC disconnect boxes in dozens of homes.
For residents Georgia McCaleb, Pat Sawatzki, and Christy Daus, the promise of homeownership has come with serious concerns.
"Nobody wants to lose their home, but nobody obviously wants to lose their life to a house fire," Daus said.
All three of their homes failed electrical safety re-inspections conducted by the state Fire Marshal's Office.
McCaleb, who has lived in the neighborhood for four years, described the toll the situation has taken on her.
"As you get older, you don't really know what to do or where to turn, and when you're alone, it's like you have no one to help you, and it's just very upsetting to you," McCaleb said.
The neighbors have turned to Jeff Hulan, owner of Nippy's Heating and Cooling, for help. Hulan previously lived in Taylor Landing and said he witnessed the problem firsthand.
"Ever since I moved in, I've had different service calls on homes and would even go in the attic and try to pull this out and it already started melting," Hulan said.
Disconnect boxes are part of an HVAC system that give technicians a quick and safe way to shut off power to the unit during repairs.
Our reporting found the state has identified two primary reasons homes in Taylor Landing are failing electrical inspections — both of which Hulan says could lead to fires. First, labels were not marked, making it difficult to ensure the correct wire size was installed. Second, there was overfusing of the condenser.
"That just protects the home and the unit from over amping, which could also lead to a fire," Hulan said.
Hulan believes these problems should've identified before.
"They're failing for things that should have been caught," Hulan said.
Since our investigation in January, neighbors shared text messages from Meritage Homes — the builder — stating: "We will not be reimbursing for 3rd party HVAC inspections and repairs." Despite doing that in the past.
While Meritage is not charging homeowners for repairs, the texts show the company is only allowing Romanoff Electric to perform them. Romanoff Electric is the same contractor listed on the permits alongside Reliance Heating & Air Conditioning Co. during the original construction.
Daus described the burden the situation has placed on homeowners.
"You move in, and then you find out the extra stress of having to take time off work, to have the state inspector come by, to be there for that person, and then when it doesn't pass, you need to take time off to hire the HVAC tech to come and service your house, in addition to whatever fill in the blanks cost that's going to cost you to fix an issue that shouldn't be there in the first place," Daus said.
Daus also pointed to rapid growth as a factor in how these problems went undetected.
"I think there's so much growth that a lot of things, a lot of structures are getting missed," Daus said.
Neighbors are calling on Meritage to address these issues before moving forward with new developments, including Bear Springs, also in Columbia.
"We asked the city also to put a hold on Meritage from doing another subdivision, because we knew that this was a problem and they did not want to do that," Sawatzki said.
Residents say they have attended meetings and sent emails asking city leaders to pause the project.
"I think he said the city was doing everything it was supposed to do, and they couldn't punish Meritage. We didn't want him to punish Meritage. We just wanted our homes to be safe," Moore said.
Following our reporting, the city mailed a letter on February 10 to neighbors in the community. The notice addresses the electrical issues, states the city cares deeply about residents' concerns, and advises anyone concerned to request an electrical safety inspection from the State Fire Marshal's Office. Mayor Chaz Molder told me the letter was sent after multiple meetings with the state and the developer, and was intended to help put residents' minds at ease.
Attorney Dustin Kittle is now representing the neighbors in their search for accountability.
"Our hope is to be able to essentially mediate this issue from the standpoint of representing the interests of the residents here, as far as communicating to these government leaders and forcing them to do their job, and if they don't, then we will hold them accountable through litigation," Kittle said.
Kittle also raised concerns that the problem may extend beyond Taylor Landing.
"We're not just limiting the damage to this community. We're having the potential to have damage in other communities," Kittle said.
Since the investigation began, Joshua Moore, president of the homeowners advocacy group, says more and more neighbors have requested inspections. Moore expressed cautious optimism about the path forward.
"These issues are dangerous, but they also can be repaired, and I think once they're repaired, your home will be safe," Moore said.
NewsChannel 5 has reached out to Meritage Homes for comment at least 4 times, including most recently on February 26, and has not received a response.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at Patsy.Montesinos@NewsChannel5.com
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