FESTUS — When Michael and Molly Herrell moved into Oak Knoll Apartments here in late 2019, there were good vibes. They had a two-bedroom unit on the ground level for $460 a month, close to family.
“We thought this was great because of our ages,” Michael, 67, said Tuesday from their living room.
But the taxpayer-supported complex hasn’t worked well for them.
Within the first year, they noticed water getting into their bedroom, which borders a communal laundry room. Michael said maintenance recommended setting up a fan, which they did.
About one year later, Michael said, more water came in. At the time, Molly was in the hospital, being treated for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other illnesses that make it hard to breathe. When she came home, something in the bedroom seemed to make her feel worse.
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“I don’t know what it was,” she said Tuesday, oxygen machine humming. “I couldn’t breathe.”
They said a relative paid to have the indoor air tested. According to an Oct. 15 copy of the report, four different types of mold were identified in their bedroom. They’ve been keeping the bedroom door closed and sleeping in their living room recliners ever since.
Michael said he shared a copy of the mold report with the front office.
On site Tuesday, regional manager Chris White told the Post-Dispatch that she wasn’t previously aware of the report. She questioned the objectivity of the test results if the company also does cleanup.
She declined to visit the apartment in question with a reporter but said she would send maintenance there. She said most maintenance issues at the complex don’t take more than 48 hours to remedy, when parts are available.
“We try to do the best we can with what we have to work with,” she said.
A few random interviews with tenants signaled that’s not the case.
“My oven has been out since October,” said Karen Meador, 51, who is disabled. “Every time I tell (the office manager), she acts like it’s the first she’s heard of it.”
Wires hung from her ceiling where a smoke alarm was supposed to be. She said the toilet tank top has been missing since she moved in four years ago. Standing next to the broken oven, she easily pulled the faucet handle off the kitchen sink.
“They don’t do much around here,” said Meador.
In another building, Sylvia Siebert, 59, had a similar story.
“I went all summer without air — with no A/C. They finally fixed it in October,” she said.
Oak Knoll Apartments has 48 units supported by $3.3 million in state and federal low-income housing tax credits awarded and overseen by the Missouri Housing Development Commission.
Over the past decade, Oak Knoll triggered 93 records of noncompliance with the commission. According to a database, five of the records described unresolved issues from inspections. The remainder were administrative, including failure to submit monthly occupancy reports, annual budgets and quarterly utility allowance information.
Nye Management is the general partner of the complex; Doe Run Partnership LLC is the limited partner, according to the commission.
Oak Knoll is one of five complexes mainly in Jefferson County that have been tied up in a lawsuit stemming from the attempted sale of the properties. The Post-Dispatch reported in late February that the lawsuit petition remains sealed from public view.
Later asked about the lawsuit, the Missouri Housing Development Commission said it doesn’t comment on pending litigation.
The commission was expected to do a round of inspections at Oak Knoll on Wednesday. Tenants have also been notified of a 7% rent increase.
White, the regional manager, said it’s the first rent increase in five years. She said the price of everything has gone up.
Michael and Molly said they welcomed inspectors.
“If there is mold, I want the carpet removed, or if there is anything dangerous in the walls, I’d like to get that fixed,” Molly said.
A woman across the hall from them said she was so scared of mold in her central heating and cooling system that she stopped using it. For peace of mind, she relies on a window unit and space heaters.