Residents of Kansas City housing complex demand better living conditions

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - Residents at the Blue Valley Court Townhomes have joined together to demand better living conditions.

“It’s just not safe,” said Mercedes Davis, who lives at the complex.

More than 60 residents of the complex have signed a petition, asking the property managers to fix some serious problems like mold, windows with no glass, and general neglect.

“The more people we got involved, the more people we found,” said Davis. “I wasn’t the only one going through this situation. It was multiple residents going through the exact same stuff.”

Davis told KCTV5 News she has lived at the complex for six years. She said the mold there sent her to the hospital.

“I had multiple asthma attacks,” Davis said. “I was in and out of the hospital for it. I complained about the mold. I want to say it’s been at least a year or two, over a year at least, before anyone addressed it.”

Jesi Stanley is a lawyer who works in housing law. She is working with the tenants to help improve their living conditions.

“What I have been overwhelmed with in this case is the widespread deplorable conditions, how many people are getting sick or injured, and how blatantly their requests for maintenance have been ignored,” Stanley said.

Davis said the complex goes through new property managers about every six months.

“I feel like they basically failed us,” Davis said. “Mine is not even in livable conditions. Realistically, I should not be living there.”

Now, the residents hope someone can step in and rectify the situation.

“I’m hoping this puts pressure on those other levels of accountability that should be there,” Stanley said. “HUD should be hands on, involved. They should be holding Millenia extremely accountable for this type of action, and they should be punishing them for doing such a poor job.”

Millenia is the group that owns the Blue Valley Court townhomes complex. KCTV5 reached out to Millenia for comment on the petition, but has yet to hear back.

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