Problems at Cedar Rapids apartment complex worry residents

A legal mess has residents of a Cedar Rapids apartment complex wondering who will fix a very real mess.

People at the Shadowood Apartments on Edgewood Road Northwest called KCRG-TV9 saying the complex is falling apart. The complex is in foreclosure, but people still call it home.

Sidewalks are crumbling and potholes dot the parking lot. People who live there say they've had enough.

Karen Van Marm and her husband Dave moved into the Shadowood apartments late last year, but now they're planning to move out.

“I feel like I'm always at risk of falling every time I leave to go get in the car,” Karen said.

Dave said, “I have to walk her out to the vehicle every day. When she comes back, I look for her. I walk her back in.”

The sidewalk near her apartment has broken into pieces. She has multiple disabilities which make the walkway even scarier for her.

“I have vision problems and balance problems and I have to use a walker,” Karen said.

Visiting friends who live in nearby building has become tougher because a railing that used to stand alongside the steps also broke.

“It's impossible for me to get up and down those stairs without a rail,” Karen said.

People who live in the complex started a petition last year which demanded fixes to these problems, but still haven't seen results.

“It looks trashy,” Shirley Gantz said. She's especially concerned about the parking lot.

“You have to go very, very slow so you don't hurt yourself or your car. I've wrecked one car out here and I don't want to wreck the car I've got right now,” Gantz said.

The city's housing inspector has cited the property for the sidewalk and parking lot conditions, but the foreclosure process has stalled any major repairs.

“It makes it a lot harder due to the fact that it is a bank and a management company. They're trying to do what they can. However, they have to go through the bank to get money to fix any big items,” Chief Housing Inspector Al Pansegrau said.

While the bank and property managers sort everything out, people living there are left waiting for a fix.

Right now, Iowa Realty's Des Moines office is overseeing the property. The company says they took control about one month ago and plan to start repairing the sidewalk and the parking lot within the next thirty days. They said these kinds of problems are fairly common with properties that are going through the foreclosure process.