BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Up to 20 people may be squatting in a Burlington condo, leaving neighbors fearful for their safety. The local homeowners association has struggled for years to clear out the problem property and finally may be making some headway.
A visit by the Chittenden County Sheriff’s Department on Tuesday was the first step in what residents of The Riverwatch Condo Association hope could be a reprieve from a problem that has plagued the 200-unit Riverside Avenue complex.
Residents say the tenants in unit 241 have made them feel unsafe in their own homes. “The situation keeps escalating, and help has plateaued,” said Meredith, the owner of a nearby condo who asked us to conceal her identity for fear of retaliation. “Lots of people were crossing through our backyards and going to this one particular place. They usually try to conceal their identity, conceal objects in their clothing,” Meredith said.
Court records indicate people in the unit use illegal drugs on the property, have broken locks to get into the building, steal residents’ mail, threaten them, and break into their cars.
It’s easy to spot the problem property. Used syringes cover the back deck, where this past summer our cameras also captured people coming and going using the back sliding door. “It’s sort of a question of what don’t you see,” Meredith said.
Following a myriad of complaints from residents, the homeowners association says they took action by changing locks on the doors and even installing security cameras. However, they say the problems persist.
The apartment’s owner, Robert Eley, was more than $100,000 behind on mortgage payments, which triggered a bank foreclosure, according to records. The homeowners association hoped that would lead to a resolution, but now — nearly three years later — the association is moving forward with its own eviction effort, saying they’re at risk of losing insurance coverage if the squatters aren’t removed.
Meanwhile, concerns continue for Meredith and others, who worry their property values have diminished as the situation drags on. “I don’t think even someone sympathetic to what’s going on would deliberately move in next door to what’s happening,” she said.
The sheriff’s department was unable to serve eviction paperwork on Tuesday. An eviction hearing is scheduled for later this month. In the meantime, attorneys representing the homeowners’ association must file for what’s called a “tack order” to allow police to post the eviction notice on the door. Police say the paperwork needs to be served within 10 days of the scheduled hearing.