Note – This situation is very similar to ours at Toxic Mold Infested Jefferson Lakes Apartments managed by Riverstone Residential.
Strong odors and mold growth on anything that is in the apartment.
Several types of toxin producing molds that can affect health.
Unlawful actions by the management and denial of knowledge of any of these issues even though they have been cleaning up the mold (hiding).
Knowingly (at least they know now) exposing people to toxins that can affect their health.
As far as them not offering another apartment to stay, that would not do any good since mold is in other units, the same as in our case. We were offered another mold filled apartment but chose to get out of the complex even though (and this should have been a warning of things to come) the attorney who was advising us took forever to have our apartment tested. See Attorney Malpractice.
Below, included with the story is a photo showing mold growth on a wicker chair. That mold will continue eating away at the chair even after it is removed from the apartment. Items we had in our apartment continued to be consumed by the mold (especially if natural – wood, paper, leather (shoes) etc.). It was unbelievable to watch these items being consumed while knowing this mold is now IN US. All of our things are still in a climate controlled storage facility which I pay $100.00 a month for. I can’t just throw photos, art, keepsakes, etc. away.
The photo below is of mold that started growing in a new pair of tennis shoes just from being in our apartment. Massive amounts of molds had been (and still are) growing in the HVAC ducts for years. Mold blows from the vents into the apartment and gets on and in EVERYTHING. Kind of like a fogger for pest control. katy
See also –
Riverstone Residential Litigation
Tenant loses battle with mold
This wicker chair in the apartment of Becky Elliot was just one her many personal items that were covered in mold, she said.
submitted photo
By Joshua Clark
Staff Writer
September 23, 2009
BULL CREEK — Rebecca Elliot had been living in her Bull Creek Village apartment at Ridgecrest Estates for almost a year when she noticed that something wasn’t quite right.
“A neighbor of mine first pointed it out, and we thought it was either dirt or where something had spilled,” Elliot said. “It turned out to be several different types of mold growing all over my apartment.”
After speaking with a few of her other neighbors, Elliot discovered she wasn’t the only tenant to have a mold problem. She said she contacted the apartment management.
“They had someone clean up the mold about six times before they stopped coming back,” Elliot said. “From then on, the problem just kept getting worse.”
As time passed, Elliot said she took matters into her own hands and paid for an inspection. Tri-Cross Building Inspections showed up at the Ridgecrest Estates and gave three units a full walk through.
Building Code Official Angelo Ribando conducted the inspection.
“In my opinion, this building should be inspected and tested by a professional mold remediation abatement company to determine if there are health issues with the fungal reservoirs that were observed during my inspections,” Ribando said. “They will also need to determine the source of the problems so it can be abated. Most of the time, mold, mildew and fungi substances are related to a water problem.”
Water is draining down a ledge rock 12 feet behind the units, Elliot said.
Inside the three units inspected, all had mold present in some form, Ribando said. Two of the units had a dark green fungal substance at the bottom of the interior wall baseboards, as well as a fungal substance amplified on shoes and clothes.
One particular unit had a medium moisture reading, 12-14 percent, by the front door and a red zone moisture reading of 16 percent in the bedroom, which also includes a light greenish mold covering the underside of the bed. To go along with a strong odor in the back bedroom closet, mold was also observed on chair coverings and furniture.
“Ribando came out and did his tests, and then I cleaned the apartment,” Elliot said. “Less than 48 hours later, the mold began to grow again.”
Upon conclusion of the inspection by Ribando, Elliot paid for tests to be done on the mold itself. No less than four different types of mold were present. Aspergillus, which is a very common indoor mold, can be a potential pathogen. Cladosporium and penicillium, which are commonly found on plants and soil, are a common cause of extrinsic asthma. Chronic cases may develop pulmonary emphysema.
Two more types of mold, alternaria, which is found on common soil, foodstuffs, settled dust on carpet and textiles, and rhizopus-mucor, an airborne and soil-based mold, were also found. Both are known to cause hay fever and hypersensitivity pneumontis.
The Taney County Health Department can’t intervene, as they have no authority in the matter of mold.
“We have no accountability nor authority to do anything about mold,” Taney County Health Department Administrator Jim Berry said. “It’s just one of those quirky things where we refer them to a Web site or to outside experts who can do inspections and advise them on what they should do.”
After gathering additional information, Elliot brought the matter to the attention of other residents. While having a conversation with several of her neighbors, she said she was served with a violation of lease and house rules.
“They said they had several reports and phone calls of me harassing the tenants,” Elliot said. “They gave me 10 days to speak with them to remedy this matter or I could consider the violation letter as 30-day notice of lease termination.”
Members of the management staff of Ridgecrest Estates stated they were unaware of any such claims and had no further comment.
Elliot said that after being denied a request to relocate to another unit, she opted to move out.
“It was much easier this way,” she said. “I believe they violated the Fair Housing Law by not allowing me to move to a different unit while this was being settled.”
Elliot is currently perusing more information about the mold that is still affecting her former neighbors.
“This is a potentially dangerous situation, and there are families with small children living in these units. Something needs to be done.”
Katy's Exposure 
Oh my, the management of these apartments should be more responsible. I have many friends living in fort worth apartments, I hope their apartment buildings don’t have the same problem.