FERGUSON — Two residents of Northwinds Apartments in Ferguson are asking a judge to grant class-action status to a lawsuit that alleges affiliates of T.E.H. Realty have refused to make repairs to the 438-unit complex.
“The clients aren’t asking for a bunch of money in this lawsuit,â€Â said Lee Camp, one of the attorneys handling the case at public interest firm ArchCity Defenders. “They are essentially asking for a court order to force their landlord to deliver habitable housing that complies with the law in the state of Missouri.â€
In documents sent to ºüÀêÊÓƵ County Circuit Court on Wednesday, Tahata Brooks and Destani Matthews allege that they have been “plagued by unsafe and unsanitary living conditions that are the result of Defendants’ failure to maintain and repair the homes in the complex, as well as the apartment grounds,†including ceiling collapse, flooding and mold.Â
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T.E.H. Realty and its affiliates have come under fire in recent years regarding living conditions at several of its properties in the ºüÀêÊÓƵ region, which are mainly occupied by low-income tenants. On Wednesday, a reporter’s phone call to Northwinds went to an overloaded voicemail system. An investor in the company wasn’t aware of the filing yet. Â
The lawsuit seeks to include hundreds of other Northwinds residents because they have allegedly “suffered a similar injury, being forced to live in unconscionable conditions that create a risk to their life, health, and safety.â€Â