Uncertainty Lingers For Residents Of Abandoned NW OKC Apartment Complex

Living with no water for days, residents at one metro apartment complex say things keep getting worse. The property manager has already abandoned the complex and left it to the government to care for.

Tenants at Terrace Apartments at NW 10th St. and Rockwell Ave. are upset they have been left in the dark.

"They could [have] at least passed out notices and let us know what's going on,” said tenant, Aporsche Martinez.

The water has been off and on.

"Can't bathe. Can't wash my dishes. Can't even wash out a pot to cook in," said tenant, Sandra Green.

The former manager, Independent Management Services (IMS), said in an email that it withdrew last month because of financial constraints. In part, Frank Carswell of IMS said the company was “an interim management agent during a short-term effort to redevelop Terrace Apartments, the redevelopment effort was unsuccessful.”

11/9/2014 Related Story: Management At NW OKC Apartment Complex Abandons Tenants

So now, the 205 units of subsidized housing are in the hands of the government to manage.

"All the bills are in the name of the previous management company, so the company has got to transfer into the new management, and that's something that's ongoing right now," said Scott Hudman, spokesperson for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

“Unfortunately in a situation like this, it's unavoidable at this point, where HUD has to come in and take over. We've got to take it as it is and whatever the circumstances are, and whatever's running, we still have to take it over and kind of move forward and make everything right.”

Hudman says HUD owns Terrace Apartments, but a new property manager is already on site assisting. However, there are still multiple abandoned units with cracked windows, no utilities, filth and bugs.

"We just got word from the office, and they said the water will be cut off for another day and a half. That is crazy. We have kids," Martinez said.

A busted water main is the cause of why the water was turned off, but that's no relief to the tenants having to live without.

"Without water, the plumbing and everything like that, this is going to be total chaos," said Kisha Byrd, whose daughter's friend is a tenant.

Some residents even say they received two-day eviction notices, but Hudman says as long as there are no unmitigated fiscal issues, most of the tenants should be able to stay. Hudman also says the complex is in foreclosure and in the process of being sold.