Another nine Church Street South families were sent to hotels Tuesday after city Building Official Jim Turcio closed down their apartments.
Turcio said Tuesday night that he ordered the apartments vacated because of “unsafe egress” — outside stairwells were in danger of collapsing.
Northland Investment Corp. — the Massachusetts-based owner of the 301-unit subsidized apartment complex across form Union Station — had already placed more than 20 families in hotels after inspectors deemed their mold and water-filled apartments unfit for human habitation. The city has issued orders to fix or replace 17 out of 19 of the complex’s roofs as well as dozens of other orders to make emergency repairs.
The whole complex is crumbling. City and federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) officials have been in talks with Northland about what to do with all the families who live there. Northland and HUD met Tuesday to discuss the matter.
According to people familiar with negotiations, HUD is open to relocating all 289 families permanently from Church Street South. But details remain to be worked out — including how long it will take; what forms of new federal rental vouchers tenants would get; whether 289 apartments will be available elsewhere.
HUD spokeswoman Rhonda Siciliano said the parties will issue a joint statement Wednesday about the results of the meeting.
The housing authority has agreed to help 50 families find new homes. But it now appears that hundreds will need new homes. U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro this week wrote to HUD asking it to approve at least 150 total vouchers for families to move; so far HUD has approved 50.
The most likely long-range plan is to tear down Church Street South rather than return the families there; and then build a new mixed-income, mixed-use development there.
Previous coverage of Church Street South:
• Northland Asks Housing Authority For Help
• Welcome Home
• Shoddy Repairs Raise Alarm — & Northland Offer
• Northland Gets Default Order — & A New Offer
• HUD, Pike Step In
• Northland Ordered To Fix Another 17 Roofs
• Church Street South Evacuees Crammed In Hotel
• Church Street South Endgame: Raze, Rebuild
• Harp Blasts Northland, HUD
• Flooding Plagues Once-Condemned Apartment
• Church Street South Hit With 30 New Orders
• Complaints Mount Against Church Street South
• City Cracks Down On Church Street South, Again
• Complex Flunks Fed Inspection, Rakes In Fed $$
• Welcome Home — To Frozen Pipes
• City Spotted Deadly Dangers; Feds Gave OK
• No One Called 911 | “Hero” Didn’t Hesitate
• “New” Church Street South Goes Nowhere Fast
• Church Street South Tenants Organize
Hard To Believe Notes: