GREENSBORO, N.C. -- WFMY News 2 is getting more information about people living in apartment units in Greensboro that the city says should have been condemned since 2003.
This was all uncovered overnight Sunday into Monday when several units at Pinecroft Place Apartments flooded in heavy rain from Hurricane Florence.
Don Sheffield, the City of Greensboro's Chief Building Inspector, put condemnation notices on 32 units Monday. It turns out, these are the same 32 units that flooded 2003 and should never have been inhabited from that point on. In 2003, they were called Ashley Creek Apartments.
In 2013, the property was bought by Colliers International, according to property owner Jim Anthony. He says they made renovations and heard rumors some units might have been condemned, but never got any proof of it.
"I have been told that but I've also asked folks to show me where it is in writing that the units were condemned and no one has been able to show me that so it's a bit of a contradiction," Anthony explained in a phone interview Tuesday.
He said they started to rent the units out a few years ago, after making renovations to the property.
City records show in 2015 several stop work orders issued on the property, noting bottom units were in a flood plain and they were condemned in 2003. The file goes on to say the units can't be anything but storage with flood vents. On top of that, the city showed WFMY News 2 flood plain permits granted to property management in 2015 that specify which units could be renovated for lease. The documents did not include any first floor units in the flood plain.
Anthony told us Tuesday he didn't think there was any water damage to the property since 2003. Through archived footage, WFMY News 2 was able to find video of the September 2003 evacuation that later led to condemned units; video of a flood at the complex in 2004 and a video of a flood at the complex in 2008.
When called again for comment Thursday, Anthony said he was advised by his attorney to no longer talk to media and couldn't give another comment. WFMY News 2 also reached out to Taft Management company in Greenville, N.C. who gave a statement Tuesday that said in part:
As a result of the flooding, the City of Greensboro has condemned 32 of our apartments effective as of September 17, 2018. There is no truth to any rumors that units were condemned prior to this date, but due to the recent condemnation caused by the flood, residents of those 32 units are required to evacuate immediately and the City will shut off power to those units effective today (9/18).
WFMY News 2 has not heard back yet from Taft Management.
As for what's next for the folks living in those apartments, management told us earlier this week they hope to accomodate the residents.
"We let everyone who wanted to get out of their lease, we let them off their leases," Anthony told us, noting they also plan to give back security deposits. "We're refunding the rent for the unused time and September. We're refunding their application fees and we're assisting with relocation expenses. We're going above and beyond what is required by the lease or by law because we want to treat our folks right."
WFMY News 2 talked to several residents about this. One told us he was relocated to a new apartment on the property. Another told us he was given his security deposit back and offered money to move out. WFMY News 2 talked with Denise Minder Tuesday night when she was helping her daughters move out.
"They took rent from my daughters for a whole year, close to $10,000, and you want to offer them $1,000 to move out of a situation that they put them in? Had they told them in the beginning about the flooding, they would have had other options."