At two adjoining Fairview apartment complexes, residents describe unresolved maintenance problems alongside questions about how inspections and enforcement are being documented. Parc Fairview Apartments and Roundtree Manor Apartments both accept taxpayer-backed rental assistance, according to NewsChannel 5. Residents who spoke with the station reported rodent access, mold and water damage, with some problems persisting for months.
NewsChannel 5 reported that Parc Fairview resident Jamia Dickerson, who lives with her children and is expecting a grandchild, said the rodent problem in her home is worsening. The station reported that patched vinyl flooring split open earlier this year, leaving a hole into the crawl space beneath her unit. It also observed uncovered crawl-space vents along nearly every opening at her building, with some vents lying on the ground. Dickerson said she feels helpless and needs help. NewsChannel 5 reported her account.
The same NewsChannel 5 report described inspection and repair concerns at Parc Fairview. Resident Cassandra Alderson, who receives Section 8 rental assistance for herself and her three children, told the station that frequent staff turnover has made it difficult to get repairs completed. She said her apartment recently failed a federally required housing inspection and that staff spray-painted the bathtub and wall area where mold had formed rather than remediating it. According to the report, the failed inspection put both her voucher and the landlord's guaranteed rental payments for her unit at risk.
Oversight and Enforcement at the Complexes
Parc Fairview staff told NewsChannel 5's reporter they lacked authority to answer questions about the conditions. The station said it had contacted both corporate offices and Fairview code enforcement about maintaining safe housing; it also reported that the city had no update on Parc Fairview when asked.
Roundtree Manor II Apartments is managed by MACO Management Company. A 2023 NewsChannel 5 report posted to YouTube said a resident trapped 31 rats in her apartment.
Fire Marshal Documents New Violations
The 2023 investigation drew state attention and led to electrical and structural upgrades at Roundtree Manor, but residents told NewsChannel 5 they did not last. Tenant Lacy Sullivan said the repairs were temporary and that the workers who made them eventually disappeared. She told the station her upstairs neighbor's faucet had leaked for more than a month before water caused her ceiling to cave in this past Wednesday. Sullivan said she now regularly bleaches her floors to keep mold from spreading.
A letter about violations was sent to roughly half of Roundtree Manor's tenants. The Fairview city fire marshal completed a new walkthrough and documented additional violations. City public information officer Richard Ross told NewsChannel 5 the violations were forwarded to property management and a copy of the notice was provided to the apartment office. The station reported no one was present at the Roundtree Manor leasing office during its visit.
Voucher Protections and the Limits of a Failed Inspection
Under federal regulations governing the Housing Choice Voucher program, landlords whose units fail a Housing Quality Standards inspection over defects such as mold or plumbing leaks are given 30 calendar days to complete repairs before financial penalties begin, while life-threatening hazards require repairs within 24 hours, according to VoucherReady. If a landlord misses the repair window, the housing authority suspends monthly Housing Assistance Payments for that unit while it remains out of compliance, and abated months are not repaid retroactively after repairs pass reinspection, according to Voucher Housing. The rules are designed to penalize the property owner rather than the tenant, but that does not necessarily mean a household can remain in the same unit.
Tennessee's Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act legally requires landlords in counties with populations over 75,000, including Williamson County, to keep rental units fit, safe, and habitable, covering obligations like plumbing, sanitation, and essential repairs, according to the statute published by Justia Law.
What the Records and Voucher Rules Show
The USDA Rural Development Section 515 dataset lists property details such as addresses, management agents and rental-assistance units, but its described fields do not document inspection or enforcement findings, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s dataset description. A separate earlier account of a rat-infestation episode at Roundtree Manor reported that Fairview gave the property until September 9 to submit an action plan to the codes department or the matter would go before a city judge, according to NewsChannel 5. For voucher households, federal rules allow a family to move to another unit with continued assistance if it complies with program requirements, according to the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. That option does not guarantee the family can stay in its current unit.
That gap between formal protections and available housing is the bind residents at both complexes describe. A failed inspection may bring consequences for a property owner, and voucher rules allow a household to move with continued assistance if it meets program requirements; finding another suitable unit in an expensive county can still be difficult. Residents at Parc Fairview and Roundtree Manor say they are left managing rats, mold and building damage while repairs and enforcement work their way through the system.
