Durbin, Duckworth, Kelly Ask HUD to Examine Issues at Concordia Place Apartment Complex in Chicago
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Robin Kelly (D-IL-02) today urged the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Region Five Office to swiftly examine reported issues raised by residents of the Concordia Place Apartment complex on the south side of Chicago. In a letter to James A. Cunningham, the HUD Deputy Regional Administrator, Durbin, Duckworth, and Kelly highlighted news reports on the unsafe and unsanitary living conditions at the Concordia Place Apartment complex. Residents at the property have filed complaints of mold, rodent infestation, water that smells like sewage, property managers removing garbage receptacles, an inability to use the on-site laundry facility, and having their vehicles wrongfully towed.
“While this is a privately owned property, the owners of the property are under contract with HUD and are responsible for ensuring the property meets all of HUD’s safety, health, and security standards,” the members wrote. “For too long, residents living in certain project-based Section 8 properties have been forced to endure substandard living conditions, with little say in how their homes and communities are being managed or maintained. This has the potential to breed apathy and put the health and wellbeing of residents at risk.”
“No one should be subjected to living in the conditions reported by the residents of the Concordia Place Apartment complex… We urge HUD to conduct a comprehensive and thorough investigation into these resident complaints and ensure that meaningful action is taken to ensure safe, quality, and sanitary housing not only at Concordia Place, but at all HUD contracted properties,” the members concluded.
Full text of today’s letter is available here and below:
March 16, 2021
Dear Deputy Regional Administrator Cunningham:
We write to you today in response to the troubling reports that have emerged surrounding the Concordia Place Apartment complex on the south side of Chicago. We ask that you swiftly and deliberately examine the reported issues raised by residents of this complex.
Last week, a local Chicago news station reported on the unsafe and unsanitary living conditions at the Concordia Place Apartment complex. Residents at this particular property have filed complaints of mold, rodent infestation, water that smells like sewage, property managers removing garbage receptacles, an inability to use the on-site laundry facility, and having their vehicles wrongfully towed. While this is a privately owned property, the owners of the property are under contract with HUD and are responsible for ensuring the property meets all of HUD’s safety, health, and security standards.
Every American has the right to safe, quality, and affordable housing. However, it is all too common for the most vulnerable populations, especially residents living in federally subsidized or public housing, to live in substandard living conditions. For too long, residents living in certain project-based Section 8 properties have been forced to endure substandard living conditions, with little say in how their homes and communities are being managed or maintained. This has the potential to breed apathy and put the health and wellbeing of residents at risk.
No one should be subjected to living in the conditions reported by the residents of the Concordia Place Apartment complex. We are encouraged to see that over the weekend you met with the residents to hear their complaints. As you acknowledged, the residents of Concordia Place need to be treated with dignity and respect and the reported issues must be resolved. We urge HUD to conduct a comprehensive and thorough investigation into these resident complaints and ensure that meaningful action is taken to ensure safe, quality, and sanitary housing not only at Concordia Place, but at all HUD contracted properties.
We thank you for your attention to this important matter and look forward to working with you to build safer, healthier, and more pleasant communities that residents can take pride in calling home.
Sincerely,
-30-
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