ST. LOUIS — A group of former residents at Heritage House Apartments allege in a lawsuit filed here Monday that owners and management firms knowingly withheld information from tenants about deferred maintenance while accepting their rent money.
“Specifically, a reasonable person would not have entered into the 2023 lease had they known the extent of the failure of the Defendant Heritage House to properly maintain the building,†attorney Thayer Weaver Jr. argued in the lawsuit.
He described the Midtown high-rise as a “house of horrors†starting in 2019. He alleged there was mold, asbestos, “unsafe and unsanitary conditions†and “a history of inadequate heating and plumbing†that ultimately led to a water main burst on Jan. 14 and subsequent evacuation of residents.
The property manager previously said that more than 200 people lived at Heritage House, 2800 Olive Street, under 164 leases. Most of them were elderly.
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The lawsuit was filed on behalf of five plaintiffs — Anita L. Davis, Lettie Moore, Monica Bohlen, Judith Pruitt and Joanne Adams.
Named defendants are nonprofit Heritage House Redevelopment Corporation, and its affiliates, and Robert M. Evans, also listed as an owner. Sansone Group, which took over from Sentry Management in September, are both named as management firms for the property in recent years.
The lawsuit seeks punitive damages and “habitable housing†through the end of the year for plaintiffs — and “all others similarly situated.â€
Representatives of the Sansone Group didn’t respond to a request for comment to the lawsuit.
Bradley Pomp, president of Sentry Management, said Monday that he wasn’t ready to speak about specifics in the lawsuit but that the local ownership board of directors called the shots on what work needed to be done.
“Our role was to work at their direction,†Pomp said by telephone from Orlando, Florida.
JoWanda Bozeman, Heritage House Redevelopment Corp. board president, winced at the “finger-pointing.â€
“You gotta blame somebody, especially if a lawsuit has been filed,†Bozeman said Monday in an interview at the Hilton near ºüÀêÊÓƵ Lambert International Airport. Dozens of displaced residents have been temporarily staying at the hotel.
Bozeman said she hadn’t yet read the lawsuit. Asked if the board deceived tenants, she said: “That’s ludicrous.â€
“We are volunteers. We have stayed here because we care about that miracle on Olive Street,†she said. “We are trying to do the right thing.â€
She has acknowledged that insurance took “a while†to pay for repairs from a previous pipe burst in December 2022. The work was ongoing when the building was evacuated in mid-January.
Bozeman previously said Heritage House was like many other aging buildings that require a lot of maintenance. But tenants said there were also cuts to security and other services.
“A lot of things we couldn’t afford,†Bozeman said Monday. “And a lot of people were behind on their rent. COVID was not good to us.â€
Evans, also listed in ownership records, couldn’t be reached for comment. Heritage House records list a Florissant home for Evans. Last week, no one answered the door. Nor did anyone call back.
Heritage House was built in the 1960s for retired teachers. There are 19 floors. It used to have a restaurant, Yummies, and a gift shop on the ground level.
Displaced residents have been scrambling to find new places to live. According to the lawsuit, the city of ºüÀêÊÓƵ and an anonymous donor paid for initial emergency accommodations. The ºüÀêÊÓƵ City Senior Fund was to pay for many of them to stay the past week at the Hilton.
They now have a new deadline to move out of the Hilton on Tuesday. Dozens of residents are supposed to be bused to three different hotels — the CozySuites in the Central West End, the Westin in Downtown and the Cheshire in Richmond Heights.
“We aren’t paying for it because we can’t,†said Bozeman. “The city told us not to worry about it.â€
Cleveland Sims, a military veteran, who has lived most of his life in ºüÀêÊÓƵ, said he won’t be going to the next hotel. He’s decided to move to Fulton, where his daughter lives.
“I can’t wait to get out of here and get settled,†said Sims, 68.
Updated at 5:30 p.m.