STUART, Fla. -- Astorwood Apartment residents in Stuart learned mold and faulty air conditioners are not the only problems in their homes.
Tuesday, orange danger signs were placed on every building in the complex by Stuart code enforcement.
Many of the units are vacant, but approximately 30 families are impacted.
Residents said they had complained for months, and for years in some cases. about mold, leaking roofs and air conditioning units that were not suited for their apartments.
RELATED: Stuart apartments deemed dangerous by city
Wednesday, a city spokesperson said the problem was much bigger. There are at least 19 other code violations against the complex, ranging from rodent problems to electrical and structural problems.
In a drive around the complex, you can find tarps on roofs and downed trees on a roof from Hurricane Matthew.
Residents Dawn Cline says she has mold, a leaky roof and an electric outlet that ‘explodes’.
“Even though they say they fixed it, I still shut the breakers off,” Cline said.
City spokesperson Ben Hogarth says Code Enforcement has been in touch with the property managers, Friedman Integrate Real Estate, since July.
Code Enforcement asked the property management company to stay in touch with them weekly about their progress fixing these issues.
When the property managers stopped communicating with the city, they placed the danger signs on the window and scheduled a court hearing.
After sticking the danger notifications on all of the buildings, Hogarth says Friedman Integrated resumed communication.
The city is holding off on issuing eviction orders.
Code Enforcement went door to door Wednesday to speak with residents about the issues they’re facing.
“I did tell them everything that was wrong since I moved here,” one resident said who did not want to be identified.
She said she’s had mold and appliance issues.
She doesn’t feel safe staying in her home, but she’s among the many without the resources to move.
She does not want to pay rent until her home is deemed livable.
“They need to give us our money back because obviously we can’t move without any money. So, I'm just waiting to see what goes on at the hearing in November.”
A court hearing is scheduled for November 10 at 1p.m. A judge could order property owners to bring the buildings up to code.
Hogarth says Senator Joe Negron and U.S Senator Marco Rubio’s offices are aware of the issues at Astorwood Apartments.
