Connecticut Attorney General William Tong has launched an investigation into Concierge Apartments, a troubled Rocky Hill complex where 200 units were condemned Friday by town officials.
Tong said he has sent a civil investigative demand under the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act seeking answers from JRK Real Estate, a multibillion-dollar California corporation that owns the 544-unit complex through its Century Hills Property Owner LLC unit.
Tong’s request includes detailed records of tenant complaints, work orders, inspection reports, leases, relocation efforts, and documentation of $2 million in promised repairs at the Rocky Hill complex.
Concierge Apartments has for years been plagued with complaints from residents about deteriorating conditions and maintenance problems like mold and chronic loss of heat and water.
Past years have seen pipes freeze and residents lose water, but this year’s cold snap and heavy snow worsened the issue. Rocky Hill officials have said they received numerous complaints before and after the storm from residents saying they’ve lived for days without hot water.
Desperate social media posts from residents reached a fever pitch over the past week, with residents sharing photos of sheets of ice on exterior walls and a ceiling collapsed on cars in a garage. A video shows town staff walking through standing water in a building hallway.
Town council members, Sen. Matt Lesser, Tong and local officials rallied to support residents of the complex, which was eventually condemned. Town staff worked to quickly secure hundreds hotel rooms for those who were displaced.
“Over the past weeks, our fire, building, health, and human services teams have committed significant time and resources to addressing conditions at the property and supporting residents through a difficult and disruptive situation,” Mayor Allan Smith said in a statement Monday.
“We appreciate Attorney General Tong and his office for taking these concerns seriously and bringing the full resources of the State of Connecticut to review the circumstances surrounding this property,” Smith said. “The State has tools and investigative capacity beyond what is available at the municipal level, and we welcome their involvement as we continue working toward solutions that not only address the current situation, but help prevent similar issues from occurring in the future.”
Tong had sharp words for JRK Real Estate, which said through the Hartford law firm Robinson & Cole Thursday that some tenants had been offered lodging and rent credits and thus would not be allowed to break their leases.
Tenants speaking to the town council Monday said JRK initially directed them to use their renter’s insurance to pay for alternate lodging; the company later agreed to pay those expenses after talking with town officials.
An email seeking comment was sent to Concierge.
“Concierge management is sitting on billions of dollars in assets while Connecticut families cannot safely remain in their homes,” Tong said in a statement Monday. “This crisis did not happen overnight. This is the result of years of callous mismanagement and broken promises. I appreciate that it looks like Concierge is finally making progress, but we have a lot of work ahead before tenants are safely home.
“We are launching this investigation today to get real answers to how conditions got this bad and what Concierge is doing now to make sure this never happens again. We will not hesitate to use the full weight of our law enforcement authority to hold this multi-billion dollar out of state landlord accountable,” Tong said.
U.S. Rep. John Larson has also called on the Department of Housing and Urban Development to investigate.
“JRK Property Holdings is the recipient of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac financing. Given that JRK Property Holdings is the beneficiary of HUD programming, this gross mistreatment of tenants warrants an immediate investigation” by HUD, Larson wrote.
Concierge has told the Office of the Attorney General it is undertaking to replace pipes, insulate the building, and replace damaged sheetrock, among other demands.