22 Units at Riverdale Towers Uninhabitable, Residents Still Charged Rent

Forty-three of the 65 units at have been deemed “habitable,” county officials say, after the due to a water leak, displacing around 200 residents.

However, many residents are still left without a home and have few options available, and according to Councilmember Raymond Rivas, even those units that were approved are in very poor condition.

“They are in really bad condition,” Rivas said. “But, even though they’re in a shabby apartment with no air conditioning, it’s a roof over their head.”

The apartment building has been without air conditioning for several weeks, an issue unrelated to the recent storm, Rivas said, and management has not informed residents of when it will return.

Residents of the 22 units that were still condemned as of Friday afternoon may have to wait between 6 and 12 weeks for their apartments to be completely renovated, according to Shannon Haines, a spokesperson with the county’s Office of Emergency Management. 

“There is water leaking in through some of the walls and electrical outlets,” Haines said. 

Rivas, who serves District 5 where the apartment building is located, says he has been approached by a number of residents who are upset and angry with the building’s management, mainly because they cannot live in the building but still have to pay rent as long as their belongings remain in their units – units that they cannot currently enter.  

“People felt violated that their stuff was still in the apartment, so they still have pay rent,” Rivas said. “As a councilman, I believe that it’s not fair to those people.”

The building’s manager, Tamara Stanley, declined to comment on the issue.

Rivas added that Stanley has been largely unavailable to residents who have tried to reach her for information, and the assistant manager, Kiya Stringer, seemed unsympathetic to the their situation. 

“I don’t know why they’re dealing with it this way,” Rivas said.

Displaced residents were directed to the Bladensburg High School shelter on Wednesday and Thursday, but that shelter, as well as the county's emergency operations center, closed as of noon on Friday, according to the county. 

Residents of the 22 uninhabitable units have been found temporary housing for the 6 to 12 week renovation period, Haines said. 

Any impacted residents still needing assistance or information can contact the Department of Social Services (DSS) at 301-909-6330 and the American Red Cross (ARC) at 1-877-292-1600. These agencies will continue to assist residents today between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. at 425 Brightseat Road in Landover.