Tenants continue to complain against South Bend Housing Authority living conditions

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Calls from the South Bend Housing Authority remain unanswered after ABC57 received several complaints about pest control, plumbing and other maintenance issues from families.

One resident reached out to ABC57, she wishes to remain anonymous. She lives at Laurel Court, and says her apartment is crawling with unwanted roommates.

“I cry. Often times, because I’ve never lived in these kinds of conditions where it was that bad,” she said.

The mother of five young children says that since she moved in this summer, she has had a problem with mice in her living space.

“I catch anywhere from two to five mice a week. “They smell, it’s disgusting. You can’t have any food, you don’t wanna cook dinner, and they’re in your stove…”

She claims that people who have lived here for years say that they have roaches, bed bugs and mice.

She feels pest control and other maintenance issues aren’t addressed timely or correctly. “They say – we’re going to send somebody out, they say we’re gonna fix it and they’re gonna fix it. And sometimes they do come out.”

The resident says for months she has contacted the Housing Authority, maintenance, the Mayor’s office, and she’s even resorted to the Indianapolis Office of Public Housing to resolve her problems.

Last week, she says a crew came into fix a hole in her wall and make necessary repairs. But, she doesn’t think they were done properly because she is still finding mice.

South Bend Housing Authority does offer pest control services.

“How does it make any sense that you send a pest control people out once every week?” she questioned.

“My kids are terrified.” As a mother of five, her breaking point is near. “It makes me feel like a horrible parent, like I’m not able to provide them the things that they need. You know, just a basic living situation,” she said.

ABC57 has reached out once again to South Bend Housing Authority, but our calls have gone unanswered.

“Some of us we live in these situations, whether we’re elderly, fixed income or low income families. It’s not fair that you allow these people to live in these kinds of conditions,” said the anonymous woman.

As we told you last week, the South Bend Mayor’s office says issues like these are considered a top priority.