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Covington resident urges action on senior-housing maintenance, suggests multifamily registry
Summary
A longtime resident testified about chronic problems at Covington Place senior apartments — frequent onsite manager turnover, loss of resident transportation, mold and delayed repairs — and urged council to pursue a local multifamily housing registry and state advocacy to ensure safe, sustainable housing.
At the first public-comment period, Covington resident Margaret Hardo (spelled as presented in the transcript) described persistent problems at Covington Place senior apartments since a 2020 ownership change, including the loss of a resident van service, frequent on-site manager turnover (she reported 15 managers since 2020), recurring black mold and delayed repairs, and recent rescue incidents requiring forced entry by first responders when staff were not on site.
Hardo told the council two residents are currently under doctor care for respiratory conditions she attributes to mold exposure. She urged the city to consider establishing a local registry for multifamily housing so the city can track building condition and responsiveness to required repairs, and asked council members to carry that message to state legislators in Olympia.
The speaker framed the issue as both a local health and housing-sustainability concern: "Until they can make the current housing sustainable and healthy environments for us to live, they have no business spending money on more housing," she said, urging oversight of existing units as the state and counties continue to fund additional affordable housing.
Next steps: the council heard the comment during public testimony; staff or council liaisons may follow up to confirm enforcement options and feasibility of a local registry.
