HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — For six months, ABC Action News has reported on the terrible living conditions at area apartments in Tampa.
Over the course of the reporting, residents who lived in several different apartments expressed their concern about unsafe living conditions, from Silver Oaks to Timberfalls and most recently Central Court apartments.
Rosa Duran is one of them.
She has lived at Central Court apartments since 2018 and said since she moved in, there has been problem after problem.
What started as a plumbing issue when she moved in then led to mold.
Duran said the property managers hired a mold inspector but would not show her the results.
In early October, Duran hired a private company to conduct a mold inspection. The report confirmed mold in her unit and noted it should be remediated.
Duran also has three separate letters from Florida E.N.T and Allergy, Tampa Family Health Centers, and Pulmonary and Sleep of Tampa Bay stating she has mold allergies and that if her living conditions are not fixed, she could face hospitalization.
When she brought this to the attention of the property manager, she said they did nothing.
"I am severely allergic to it. My kids are severely allergic to it. It is making me sick. I am throwing up. I have been having to go to the hospital," Duran said.
The property manager would not comment on the issues when asked by reporter Vanessa Araiza and was told to leave.
ARCO management is over the property, but calls and emails asking for answers have been ignored.
Charles Johnson owns Charlie Fix Factory, a company based in Tampa.
He was at the property Wednesday and said he was hired about two months ago to fix the problems at both Central Court and Silver Oaks apartments, both of which are under ARCO management.
"I have seen worse conditions. A lot of it is neglect, and a lot of it is, you know, mold issues or soft drywall. So, I am here to take it down and make it better," Johnson said.
Johnson understands there are trust issues between residents and the property owners, but he said, "Just give it a try. Give it a chance. If the management company is trying to do something instead of saying something, just give it a try."
In an interview with Tampa Mayor Jane Castor in September, she acknowledged the issues and said the city has a responsibility to take action as it's in their own backyard.
"I would say call us. Call the city and we can't fix what we don't know about and so we are doing the best we can," Mayor Castor said.
Duran did just that two days after she watched Mayor Castor's interview and submitted a letter to the city that noted the issues in her unit and was reaching out.
Duran's letter was forwarded to the Tampa Housing Authority and closed six hours later.
We asked for a follow-up interview with Mayor Castor and were told she was not available.
However, a representative with the city said the Neighborhood Enhancement Team visited Central Court apartments on October 12-13 and October 18-19, where they inspected ten units at the request of residents, including Durans.
They found several issues, including mold, water leaks in walls, broken ac units and more.
Ten investigations are now open at the complex and Wednesday morning, members of the city code enforcement were on the property.
Duran said it's a start that should have begun years ago.
"We are hoping that something will happen, but it is sad that we had to come this far in this many years to get something done or to try to get help to get done," Duran said.
Representatives with the city of Tampa said code enforcement could not conduct an interview or open an investigation until a formal complaint has been made.
For residents who would like to file a complaint with the city’s code enforcement team, the best way to do that is to contact code enforcement via the Customer Service Center - (813) 274-5545 or submit a complaint through the portal.
