MEMPHIS, Tenn.– Things are finally looking up for Serenity Towers after months of complaints and code inspection violations.
An attorney told the court that problems with no air conditioning, no hot water, and growing mold at the senior highrise are all fixed.
But one lingering issue that is being treated is bed bugs.
“A subsequent inspection has been made by code enforcement and to confirm what counsel says that the apartment complex is now in compliance with the exception of the bed bugs,” Environmental Court Judge Patrick Dandridge said.
So far, 96 units have been treated, including 13 units that were treated on Wednesday.
“They have started doing the bed bugs, but it takes a while because you are talking about 250 residents there,” Shelby County District Attorney Micheal McCusker said. “They are trying to go floor to floor.”
The District Attorney’s Office, which has pushed to get Serenity cleaned up, said this is a step in the right direction. We were told one thing that made these improvements possible was residents speaking out and demanding help.
“They have learned to advocate for themselves and they can’t stop advocating for themselves,” McCusker said.
Serenity Towers’ attorney declined to speak after the hearing. They will have to go back to court on Aug. 11 to get an update, especially on the bed bug issue.
Once the court case ends, the judge will determine what type of fines Serenity will have to pay.
“I should remind everyone that Serenity Tower is not gonna go anywhere from this court until it is completely in compliance, and then I still may put it on a monitoring basis given the history of Serenity Towers,” said Judge Dandridge.