Lawsuit Filed Against City Housing Authority Over College Court Conditions

Will Davis speaking at a press conference on Aug. 28, 2024. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

“Residents of College Court have been suffering through an endemic infestation of bedbugs and rodents for far too long,” says a newly-filed lawsuit against the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee (HACM).

The class action claim was filed on behalf of residents of the College Court apartments, 3334 W. Highland Blvd., by Michael Cerjak of Barton Cerjak.

It represents the latest escalation in a campaign by Common Ground Southeastern Wisconsin to improve conditions for residents of the city’s beleaguered housing authority.

A list of several thousand work orders issued in the past five years, obtained by Common Ground via a records request, shows routine maintenance issues consistent with a large complex, but also more than 2,000 entries related to “pest control” and many explicit mentions of “roaches” and “bed bugs.”

”What we are asking [HACM head] Willie Hines to do is spray the entire building in a comprehensive way, not play whack-a-mole because whack-a-mole doesn’t work,” said Common Ground organizer Kevin Solomon at a press conference Wednesday afternoon. Common Ground representatives said HACM only sprayed the affected unit and those on each side, but that it clearly wasn’t sufficient to address the root issue.

The 251-unit, two-tower complex was constructed in 1968. Its one-bedroom apartments are reserved exclusively for low-income individuals.

The five named plaintiffs all attest to seeing many bed bugs in their apartments and many of the plaintiffs say they have been bitten repeatedly by them. In statements, they claim to have required emergency room visits from bleeding and to have had situations where bed bugs were found in their ear.

In the lawsuit, they claim to have engaged in actions from sleeping with the lights on to storing all clothes in plastic bags in an effort to avoid the bed bugs and other pests.

Bed bugs are parasitic insects that feed on blood, often at night. Skin irritation, including red areas and blisters, is the most common sign of their bite.

The suit, pending before Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge J.D. Watts, asks HACM to improve conditions or the court to authorize rent abatement for a condition that “materially affects the health or safety of the tenant or substantially affects the use and occupancy of the premises” and to approve any other relief deemed just and equitable.

Cerjak said he believes it is a first-of-its-kind suit for a class to ask the agency for improvement, not a payout. “We worked really hard to fashion this case not seeking money or compensation, but just looking to solve the problem,” said the attorney.

Solomon said Common Ground would explore lawsuits involving other buildings if HACM doesn’t improve. “We don’t want to sue every building. If we have to sue every building, we will make our way through HACM,” said the organizer.

College Court is one of two properties that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Department’s top public housing official, principal deputy assistant secretary Richard J. Monocchio, visited two weeks ago.

“During my visit to Milwaukee, I saw the conditions of Locust Court and College Court when I toured both buildings with residents who live there and heard their concerns. HUD is laser focused on ensuring that the City of Milwaukee and the housing authority quickly resolve these issues and ensure that the proper cleaning and safety standards are successfully met,” said Monocchio in an Aug. 19 statement issued after his visit.

The federally-backed housing authority has been embroiled in controversy for more than a year over concerns about poor building conditions and oversight.

HUD previously issued a corrective action plan for HACM to implement, including outsourcing the management of a Section 8 voucher program that uses public funds to pay for individuals to live in private residences. A 2022 HUD report found that HACM’s voucher management was “at risk for serious fraud, waste and abuse.”

Common Ground, a broad-based coalition, launched its campaign in March 2023. On Aug. 1, it issued an open letter calling on Mayor Cavalier Johnson to drop his support of HACM leader Willie Hines, Jr.

The coalition has secured a series of changes already, including the city closing a loophole where HACM inspected its own properties and the council allocating limited city resources to make property repairs. But its Aug. 1 letter says real improvement cannot happen until “competent senior leadership” is in place.

Common Ground members reiterated that call for change on Wednesday.

“This is yet another systemic failure by Willie Hines, a failure that deeply hurts residents,” said Will Davis, pastor at Invisible Reality Ministries and member of Common Ground’s strategy team. He said if HACM can’t find the money, the agency could take it out of Hines’ $250,000 salary. Davis said

But the mayor, at an unrelated press conference, took objection to the argument.

“We will let that process play itself out in court,” said Johnson when asked to respond to the lawsuit. The mayor said he continues to use his executive authority to support the agency, including approving inspectors to enter the properties and making appointments to the HACM board. “I ask the Common Council to take up my appointees and confirm them,” said Johnson of a council-announced delay for further due diligence. He said he had also made four appointments in 2022, but two of the appointees (Milele A. Coggs and Kalan Haywood II) later resigned because they were prohibited from serving by state law. The mayor said he continues to seek to get the state statute changed.

Johnson said Common Ground’s accusation that he is supporting Hines until he reaches full retirement age and maxes out his pension benfits was “Trumpian” and not based in fact. “I don’t know how old Willie Hines is and when he’s going to retire. That is silly. And it’s Trumpian, just throwing things, no matter if it’s true or not and seeing if it stick. It’s not true,” said the mayor.

The initial plaintiffs are Carmella Holloway, Stacy Ream, Sandra Eagle, Charlene Bell and Rickey Wright. Their tenancy ranges between 22 years and less than a year. Additional plaintiffs, who must also be residents, could be added to the class.

“I’ve been paying for a bed-bug-infested unit that I haven’t been able to sleep in for nine months. I’ve had to stay at my mom’s despite paying rent reliably every month,” said Ream, 40, in a statement.

“I found two dead bed bugs in my ear,” said Holloway, 67. “Earlier this year, I went to the emergency room because I scratched bed bug bites, causing blood to drip down my arms and legs. I haven’t gotten a decent night’s sleep in months. I never have company over anymore. How is this okay? Most of us are senior citizens and people with disabilities. Yet we pay our rent. Don’t evict us, evict the bed bugs.”

Cerjak previously successfully represented the tenants of Community Within The Corridor in receiving a cash settlement after the building was found to be improperly environmentally abated.

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