‘Rats and Termites Fall From the Ceiling': HUD Residents Demand Better Living Conditions

Tenants living in Miami-Dade public housing are demanding better living conditions, saying their apartments are unsafe and unsanitary.

On Tuesday, residents from the Lincoln Fields housing unit came together to hold a news conference to demand the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) make improvements. 

Kela Napper, who is a mom and full-time student, has lived in the Lincoln Fields housing all her life. Now, in her own apartment with her two kids, she said they don’t have a safe place to sleep because there are issues throughout the apartment. 

“The rats and termites fall from the ceiling,” Napper said while pointing to the ceiling covered in plastic in her child's room.

Across the hall is her 16-year-old son’s room, which also has damage to the ceiling that she says leaks water. 

“It’s mold. My 16-year-old son has to sleep in here,” said Napper, who broke down in tears while speaking to NBC6. 

Napper said her kids spend limited time at home because she’s worried about the effects on their health. 

“One of my kids could get sick and end up in a hospital or die," Napper said. "They (management) don’t think of that. They don’t think, because they go home to a nice house, a nice apartment, AC, flowing clean water."

The Lincoln Fields housing units are maintained by Cambridge Management, which receives federal funding through HUD.

Napper and other residents living at Lincoln Fields said they don’t know where the money is going because when they call for repairs, the fixes are only band-aids — which take weeks to months to get done.

Right now, Napper has no running water in her kitchen sink and only one working burner on her stove.

Tenants are now demanding the following actions: 

1. Cease illegal evictions 
2. Remove Cambridge Property Management 
3. HUD to take action to ensure residents have safe living conditions 

The county is supporting those demands from Lincoln Fields housing unit residents, putting a pause on all evictions at the property until the federal government steps in. 

If things don’t change, Napper said she will have to move. 

“It’s just hard to live here. It needs to stop. Either you find us somewhere to go or fix the problem,” she said.

HUD sent a statement to NBC6 after this story aired, saying it's monitoring Lincoln Fields and will bring in quality assurance inspectors.

"HUD is closely monitoring this property. We have met with owner representatives and local authorities to implement next steps in bringing the property into compliance with HUD physical condition standards," the statement read. "Quality assurance inspectors from HUD’s Real Estate Assessment Center (REAC)  have been scheduled to inspect the property. However, to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of that process, exact dates are not generally provided. After the inspection, HUD will determine appropriate next steps. HUD will continue monitoring and communicating with the residents and local authorities until the situation improves."

NBC6 also reached out to Cambridge Management Inc. and is waiting on a response.