Months of cold stoves and colder showers are turning life at Neal Terrace Apartments on Detroit Avenue into a daily scramble, according to tenants who say their natural gas has been off for months. Parents and caregivers describe cobbling together workarounds like hauling kids to friends' homes for baths and leaning on takeout for meals, while children go without basic comforts. Residents say the outage started shortly after Feb. 1 and now touches nearly every unit in the complex.
Residents Say Management Has Gone Silent
As reported by WOIO/Cleveland 19, tenants produced a December notice stating that, beginning Feb. 1, utilities would be billed to the property instead of individual apartments. Destiny Farris, a mother of two who spoke with the station, said her gas service stopped roughly a week later. She reported that the stove burners in her unit "do not ignite" and that the water never heats up. A sign on the leasing office says the property is being run remotely, and residents told the station that calls to management have gone unanswered.
Federal Records Show a HUD-Assisted Property
Neal Terrace, at 8811 Detroit Avenue, is listed as a HUD-assisted multifamily property, according to ProPublica. The public record indicates the building has 48 HUD units, and the last publicly posted inspection results date to 2017. Because of that federal tie, local housing agencies and HUD have leverage to insist on repairs or to relocate tenants if an owner fails to maintain essential services.
Utility Bill Dispute and the Gas Company
Tenants told the TV station that, when they called the gas utility, they were informed the building owed more than $5,000. WOIO/Cleveland 19 reported it was unable to confirm that amount with the utility. Enbridge Gas Ohio now operates the former East Ohio Gas system in Cleveland and directs customers to its Ohio website for account information and a safety line. Residents say the switch in billing responsibility from tenants to the property was the first red flag for many households.
What Ohio Law Says Tenants Can Do
Under Ohio law, landlords must provide running water, reasonable amounts of hot water and heat, and must keep plumbing and heating systems in safe working order. Tenants who give written notice and do not see timely repairs have specific legal tools available. See the Ohio Revised Code on section 5321.04 for landlord duties and the Ohio Revised Code on section 5321.07 for tenant remedies, which can include depositing rent with the court or asking a judge to order repairs.
For HUD-assisted buildings, program rules and the tenancy addendum place responsibility on owners to meet housing quality standards. Public housing agencies or HUD can withhold payments, require repairs, or take other enforcement steps in the case of life-threatening deficiencies. For details, see HUD on the tenancy addendum.
Residents say they have already asked HUD and local agencies to intervene. Until a firm solution appears, many families at Neal Terrace say they will keep improvising for basic needs. We will continue to track this situation and seek comment from the property management and Enbridge as tenants push for a swift fix.
