Team 2 Investigates: Moldy apartments

PORTLAND, Ore. - Tenants at a government subsidized apartment complex in north Portland say mold has been making them sick for years, but no one will clean up the mess.

KATU News went to The Plaza Townhomes on North Michigan to investigate.  The apartment complex is owned by the Housing Authority of Portland and subsidized by federal tax dollars.

Some of the tenants at the apartment complex did not want to go on camera for fear of being evicted.  However, a couple living in one of the apartments agreed to talk to KATU News, saying they have been getting sick from mold for years.

"It's like hard to breathe and my nose is like blocked and every morning when I wake up I feel like that.  Every morning," said Ashley Price.

In the couple's apartment, the mold is everywhere - behind the couch, on the bathroom ceiling, right above the soft floorboards that bounce when you step on them, and on the bedroom walls and ceilings.

Also, everywhere you find mold, you find something else - white spray paint.  "It just comes back," said Price.  "Obviously, you can't just paint over mold."

Tenants like Price say maintenance crews have been spraying over the mold with spray paint, but it is something the apartment manager does not want to talk about.

"I can't comment until I see what evidence you have," the manager told KATU News.  He said he had never heard anything about mold, but according to a Portland tenants' rights group, he should know about it.

"It's been a significant concern for tenants there for a long time - mold, among other things," said Ian Slingerland, Executive Director for the Community Alliance of Tenants.

According to Slingerland, under current city codes, landlords can just cover mold with paint and pass inspections.

"When they go back to re-inspect, if they don't see the mold, then it remedies the code violation," he said.  "So it's a shortcoming in the code."

According to the Housing Authority of Portland, paint was never sprayed over mold to cover up the problem at The Plaza Townhomes. 

A spokesperson said the agency is installing fans to fight mold. The agency has also replaced leaky roofs and after we left the property, a letter went out telling tenants they would be getting new windows to help with ventilation and to add light.