SHELBY COUNTY, Tenn. — This week, residents of Serenity Towers and Memphis Towers complained about severe, ongoing issues with the buildings, including mold, faulty appliances, and disrespectful staff.
Both buildings and several others in Memphis are owned and operated by the Cleveland-based Millennia Companies, which has housing complexes all across the country.
Residents complain the HUD-subsidized properties fail to meet basic needs, some going months without A/C or hot water.
“HUD, even though it has changed how it identifies defects, has not changed how it will enforce those condition standards,” said Bridgett Simmons, a lawyer with the National Housing Law Project. “Those practices still will remain until HUD decides to change its enforcement protocol."
Every month, ownership is supposed to certify to HUD the units are in safe and sanitary condition, but the struggles faced by these residents are common. In fact, there’s a nationwide movement to combat Millennia known as the Millennia Resistance Campaign, although their communication hasn’t always led to direct action from the department.
“Frankly, when tenants are trying to report things to HUD about the poor conditions, HUD will redirect them back to management or redirect them back to someone who is not being responsive,” said Simmons, who has been part of the campaign.
The MRC has sent several letters to HUD leadership demanding they take action against Millennia asking for better living conditions, including in August of 2023.
Simmons stressed that while there are many good providers of affordable housing that do their best to operate with HUD, too many try to take advantage of their laissez-faire enforcement standards.
“It's really important that folks connect with local legal counsel because they can talk you through the various pressure points in order to get not only damages and relief, but also in terms of preserving that housing for long-term affordability,” she said.
This week, Millennia announced its intention to sell the much-maligned Serenity Towers. However, they will keep the rest of their Mid-South portfolio, including Memphis Towers.
Millennia Holdings said the following in a statement provided to ABC24:
"While we understand resident concerns, we strongly refute the idea that they are living in poor conditions. Over the last 30 months, Millennia has worked to revitalize and upgrade Memphis Towers, investing more than $22M in the property, which equals approximately $73,000 per unit. While there have unfortunately been delays in construction, we have remained diligent in improving the community and working to address the needs of the residents, with construction expected to be completed by mid-December.
Regarding the concerns raised at HEHF Board Meeting, we have investigated the claims and while we work to be responsive to our residents, their descriptions are not factually accurate. We are reaching out to each of these residents to further understand and address their issues."