Broken elevator in 10 Prince Apartments has troubled tenants with disabilities for months [Lancaster Watchdog]

Tenants at 10 Prince Apartments say the building has its perks: a free fitness center, private balconies and a prime location in downtown Lancaster.

As for the single elevator in the nine-story building, it’s hit or miss … and often miss, the Watchdog has learned.

For some, a broken elevator is a simple inconvenience, but for older tenants, people with disabilities and parents with small children, the lack of reliable elevator service has caused consistent problems.

Berger Rental Communities, the Delaware County development firm that owns the building, said it contracted Georgia-based elevator company TKE to replace the system, and the work was completed last June.

While that work was underway, third-floor tenant Doug Miller, 43, had a liver transplant. The surgery kept him in the hospital for three weeks. When he returned home, Miller, who has lived in the building since 2021, was left to carry heavy groceries up three stories for months.

To keep things light, Miller set up a makeshift stand by the third-floor stairwell giving out lemonade, tea and notes counting down to the elevator’s reopening to encourage tenants making the climb to their floors.

“I was just really rolling through the punches of life. It was really bad for me. It was just another loop for me to go through,” he said

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In August, while Miller’s health improved, Berger confirmed elevator malfunctions started again despite a full replacement. Current tenants told the Watchdog that the elevator still breaks down multiple times a week, and some say they haven’t relied on it since moving in several years ago.

For some tenants, particularly older ones or those with mobility issues, the elevator outage stings, as they signed leases assuming it would be available.

One tenant, 64, has lived in the building for 30 years, long before Berger Rental Communities came into the picture. While the building’s elevator broke down then, too, this tenant said maintenance staff on site used to take care of it quickly. But that’s not the case anymore.

Since then, the tenant, who lives on the fourth floor, has had two knee replacement surgeries and has to pull themself up the steps. They no longer carry groceries. While in recovery, they scooted down each flight sitting down. The tenant spoke to LNP | LancasterOnline on the condition that their name not be used due to concerns that being identified may cause problems with renewing their lease.

Solution still in progress

After spending millions to renovate the property for its reopening in 2022, Berger, which owns apartments on North Queen Street, West Chestnut Street and in Millersville, said efforts to find a permanent solution are still underway.

“We take this matter seriously and have taken extensive measures to resolve the issue, including promptly dispatching service technicians for each reported incident, replacing electrical boards and troubleshooting potential causes and engaging TKE specialists and independent experts for further assessment,” Berger community manager Karen Kruml said via email.

“That doesn’t seem like an acceptable answer to me when there’s residents who can’t get down the stairs,” said ninth-floor tenant Audrey Gutensohn, who is leading the push among residents to get the elevator fixed.

Randy King, Lancaster’s bureau chief of property maintenance and housing inspections, said the city doesn’t have much enforcement authority when it comes to elevators, and the responsibility falls to the city fire department and state agencies.

Fire Chief Todd Hutchinson said the Pennsylvania Bureau of Occupational & Industrial Safety handles inspections.

Rocco Iacullo, a staff attorney with Disability Rights Pennsylvania, said the Americans with Disabilities Act doesn’t cover housing, so this type of situation falls under the U.S. Fair Housing Act. The law requires all tenants to have equal use and enjoyment of the premises, which Iacullo says can’t be the case if some tenants can’t get in or out of the building.

If the property can’t ensure that, landlords have to provide “reasonable” accommodations, according to the Fair Housing Act.

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Last week, Gutensohn filed a complaint to the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Bureau of Consumer Protection about the lack of equal use.

“We have provided compensation to those affected and are actively monitoring the situation. We update our residents regularly and stress that we are available to discuss any concerns. Our elevator partner, TK Elevator, has identified the issue and expedited the necessary repairs. While we anticipate a resolution soon, we will maintain open communication with our residents throughout the process,” Berger said Wednesday afternoon.

The compensation, Gutensohn said, was a $100 credit toward one month’s rent for those above the fifth floor.

Tenants bear the responsibility of requesting accommodations, such as temporary housing on a lower floor or in a hotel, but Iacullo said there’s nothing stopping the property from making the process easier.

“I would say, at the least, they should develop and post or advertise a procedure to all tenants to be able to ask for an accommodation,” he said.

Other residents can’t use the stairs at all due to their disabilities, which leaves them stranded indoors for days at a time, Gutensohn said, including her neighbor. Fellow tenants bring essential supplies upstairs when the neighbor can’t do it alone.

When Gutensohn moved in last year, she had to carry heavy furniture up nine stories in lieu of the elevator. And she’s not alone in that experience.

Issac Perez, 31, moved in elevator-less with his wife and two small children almost a year ago. In the last week of January, he said malfunctions were only getting worse.

“Just this weekend, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, it was down. My family and I didn’t go down because we have two kids, two little ones. … It’s not the end of the world, but we’re on the seventh floor,” he said. “It’s a little tiring.”