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Hardships for elderly at Golden Park Apts.

Forced to move for renovations

Rich Klein - Reporter/Photographer
Posted 10/17/17

LIBERTY - Some elderly residents of Liberty's Golden Park Apartments say they have had to endure unreasonable hardships while moving out of their apartments while management installs firewalls in …

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Hardships for elderly at Golden Park Apts.

Forced to move for renovations

Posted

LIBERTY - Some elderly residents of Liberty's Golden Park Apartments say they have had to endure unreasonable hardships while moving out of their apartments while management installs firewalls in their units.

Senior citizen resident Henrietta Phelps said the management first moved her to a different apartment in February of this year and now she has to move again. But this time, she has to move entirely out of the complex. “It's very disturbing, it's very upsetting,” Phelps, who requires a walker, said. “You have to take enough clothing, enough medicine, food and whatever. I will go to a friend's and sleep on her couch. I can't move again. My body is done.”

Seymour Cohen explained that when the management was doing initial renovations that they did not install the mandatory firewalls -- and it's unclear if that was the fault of the management company or the initial contractor that has since been fired.

“For some of the older people to have to move, it's a trauma,” Cohen added.

Golden Park Apartments, which is next door to ShopRite on Route 52, is managed by HallKeen Management. On its website, the company describes the complex as 126 apartments for people 62 or older or disabled.

In a statement, HallKeen Management - which manages properties throughout the East Coast - said that it, “is working closely with the 80 residents who are affected by this project and accommodating their concerns to the best of our abilities. While some residents have experienced added inconvenience due to unanticipated issues, HallKeen has devised a timeline for this project that displaces residents for as short a time period as possible and completes the project in the most efficient manner. The entire project is expected to be completed by the second week in December. The property management team is available for resident concerns during office hours and appreciates the understanding of their residents during this stressful time.”

The Village of Liberty has jurisdiction over Golden Park Apartments. Village attorney Gary Silver said that the Village is investigating verbal complaints made by some residents but that no written complaints were filed about the problems regarding the renovations and forced moves.

Silver confirmed that at a Village Board meeting on September 25, 2017, several residents at Golden Park attended the meeting. “They stated that they had been asked by management at Golden Park to move out of their apartments for approximately one week so that management could install some fireproof retardant materials on the walls between apartments,'' Silver said.

Silver added that, according to the residents, the Village's Building Inspector/Code Enforcement Officer previously provided a permit or other approval for the apartments, allowing them to be occupied, that the residents contend should not have been given if the fireproofing had not been done.

“The Village Board advised that it had no authority to get in between the management and the residents in connection with the residents being required to vacate while the fireproofing was being performed, but that if they had a complaint about the Villages Building Inspector/Code Enforcement Officer they should put the complaint into writing and the Village would investigate,” Silver added.

“It is my understanding that no such written complaint was filed, but the Village is investigating the verbal complaints made and has not yet reached any conclusions from that investigation.”

Pam Winters, the Code Enforcement Officer for the Village, said last week in a brief interview that the situation at Golden Park is “a problem that is being addressed” but declined further comment.

According to Village code, “The Code Enforcement Officer shall issue, in writing, all appropriate notices or orders to remove illegal or unsafe conditions, to require the necessary safegards during construction and to ensure compliance during the entire course of construction with the requirements of the Uniform Code and such laws...”

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