Broken elevator leaves Lemon Grove seniors trapped in apartments

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SAN DIEGO — Dozens of San Diego seniors have been trapped in their apartment buildings for more than a week.

Residents in the building told CBS 8 the elevator has been out of service since Jan. 28, and many use wheelchairs and walkers and can't navigate the stairs.

Residents said they are desperate for help because the building's property manager has told them different stories.

When will the elevator be fixed? The date keeps getting pushed further away.

CBS 8 met 69-year-old Johnna Thomas and several neighbors on the fourth floor of the Citronica II Apartment building in Lemon Grove.

"It's sad for us as seniors to go through this. It's like we’re in prison. We can't do what we need to do. I can't get groceries. What will I do, get a rope and pull my groceries upstairs?" Thomas said.

Mike Marguet has had issues with his left knee since his surgery. He also uses a wheelchair.

"I am trapped up here. I’m up here, five stories up from where the car is," Marguet said.

Marguet said his property manager told him the cables in the elevator went terribly, but the company didn't have the money to pay for new ones.

The manager told him it won't be fixed until sometime next week.

"It shouldn't take this long. I don't know what the problem is, with the company repairing the elevator and paying them," Marguet said.

People said they’re taking chances trying to make it on the stairs without a working elevator.

Tina Anthony comes to care for her mother, Anita, who cannot walk without a walker.

This week, Anita had health problems and canceled two necessary doctor appointments because she could not leave the building using the stairs.

"You have seniors trapped inside their apartment," Anthony said.

Anthony is also worried that if something terrible happens, the only way to escape is the stairs. She said homeless people freely access the stairs and hallways of the building.

No security gates or doors keep anyone from walking off the street into the building's corridors.

Anthony says homeless people camp out in the breezeways and openly use drugs.

"The seniors here do not feel safe, do not feel protected. It's dangerous. Especially with the homeless people and it's winter time, I’m worried that nobody will start a fire! How are you going to get all these people out of this apartment complex if some emergency happens?," Anthony said.

No one was in the property manager's office, and no one answered our phone calls.

Cascade Housing Association owns the building and several others around San Diego.

It's based in Oregon and specializes in low-income housing. When CBS 8 called to ask them about the situation, they hung up on us.

CBS 8's Anna Laurel reached out to San Diego County's ADA Compliance office and contacted the City of Lemon Grove.

The code enforcement officer thanked us for alerting them to the situation. Because of our call, Code Enforcement Officer Paolo Romero said he and the city's fire inspector met with Citronica II's maintenance supervisor.

Romero said they told him they needed to speed up repairs and would be back to inspect the elevator on Thursday, Jan 9.

He says the fire inspector "put the maintenance supervisor on notice" He says if nothing happens by Thursday, it gets bumped up to a citation.

Romero said they are giving them a chance to fix it, but if not, they’ll move forward with something more drastic, like a fine.

Anthony says she has felt frustrated with the deteriorating conditions at the building.

"The only ones paying for it are the seniors on their property," Anthony said.

She says at least she can help care for her mother, but she worries about others like Johnna. Stuck on the upper floors, fending for themselves. Johnna got emotional when she recounted what the past week had been like and what she feared for the week ahead without an elevator. She says, "We shouldn't be subject to this. It just makes me sick."

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