TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Inside Lexi Dunson's unit at Riverwalk Luxury Apartments, there's water damage and mold underneath the sink and shining through a thin layer of paint. Crawling across that think layer of paint is a German cockroach, just one of several in the room. Dunson walked to the kitchen and opened the stove where roaches crawled out of the side of the handle. And right now, she said she doesn't have hot water.
"There was a bug issue from the start," she said.
When she and her family moved in a year ago, she toured the complex and was shown a perfect model home. It is the same model home the property managers show everyone — attached to the leasing office. But once she moved into her unit, she needed two pages to write down all the broken and unsafe things.
"The dryer was broken," Dunson said. "My toilet was broken like there was no pressure. There was broken glass. You could tell they weren't ready for us to move in."
But it's not just Dunson's apartment. Her neighbors upstairs and next to her are also dealing with a bug infestation.
"It's an internal thing within our walls," she said.
She has called the property managers and maintenance several times. She said if they come out, it's only with a short term solution.
"The spray I'm having done today is the third one this year," she said. "It got to the point where it was one year and none of the things on my list were fixed."
But she said moving isn't an option. The complex is close to her children's schools and they made friends here. And with the costs of move-in and application fees at another place, it's a challenge to move out.
"It's sad because I finally know my neighbors and now we're all facing retaliation," she said.
Since the repairs were not being completed and her apartment is still infested, she stopped paying her rent for the last two months. Now, she and a few other neighbors are facing eviction.
"I'm not going to pay until these issues are fixed," she said. "I know four of us that I've talked to are going to court."
The management company, Scotia Group Management LLC, responded to KGUN9 for a comment but declined an interview. The company said they "...take any resident complaints very seriously. The pest control issue has been addressed and we have found that the problem primarily lies with the condition of two units in that building."
Dunson hopes no one has to go through this and that things will change.
"It's time for them to fix it and own up to this," Dunson said.
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Tina Giuliano is a reporter for KGUN 9. She is a native Arizonan and grew up in Scottsdale. Tina is passionate about storytelling and is excited to work telling Tucson's stories. Share your story ideas and important issues with Tina by emailing tina.giuliano@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
