Springfield Mayor Jeff Schrag met with tenants of Jenny Lind Apartments Tuesday night. He was invited there by the residents and Springfield Tenants Unite (STUN).
Jenny Lind, 711 S. Jefferson, has been without working elevators for nearly two years. Those who live there are 62 or older or have disabilities. Some are in wheelchairs and have had to move to hotels, which their landlord Millennia Housing, is paying for (tenants said they still have to pay rent for their apartments). Some of those who’ve stayed must climb multiple flights of stairs to get to their homes.
Millennia Housing, which owns Jenny Lind, is based in Cleveland, Ohio. In 2024, Millennia and its principal, Frank Sinito, were debarred from any new federal contracts for five years due to missing money and underfunded accounts, according to reporting by WKTV in Utica, NY.
Jackelyn is a longtime resident of Jenny Lind and has chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (OPD). She lives on the sixth floor.
"I have had to return to use my cane," she said. "Groceries, laundry, grabbing your medication and connecting with our community is exhausting."
She said residents used to play Bingo once a week, but hardly anyone attends now because they'd have to use the stairs.
"We need our home back," she said. "Millennia's slow action should not be the barrier to having a healthy home."
Resident Elvester Kennedy, who uses a wheelchair, told Schrag that it meant a lot to him to see the mayor there. He said he’s tired of waiting to see things fixed.
"I want to see the elevator working," he said. "That's just one of the things that needs to be fixed. I'm in a wheelchair. Have you seen the conditions of the sidewalks outside? It's terrible. A lot of us can't — we just got the doors fixed. We can get in and out. You know, it's just great to see you here, and I'm just hoping that there's more transparency with your administration."
Sidewalks in front of Jenny Lind are broken at the edges and crumbling.
Residents also talked about how the heat hasn't been working as well as it should, and they have to layer up to stay warm. Others said they've had problems with mice, bedbugs and roaches.
According to Jenny Lind’s website, a 1 bed/1bath, 492 sq. ft. unit is between $768 and $782 a month.
Someone asked Schrag how it felt hearing the tenants' stories. He responded, "I feel bad. I feel awful, so I appreciate you expressing it to me. But I'm kind of a solution-oriented guy."
Schrag told the group gathered in Jenny Lind’s community room that he’s heard from the city that they have two choices: To start down a path of closing the building or to work with Millennia to do the best they can to make repairs. But he said he’s seeking something in between. He asked those gathered to share ideas with him.
Residents told Schrag their priorities are to 1.) fix the elevators, 2.) fix the heat, 3.) fix water issues and 4.) pest control.
Schrag said TKE, the company hired by Millennia to repair the elevators received their final payment just recently after the company sold a building to free up funds, but he didn’t have a timeline for when the elevators would be up and running. He said Springfield's Director of Development Services Martin Gugle had "left multiple messages," trying to find out more and that he had hoped to be able to have more information for tenants before he met with them Tuesday night.
Residents handed Schrag a list of what they'd like to see happen, and they asked that he respond to them by February 24.
STUM member Sarah Barnts said they'd like to see a citywide rental inspection program that includes Housing and Urban Development (HUD) properties, "because clearly there is federal oversight that's not working and so the city needs its own processes to protect its people."
