ST. LOUIS — Dozens of residents at Heritage House Apartments, a Midtown high-rise recently evacuated by burst water pipes and heat failures, are faced with a tight deadline to find places to live.
Many of them are elderly and already struggling with the disruption.
“Heritage House will not be habitable again by residents for some time, likely up to a year or more from now,†says a Tuesday letter from Heritage House Corp. to residents. “We are working with the City of ºüÀêÊÓƵ and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to identify any assistance that may be available to Heritage House residents.
“In the meantime, please contact your renter’s insurance carrier to see what support they may be able to provide to you.â€
During the frigid spell that hit Jan. 14, the ºüÀêÊÓƵ Fire Department reported that about 180 people were being relocated from Heritage House, 2800 Olive Street, because of multiple broken water pipes and no heat. Many of them were put up in a downtown hotel and later transferred to the Hilton by ºüÀêÊÓƵ Lambert International Airport. That arrangement is supposed to end soon.
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“Additionally,†the letter states, “the Board has arranged for the hotel rooms to remain available at no cost to you until Tuesday, January 30, 2024, to give you time to make other arrangements. If you elect to remain beyond this date, please contact the hotel to arrange payments at your own expense going forward. Checkout time ... is 11 a.m.â€
Later Thursday, at a packed meeting at the airport Hilton, residents were told the deadline was extended until Feb. 6 to stay in the hotel.
Some applauded the news. Some yelled, “Praise, God!â€
Kennard Williams, organizing manager at Action ºüÀêÊÓƵ, is concerned for the well-being of the residents. He said in an interview that representatives of the activist organization went door-to-door at the hotel Wednesday and found people without their needs being met.
“There is a large number of people who have medical issues,†Williams said. “They aren’t getting access to medication. They have mobility issues. They are super vulnerable.â€
He said the majority of those in the hotel don’t have permanent housing options, as well with others staying with family and friends.
“It’s impossible for anybody to find housing in ºüÀêÊÓƵ in a week, let alone a large group of seniors that have a high amount of needs,†said Williams. “This is about to get really bad.â€
The letter sent to residents says the Sansone Group, which manages Heritage House, is granting access to the 241-unit building so residents can retrieve items and move.
Sam Dunn, 67, has lived in the Heritage apartments for six years. He was there Thursday afternoon to get his possessions from his 17th floor apartment.
“It’s terrible because nobody knows where they’re going to go,†Dunn said.
Property manager Marquetta Hamell said Thursday afternoon that more than 200 people lived at Heritage House under 164 leases. She said the pipes burst late in the evening on Jan. 14.
“Hurricane Katrina,†is how she described it. “We are talking about water coming in on 19 floors. Freezing water, right. No boilers. No heat. So we had to preserve life.â€
She said warming buses were brought in. She said one woman, with a lingering foot injury, resisted and was taken to the hospital.
She said 120 residents are at the Hilton; 85% of them elderly. The others are scattered around staying with family and friends.
Randy Jackson, 65, who lived on the 18th floor, was trying to take the situation in stride.
“It’s a lot of trouble for an older person, starting over,†said Jackson, a housekeeper, who paid $758 a month for a one-bedroom apartment on the 18th floor. “I have to take it one day at a time.â€
Others also weren’t sure where they are going to end up living.
“I am kind of at a standstill until my mind gets together,†said Lucretia Williams, a taxi driver in her 80s. “I am going to try to do the best I can. I am going to have a roof over my head.â€
Heritage House apparently had been struggling. The manager said it was still being refurbished from a December 2022 pipe burst. Before the Jan. 14 incident that caused the evacuation, residents said the heat and hot water sometimes went out.
For now, Lillie Crockett, 86, a retired state employee, had more pressing needs and questions about her next place to live.
“How are you going to get your stuff?†said Crockett, steadied by a cane. “Do you have enough money and a truck to move stuff, for a security deposit?â€
“I’ll be good when this is over,†she said.
Cleveland Sims, 68, said he may move to Fulton to be closer to his daughter. He said there’s an apartment there.
“That’s Plan A,†said Sims.
If there’s a better opportunity, he said he’d take it. Other than a stint in the Army, he’s lived in ºüÀêÊÓƵ.
“This is my home,†he said. “Right here.â€
Updated at 6:30 p.m.