Tenants scramble to leave Plainfield building deemed unlivable
PLAINFIELD, N.J. -- Tenants rushed Friday to vacate a building that was condemned this week in Plainfield, New Jersey.
Families had three days to move out.
Plainfield firefighters went door to door Friday, making sure every apartment at 501 W. Seventh St. was empty. Families dragged their belongings from the shell of a building as crews boarded up the windows.
- CBS New York Investigates: Owner of uninhabitable Plainfield building fires management company
The city deemed all 49 apartments there unlivable on Tuesday. Many have crumbling ceilings, decaying walls and broken septic, but as the front doors were chained and locked indefinitely, Carmen Alvarado said goodbye to his family's home.
"I've been living here 17 years," he said.
His five kids painted their hands on the kitchen wall as they grew over the years.
Alvarado wanted them to be comfortable and spent $8,000 making repairs he said the landlord ignored.
"We have a lot of memories in our apartment," said Alvarado's daughter Elida Tista.
They said their family of seven will crash at Alvarado's brother's apartment.
Watch Elijah Westbrook's report
Tenants said they have been complaining about the conditions for a while.
"Everyone has reached out to them plenty of times, but we've gotten no answer," Stephanie Blanco said.
Blanco said when the landlord does answer, he tells them someone will come fix the issues, but no one ever shows up.
"There's a lot of people that really don't have anywhere to go, and a lot of people are stuck. They don't have money, so it's a hard situation," she said. "It's unfair, no one knew this was going to happen, so of course no one had a plan. I feel like the city of Plainfield should have known, should at least have a plan in place for all of us."
Five state inspectors showed up Friday to check the inside of a neighboring building that's also run by the same management company. Residents there said they fear they could be next to move out.
"They told us they couldn't tell us anything, but they said we'll let you know what happens," said Yesenia Leal. "A lot of us lived here for a very long time."
The city said they are waiting to hear the results of that inspection. For now, city officials say there are no plans to vacate that building.
- Read More: Plainfield, N.J. deems 2 buildings uninhabitable, forces residents out with only 24-hour notice
Plainfield Mayor Adrian O. Mapp said earlier this week state inspectors found more than 200 violations last summer, but we dug into inspection records and found the 235 violations actually date back to 2021. The mayor says the violations were never addressed and claimed the city did not learn about the problems until a tenant complained.
In a statement, the building's owners told CBS New York, "We are doing everything possible to return our tenants to their homes as quickly, safely and responsibly as possible."
The owners said they severed ties with the management company they put in charge of maintenance. According to the city, the owners also own three other buildings that were recently deemed unlivable.
As the school year inches closer, some families worry their kids will be at a disadvantage due to the setbacks from the ordeal.
"We don't have no plans, because what are we going to do?" one said in Spanish. "If we don't have a place to live, so we don't have school, because they have to prove their address and everything in order for them to be admitted to school."
They said the city has offered to pay for at least four nights at a local hotel and up to two months of storage. A spokesperson for Gov. Phil Murphy said his office is also trying to help the families find shelter.
When CBS New York started asking why violations were not addressed sooner, a state of New Jersey spokesperson pointed to "a backlog of inspections and re-inspections" for Bureau of Housing Inspection during the pandemic, as well as "numerous access issues."
That spokesperson said inspectors re-inspected the property Friday to see if those 2021 violations were ever fixed.
In a statement, the spokesperson said in part, "[The New Jersey Department of Community Affairs] is working in coordination with the City and Union County to help those who have been displaced. Our grantees are onsite providing case management and gathering information from families, with a first priority of identifying people displaced and their needs. We are also polling our Section 8 landlords in Plainfield and Union County to find vacant housing units that can accommodate displaced people."
Watch Tim McNicholas' report
"I think the local municipality must be made aware, must be notified," Mayor Mapp said. "I think it can be prevented by closer partnership and cooperation between the state and the local municipality."
The city of Plainfield has announced plans for an emergency declaration to allow them to turn part of Plainfield High School into a shelter space for one week while building owners start repairs.
Ricardo Perez, who says his apartment is fine, says he's considering taking his wife and five kids to the high school. As a father, he says, it's been very painful to see his kids get pushed out and search with him for a place to stay.
In an interview with CBS New York on Friday, the mayor said he will hold the landlords accountable.
"We have to recover all the costs that we are incurring as a result of this condemnation, having to provide housing for people and other resources, so we will be pursuing civil penalties," Mapp said.
We're still waiting to hear the results of that state inspection from Friday morning.
CBS New York asked the landlords if and when they'll refund this month's rent, but they haven't answered.
The New Jersey Department of Community Affairs says they are prepared to make $1.5 million in temporary housing assistance available for those who have been displaced. According to the DCA, the money will come from federal funds and state homelessness diversion funds and can be used for temporary assistance with rent, security deposits, moving assistance, case management and other needs.
"We can continue to do placement as far as hotels, rental assistance, rental security or shelter placement," said Basheba Stevens, a DCA specialist with the Bridges Outreach Project.
For more information about the DCA, visit nj.gov/dca.
