DETROIT – An apartment building on Detroit’s west side has been condemned by the city which has forced some families out of their homes.
The Fredrick Douglass Apartments currently has 23 occupied units, but has failed to properly maintain the property for quite some time, according to residents.
Residents complained of no running water, water damage from broken pipes, no gas or electricity and the building was illegally hooked up to use other utilities.
The owner of the building was fined $1,000 a month ago and was fined another $9,000 yesterday.
The building, however, was deemed unfit and was condemned which forced 15 people out of their homes.
A mother with her nine children said they’re feeling hopeless after being evicted,
"We were scared. We didn’t know what we were going to do. All we thought was we were back in the cold.
Everybody's spirit went down. It's after Christmas and we didn't have a Christmas to begin with, and now we were going be back on the street," said Tonya Hardeman, who lived in the building.
The city along with The Rescue Mission are working together to find Hardeman’s family a home for next month, and will continue to work with them to ensure they have a home after that.