Attorney general announces investigation into Rocky Hill apartments

ROCKY HILL, CT (WFSB) - Connecticut’s attorney general announced an investigation into the group that owns an apartment complex in Rocky Hill.

As of Monday afternoon, residents of the Concierge Apartments remained in hotels for a third day following what the town’s fire marshal deemed to be unsafe conditions.

Attorney General William Tong announced on Monday the investigation under the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act into JRK Property Holdings.

Tong said the investigation seeks detailed records and answers regarding tenant complaints, work orders, inspection reports, leases, relocation efforts, and documentation regarding the $2 million in repairs Concierge has told his office it is undertaking to replace pipes, insulate the building, and replace damaged sheetrock, among other demands.

“Concierge management is sitting on billions of dollars in assets while Connecticut families cannot safely remain in their homes,” Tong said. “This crisis did not happen overnight. This is the result of years of callous mismanagement and broken promises. I appreciate that it looks like Concierge is finally making progress, but we have a lot of work ahead before tenants are safely home. We are launching this investigation today to get real answers to how conditions got this bad and what Concierge is doing now to make sure this never happens again. We will not hesitate to use the full weight of our law enforcement authority to hold this multi-billion dollar out of state landlord accountable.”

Tenants were forced to evacuate by Saturday.

Orange signs reading “danger” remained posted on doorways to each building Monday morning.

The town provided hotel accommodations and food assistance for displaced residents.

Many families said they have been staying in hotels as far away as Naugatuck, which created transportation challenges for children to attend school.

The school district worked over the weekend to arrange transportation for affected students whose families are staying in distant hotels.

The apartment complex said it hopes to have residents back by Tuesday, but has not provided an official timeline.

The evacuation followed more thana week without hot water for residents after pipes burst during a recent winter storm.

Tong called the situation a catastrophe.

He said Concierge has been the subject of multiple code enforcement actions and tenant complaints over the years, including loss of hot water, and failure to keep the property cleaned, plowed, and accessible. He cited tenants who told him, lights, appliances and elevators are routinely out of order, and work orders ignored, among other complaints.

Tong said freezing temperatures have now caused pipes across the complex to freeze and burst, resulting in loss of hot water and extensive damage to buildings and personal property.

“I am grateful to Attorney General Tong for launching this formal investigation,” said state Sen. Matthew Lesser. “I am going to continue to hold JRK’s feet to the fire, doing everything I can to secure compensation for the displaced residents and ensure accountability for disinvestment and mismanagement. I see Attorney General Tong and his office as critical partners in that effort.”

Rocky Hill’s mayor provided a statement on Monday afternoon.

Our priority has always been the safety and well-being of the residents who call Concierge Apartments home. Over the past weeks, our fire, building, health, and human services teams have committed significant time and resources to addressing conditions at the property and supporting residents through a difficult and disruptive situation. We appreciate Attorney General Tong and his office for taking these concerns seriously and bringing the full resources of the State of Connecticut to review the circumstances surrounding this property. The State has tools and investigative capacity beyond what is available at the municipal level, and we welcome their involvement as we continue working toward solutions that not only address the current situation, but help prevent similar issues from occurring in the future.

Mayor Allan Smith, Town of Rocky Hill

Rep. John Larson also called for an investigation into JRK Property Holdings.

The complex was initially ordered to evacuate two buildings on Thursday. By Friday, the fire marshal extended it to the entire property.