Seniors Moved from moldy complex

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Seniors moved from complex where mold was found 24 January 2002 By Lydia Carrico Messenger-Inquirer Most residents at a senior complex in Owensboro have been moved while administrators correct a mold problem, but two still need to find other living arrangements. Residents may be out of their apartments at the Friendship House on Kentucky 54 for up to a year while workers check into the source of mold that has been creeping up walls and layering floors and rugs with a blackish sootlike substance.. "They've got to find out where it's coming from first," said Marsha Baker, director of the complex owned by The Christian Church Homes of Kentucky in Louisville. "They're going to have to do some research on the building." Residents began complaining about health problems late last year and were worried that mold found in their apartments was the culprit. Tests by an independent consulting firm in November indicated that 10 or 12 types of molds were present and one was toxic. Administrators said then that the air conditioning units in each of the 54 apartments may be the source and that crews would be ripping out drywall and checking the units to determine the exact origin. At that time, residents were told that only those who lived in the affected rooms would be moved during the cleanup. But some residents still were concerned about the effect on their health. Administrators announced this week that all residents would be relocated and put a call out to other local senior complexes to take in the 53 residents. By Wednesday, only two had not been placed, Baker said. The others had found arrangements in other assisted living centers or in Section 8 housing, a federally subsidized program that helps pay rent for low-income people. Friendship House is subsidized through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The federal program has issued housing vouchers to help relocate the seniors without burdening them with costs above what they would normally pay, Baker said. Baker was unsure how long the seniors would be out of their homes, but they will have first priority when the home reopens, she said. http://www.messenger-inquirer.com/news/kentucky/4038928.htm