Residents of an affordable housing complex in Missoula accuse management company of negligence

After the heat went out in her Missoula apartment building amid mid-January’s below-zero temperatures, Barb Winslow waited about nine hours to hear back from her property management company.  

“I had been sitting in my apartment all day long, wrapped up in clothing and blankets, waiting for somebody to respond and to lead us to safety,” Winslow said during a press conference on Thursday. 

Residents of Eagle Watch Estates, an accessible affordable housing complex off West Broadway, held the press conference to bring attention to maintenance and safety concerns unaddressed by Accessible Space, Inc., the Minnesota-based property management organization.

Like many Eagle Watch Estates residents, Winslow uses a wheelchair. That night, Accessible Space, Inc., contacted Winslow at 7 p.m. to tell her residents would be moved to a hotel, but they had to arrange their own transportation. At 11 p.m., Winslow’s therapist drove her to the non-ADA-compliant hotel, she said.  

“I wouldn’t have had a way there if it hadn’t been for her,” Winslow said. 

Michelle French, daughter of an Eagle Watch resident, said some tenants, including her father, couldn’t leave the building because of mobility, transportation and accommodation issues. ASI didn’t contact all residents to notify them of the move to the hotel or that the water would be shut off, she said.

Meadowlark Home Care provided space heaters and water to their clients in the building and French brought space heaters, water and blankets for her father and some neighbors, she said. 

The handling of the heat-loss emergency is one of the many reasons why Eagle Watch Estates residents organized a tenants association in response to ASI not addressing health, safety and accessibility concerns, organizers said during the press conference. 

An ASI representative did not respond to calls for comment. 

After French contacted Montana Fair Housing, Eagle Watch residents began working with the Missoula Tenants Union at the end of February to form the association, she said. 

After other communications went unanswered, the group sent a demand letter to ASI in mid-April. The letter outlines ongoing issues tenants said they reported but have gone unaddressed.  

There is no clear line of communication from tenant to property manager, and management has ignored complaints, the letter stated. The building has not been properly maintained, and building security is lax, the tenants wrote. 

“In the past year, assaults, break-ins, harassment and theft have occurred on the premises,” the letter said. “As of the writing of this letter, Eagle Watch Estates continues to struggle with strangers entering the building, using facilities, hanging out in the stairwells and making tenants uncomfortable in their homes.” 

Tenants requested management improve communication, including establishing a 24-hour contact; hiring a cleaning crew and a reliable contractor or maintenance technician; remedying building-wide and unit-specific maintenance concerns; guaranteeing the safety of the building and residents by securing entrances; and updating the emergency response plan with residents’ disabilities in mind. 

ASI did not respond to the residents’ letter, but at least six staff members were on site Thursday, said French, the tenant’s daughter.  

“This week there has been more ASI employees on property than I have ever personally seen,” she said. “However, the few repairs staff has accomplished this week are minimal cosmetic repairs. … Maintenance requests inside residents’ apartments are not being completed.” 

ASI operates 141 residential homes and apartment buildings in 31 states for adults with physical disabilities and seniors, according to its website. In Montana, the organization owns five senior-housing locations and seven accessible-housing locations, including two in Missoula. 

Residents of Eagle Watch Estates’ 24 one- and two-bedroom apartments pay 30 percent of their monthly income for rent, which is subsidized by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. All utilities except electricity are included. 

The state of the building worsened after the full-time property caretaker left in June 2022, residents said Thursday. ASI hired a new caretaker for its two Missoula buildings earlier this spring, but he quit after one week because of the large workload, Winslow said. 

Winslow has been waiting nearly a year for ASI to fix a drip in her bathroom ceiling, she said. Last week, someone removed the damp, moldy piece of ceiling, leaving a hole above the toilet, Winslow said. 

A phone line is the only means of submitting a maintenance request, Winslow said, but calls often go unanswered and the voicemail box is full. Winslow said she’ll call the company’s main line and leave a message with her maintenance requests. 

“It’s like we’re just forgotten,” she said. 

French said the ventilation system needs to be cleaned and many residents’ bathroom and oven fans do not work. Some units have plumbing issues, and the building is plagued with loose outlets, she said. Remote-controlled windows in common areas and apartments were replaced with manual hand cranks a few years ago, French said. Her father had to pay $1,800 for a lift on his electric wheelchair so he could open his window, she said. French has contacted ASI about several issues and tried to meet with employees with no luck, she said. 

The building’s elevator is unpredictable and often breaks down, residents said. In 2017, Eagle Watch Estates received a grant from the city of Missoula to replace the elevator, but it’s still a problem in recent years, residents said. 

Ron Schindler, French’s father, said when the elevator breaks, second- and third-floor residents are either stuck in their apartments or prevented from reaching them. Temporary repairs are made, but they don’t last, he said. 

“The issues with the elevator at Eagle Watch is a matter of safety and dignity,” Schindler said. “If the elevator was to break down during an emergency such as a fire in the building, what would a disabled person in a wheelchair do on the second and third floor?” 

Not knowing if the elevator is working is a constant worry for residents, creating unnecessary anxiety, Schindler said. 

Housing providers like ASI are required to make reasonable accommodations for residents with disabilities, but Eagle Watch tenants’ requests have been ignored, Schindler said. 

Jackson Sapp with the Missoula Tenants Union said residents are working with Montana Fair Housing and ASI to address accommodation requests. Sapp hopes ASI listens to and acts on residents’ concerns. 

While not the ideal circumstances, Winslow and fellow resident Chrona Robert said organizing with their neighbors has been a good experience. 

“I’ve felt pretty empowered by this,” Robert said. “It’s good to know we have people willing to help us out.” 

French said she decided to get involved after the heat loss emergency in January caused residents, including her father, physical and mental distress. Montana Fair Housing Executive Director Pam Bean suggested residents meet with Missoula Tenants Union, French said. 

In early meetings, tenants were quiet and scared of retaliation, but they gained the courage to speak for themselves, French said.  

A lack of low-income accessible housing options makes it difficult for residents to leave Eagle Watch Estates, even if they wanted to, French said. 

“My dad has been here 14 years, this is his home, his community,” she said. “Residents want to be here. It’s a great community. They just want property management to take its responsibility seriously.” 

French said she didn’t have any luck when she reached out to HUD after the heat loss emergency, so she contacted Sen. Jon Tester’s office two weeks ago. Staffers have been in touch with her about residents’ concerns, she said. 

“What if this was happening to one of your parents or grandparents?” French asked. “Wouldn’t you do anything in your power to ensure their well-being and right to safe and fair housing?” 

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