Like many Portlanders, Todd Mellors is preparing for
Christmas guests, but he’s thinking less about the eggnog and more
about the puddle of water that forms in his living room whenever it
rains, and the black tarp covering his front window.
“It’s like, ‘Hi, welcome to my shanty,'” he says.
He’s been dealing with this major leak since a few days after he
moved into his new apartment in Pacific Court on October 1.
Once he noticed the leak, he called and left numerous messages, sent
letters, and filed web-based maintenance requests with the building’s
manager, Capital Property Management, but says he didn’t receive a
response until a month and a half later, in mid-November. Maintenance
staff eventually put up the black tarp, but the window still leaks and
now he’s lost his main source of natural light.
“We are at the mercy of a vendor’s schedule,” said Maureen MacNabb,
Capital’s owner. “We also have to go to the owner [of the building] for
approval for that repair.”
According to Joe St. Onge, Capital’s maintenance manager, the first
time he recalled seeing a request was on November 16, and he responded
to the request the following day, but couldn’t find the source of the
leak.
In his opinion, Capital has “some of the better buildings in
Portland.”
Tenants in other buildings disagree: Several complain about heating
issues [“Cold Comfort,” News, Dec 6]. One tenant, who declined to have
his name published, says “Seeing my breath in my apartment is nothing
new when it’s below freezing outside.”
Jamie, a tenant who asked that her last name not be included because
she’s afraid of a no-cause eviction, is also frustrated by Capital. She
said that she called several times over two and a half weeks to report
a major hot water leak in her bathtub. When a maintenance person did
show up, they fixed the leak, but broke the faucet handle—it now
sprays hot water whenever the shower’s on. According to Jamie, her
electric bill skyrocketed by $200 because of the leak.
“I can’t say in the past we’ve had numerous complaints,” says
MacNabb, when asked about the tenants’ complaints. “Something seems to
be stopping our efficiency, and that needs to be looked at, no
question.” She also met with Mellors, and says she feels “we could have
done a better job in effecting repairs a little more expeditiously.”
She says she offered him a $200 rent credit, and the right to break his
lease if he wants to move.
For Mellors, this incident illustrates the need for a change in
landlord-tenant law. “If people stood up and said ‘no!’ we would have
better renters’ rights!”