City Takes Landlords To 'Heat Court'
(CBS) – This week's extreme cold has prompted an emergency hearing to force landlords to restore heat to apartment buildings across the city.
In the past five days, the Department of Buildings has received 600 "no heat" complaints, and inspectors have completed 495 inspections.
City Takes Landlords To 'Heat Court'
Alfredo Lopez says he had no heat in his Northwest Side apartment for the past two months. He lives there with his wife and daughters, ages two and four.
The heat finally came on this week, he says. Lopez is grateful the city went after the owner, saying his daughters "cannot live like that," he tells CBS 2's Suzanne Le Mignot.
The owner of Lopez's property was among 20 in court Friday for an emergency "heat court" call. Where Lopez lives, the owner was found to be in full compliance after fixing the heat. The case was dismissed.
"We felt the need to get them into court as soon as possible," says Steven McKenzie, a city attorney.
McKenzie says most cases stem from broken furnaces or boilers and most landlords comply in a timing fashion. The cases originate from 3-1-1 calls and findings from a city inspector.
City ordinances state between Sept. 15 and June 1, landlords must provide heat and water. Owners face up to $500 a day in fines until the problem is corrected.
