Westminster mulls rental inspection changes to help answer tenant complaints
Advocates are urging Westminster to tackle problems with rental housing – including a lack of heat during winter and other tenant complaints – by doubling the number of staff members that watch for and help solve those issues.Westminster’s efforts came under fire earlier this year from a group of tenants supported by United for a New Economy, a Commerce City-based group that advocates for fair housing for low-income and elderly residents.Karl McGirl, an 80-year-old Navy veteran with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, is one of those tenants. McGirl told the City Council in January that since moving into the Atrium apartments at 6980 Stuart St., he’s endured winters without a working heater during subzero temperatures. “My front door lock is broken, pipes have flooded my apartment, and even human waste has come into my home,” McGirl said.He told the council his heater was finally fixed but only after submitting multiple requests by phone, a certified letter and through the city’s complaint process. The current system that requires tenants to document landlord noncompliance and to repeatedly follow up with complaints is not accessible for seniors or those who are disabled, he said. He and other renters asked the city to add three more apartment inspectors to ensure that landlords keep up with repairs.“This would allow for the city to have the capacity to actually visit properties and hold corporate landlords accountable,” McGirl said.The tenants are being supported by United for a New Economy, a group that was formed to help train tenants to fight against exorbitantly high rents and to ensure local landlords keep apartments maintained, said Executive Director Carmen Medrano.“We have seen local renters sometimes don’t know what avenues they can take to ensure that their city and state representatives know what is happening here,” Medrano said. Cities like Westminster need more rental inspectors who are also bilingual, she said.“We’ve also found that many times local managers don’t have the powers to make the changes that the apartments need,” Medrano said. “At the end of the day we want corporate landlords to be held accountable.”Targeted propertiesThe group and the local tenants are singling out three properties: The Atrium, which is owned by New York-based Cross Mountain Capital Management; Westbury at 1585 W. 115th Ave., owned by ColRich of San Diego; and Terrace Gardens, at 7100 Hooker St. That last property is owned and managed by Maiker Housing Partners, Adams County’s housing authority.The Atrium apartments underwent a management change since Jan. 1, said Michael Gilman, founder and managing principal for Cross Mountain Capital Management. “Prior to that when we purchased the property in March of 2022 the property was in an extraordinary state of neglect,” Gilman said via email. “There were several million dollars infused into the property since then and it turned a corner, and we did get thanks from the city from that,” he said.“New management was brought in on the back of some of the recent complaints (mentioned by the tenants) and the general deterioration in the area,” Gilman said.Representatives from the two other property owners – San Diego’s ColRich and Maiker Housing Partners – have yet to respond to a request for comments.Tours and proposals upcomingCity staff members met with members of United For a New Economy on Feb. 6 to discuss the group’s concerns. “There was productive discussion around the mutual interests to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of residents,” the staff report states.City staff is scheduled to visit and inspect the Atrium in walk-throughs on March 7 and March 14, the staff report states.One possible improvement comes after a reorganization within the city’s Economic Development Department and the Community Development Department. New leadership is proposing cross training current staff members to perform rental housing inspections, according to the staff report. That would result in a doubling of staff available for inspections from four to eight. The staff report also suggests that bilingual staff can be used to help with translation for inspector. City management is also considering using in-ear, real-time translation devices, the report states.The City Council may also consider adopting the International Property Maintenance Code – IPMC. The code, which has been implemented by many communities on the Front Range, provides a clear standard for increased enforcement, the report states.The post Westminster mulls rental inspection changes to help answer tenant complaints appeared first on Colorado Community Media.
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