GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The Pinecroft Place Apartments condemned Monday afternoon after flooding never should have had tenants inside, according to City of Greensboro officials.
Don Sheffield, Chief Building inspector with the City of Greensboro, says 32 units were originally condemned in 2003 for flooding concerns. At that time, they were called Ashley Creek Apartments.
Sheffield says no one should have been living in them since 2003. In 2013, city records show the complex up for review with a proposal to turn the condemned units into storage or parking. The City's Water Resources Department found that proposal was "in the best interest of public safety and welfare," after consulting with FEMA to confirm it's in a high-risk flood area and an engineering company to see if there was anything that could be done to alleviate flood levels.
It's not clear what happened after that point, but by 2018, those 32 condemned units had inhabitants inside.
We asked property owner Jim Anthony with Colliers International over the phone whether he knew the apartments had been condemned.
"I have been told that but I've also asked folks to show me where it is in writing that the units were condemned and no one has been able to show me that so it's a bit of a contradiction," Anthony explains.
We then asked when the units started to get rented out.
"That occurred a few years ago," he says. "That property has not had a single problem with flooding since 2003. There's not been any water in any of the units."
Through archived footage, WFMY News 2 was able to find video of the September 2003 evacuation that later led to condemned units; video of a flood at the complex in 2004 and a video of a flood at the complex in 2008.
Anthony says his company bought he property in 2013 and made renovations.
"Unfortunately we did our research after the fact and I think it’s really unfortunate that they have people in this," explains Denise Minder who had two daughters living at the complex.
Anthony says they've offered residents impacted a couple of options.
"We let everyone who wanted to get out of their lease, we let them off their leases," he says, noting they also plan to give back security deposits. "We’re refunding the rent for the unused time and September. We’re refunding their application fees and we’re assisting with relocation expenses. We’re going above and beyond what is required by the lease or by law because we want to treat our folks right."
He also says residents who wanted to stay at the complex would be moved to an open unit.
Minder says at this point her daughters have been offered a portion of money back, but it's still not good enough.
"They took rent from my daughters for a whole year, close to $10,000, and you want to offer them $1,000 to move out of a situation that they put them in? Had they told them in the beginning about the flooding, they would have had other options."
WFMY News 2 was also given a statement on behalf of the Pinecroft Place Apartments management:
Hurricane Florence has impacted the lives of so many people across the Carolinas, and we are saddened that many residents of our Pinecroft Place Apartment community have been displaced by her flooding. As a result of the flooding, the City of Greensboro has condemned 32 of our apartments effective as of September 17, 2018. There is no truth to any rumors that units were condemned prior to this date, but due to the recent condemnation caused by the flood, residents of those 32 units are required to evacuate immediately and the City will shut off power to those units effective today (9/18). Our Owners and Staff are working closely with our displaced residents to ensure a smooth transition to a new place. We immediately began assisting tenants with evacuations on the night of the flooding, and we have continued to offer support. We are working to put displaced tenants into available units within our community. For those displaced tenants whom we cannot accommodate, we will provide a Lease Surrender package that releases them from future lease obligations and provides a return of all deposits and pre-paid rents. The Lease Surrender package will also offer relocation compensation to help defray their moving and other costs. We hope this financial assistance will provide the funds needed to secure a new residence for their families. We will continue to do our best to support those who have been impacted by the catastrophic damage of Hurricane Florence.
Anthony tells us they have to leave the apartments condemned. They can't do anything to repair them at this point. He says they hope to perhaps build some new units in a higher area so they can make up for the loss of the 32 flooded ones.