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Marcia Fudge asks Jacksonville city council what’s the punishment for slumlords not maintaining HUD properties.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — First Coast News continues coverage of the housing crisis and long-standing issues with safety at HUD properties like Hilltop Village Apartments in North Jacksonville.
“They’re coming in under the doors, and they live in the ceilings, and they’re not doing anything,” says a Hilltop Village resident.
This has been a constant complaint for years at the Hilltop Village Apartments.
These are issues Councilwoman Ju’Coby Pittman has taken the lead in fixing.
Monday, HUD secretary, Marcia Fudge toured the complex along with other affordable housing apartments like, Eastside Terrace.
“We will get some of this fixed, and I can’t promise you it will be tomorrow, but I give my word, we will get some of this fixed,” said Marcia Fudge.
Councilman Reggie Gaffney also gave feedback at a city council meeting last night.
He says during that meeting, HUD leaders said slumlords can face jail time if they don’t fix the housing conditions.
First Coast News Reporter, Destiny McKeiver, asked Councilman Gaffney, “If slumlords aren’t following code… would you mind sending them to jail?”
Gaffney said, “It’s a catch-22 we were facing that with Eastside Terrace apartments we wanted to move everybody but because Jacksonville has a housing shortage… what do you do next?”
It’s certainly a question residents have been asking for years, and they want help soon.
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