A building management company in Chicago is under fire for its poor response to repairing an elevator at an affordable housing structure, leaving disabled residents struggling to complete basic tasks like obtaining prescriptions.
The Block Club Chicago website published an article about residents and their inability to do tasks such as grocery shopping or going to medical appointments without access to the elevator.
One resident said he had to call the fire department to be carried up five flights of stairs because building management did not address the broken elevator, and managers had already left for the day.
The residents live in a building named The Parkway, a seven-story building on the east side of Chicago in Wrigleyville, near the state of the Chicago Cubs’ home field.
Court-appointed receivers are managing the building, as the former housing provider lost control of the building because of financial issues due to unpaid utility bills, building code violations and unpaid trash removal bills.
Residents say the elevator issues started two years ago when a building leak shut down the main elevator, forcing residents to use a freight elevator that breaks down often. The freight elevator is a challenge for people with disabilities to use.
Dave Lubach is executive editor of the facility market.
