Residents at a senior-living apartment complex in East Dallas say a publicly funded renovation in October to upgrade their units with better appliances, fresh paint and new floors left their homes a mess with lost and damaged belongings.
Several tenants at The Positano allege the construction crews cut corners and the complex provided less-than-promised appliance upgrades. The 232-unit apartment complex is a low-income housing tax property in the Elkins Forrest neighborhood.
The Dallas Housing Finance Corporation, which helps the city finance development deals to acquire, construct and rehabilitate multifamily housing, agreed in October 2022 to issue $35 million in tax-exempt bonds to finance renovations focused on safety, security, energy efficiency and accessibility at the complex.
The developer of the project, Michael Volz with Positano Apartments LLC., declined to comment in a phone call with The Dallas Morning News, but later provided a statement explaining the process tenants can follow to report complaints.
“Tenants are contacted regularly throughout the moving process and our relocation team works diligently to document any issues that arise, whether it is communicated in a written complaint or passing conversation,” Volz wrote in an email.
“The relocation team provides direct assistance in filing any claims with the moving company to minimize the burden on the tenants,” Volz wrote. “Certainly, if tenants have any issues with damaged possessions, we want to make sure they are resolved appropriately and welcome those tenants to reach out.”
Apartment manager Avenue 5 Residential, based in Seattle, did not respond to requests for comment. Neither did general contracting firm ICON National, based in Scottsdale, Ariz., which handled the renovations.
Marcy C. Helfand, a board member of the Dallas Housing Finance Corporation, told The News on Thursday she had not heard of any complaints but would work with Dallas’ housing department to investigate.
“Step No. 1 is to make sure that this outside company that’s handling the relocation is doing what they should be doing,” Helfand said. “If something got broken, then it should be replaced. So we’re happy to get involved.”
The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs is tasked with enforcing compliance of the state’s publicly funded tax credit properties. It won’t inspect the property until rehabilitation is complete in 2025, senior communications advisor Kristina Tirloni said in an email.
‘Sloppy, sloppy work’
Resident Beverly Edmond, 60, said she attended two meetings hosted by the apartment managers in October to inform residents of the renovations. They were told they’d be temporarily relocated to hotels.
At first, the neighbors were excited to get new appliances and upgrades, Edmond said. She and other residents were promised an apartment with new appliances, like stainless steel refrigerators and ovens, and upgraded fixtures.
“They said, ‘You don’t have to lift a finger. You don’t have to worry about anything.’ We were promised,” Edmond said. “Upon returning home, the apartment was a mess. Sloppy, sloppy work.”
When Edmond and her adult, disabled son returned to their two-bedroom unit in mid-November, the mother was shocked to see what she considered downgraded appliances, smaller kitchen cabinets and paint stains on the carpet, along with dust, dirt and debris littered around the apartment.
In the small two-bedroom unit, a News reporter observed loose bathroom fixtures, paint peeling on some walls and scratch marks on the newly replaced floor and a broken TV leaning behind a couch.
Edmond said her laundry door keeps falling off, several belongings are broken in the home, including a flowerpot and a table, and a few items are missing, including curtain rods and food from her pantry.
John Clark, 65, returned to his home in mid-November and said he found his unit in a state similar to Edmond’s. He said his TV was damaged, his Amazon Fire TV stick was missing and his refrigerator was downgraded to one without an ice maker.
Clark’s roommate, Bobby Jefferson, 75, is waiting to be reimbursed for a power cord for his electric wheelchair, which he said was lost in the renovations.
Edmond says apartment managers with Avenue 5 Residential have mostly not responded to repeated claims for repairs or have referred any complaints to ICON National, the general contracting firm.
Edmond is circulating a petition signed by more than a dozen residents with similar complaints and plans to bring up the issue before the Dallas City Council.
The renovation is still ongoing throughout the complex, and Edmond said residents often come to her to report on the state of their apartment.
“A lot of people are frustrated and they want some answers,” Edmond said. “And we don’t get any answers from anyone.”
