50 Tenants at Centennial Place Takes First Step to Sue City For Bed Bug Infestation

More than 50 people living at a local building have filed a claim against the city for bedbug infestation.

According to the claim, the infestation began two years ago at Centennial Place on Holly Street near City Hall.

Beginning in July 2020 and is continuing through the present, tenants in the building started reporting bed bug issues in their units to the office manager.

The office management team did not respond to the tenants’ complaints until after receiving an increasing number of reports of the bug issue, according to the claim.

“The office manager notified the tenants that the office management team would distribute bug spray to tenants. In summer 2020, the office management arranged the termite fumigation for units, which did not resolve the issue.
Tenants and pets were bitten and bothered by the bed bugs through present,” according to the claim.

A claim is the first step in filing a lawsuit. The City has 45 days to respond to the claim.

But the city does not own or operate the building.

Local nonprofit Union Station Homeless services provides case management and onsite services at the permanent supportive housing facility, which offers 142 single room occupancy (SRO) apartments for low-income adults.

The building is owned and operated by Abode Communities, not the City.

In 2010 work started on revamping 144 single room units at Centennial Place as part of a tradeoff that let the city take possession of the Desiderio Army Reserve Center.

In June 2007, HUD turned down the city’s proposal to put a nine-unit Habitat for Humanity bungalow court, park space and possibly an arts/environment community building at the edge of the Arroyo Seco after HUD said the project lacked the proper amount of offsite homeless housing.

Then in January 2010, the county Homeless Services Authority awarded Union Station a three-year, $750,000 grant for Centennial Place. The county’s Community Development Commission awarded another $250,000 for improvements and the city provided $80,000 from state accessibility funds for a wheelchair lift.

A housing development and park were built at the site of the old army barracks near the Colorado Street Bridge.