73-year-old cancer survivor back in NYCHA unit after months of no answers about much-needed renovations
Angelina Ortiz, a cancer survivor, was forced out of her unit when management began much-needed renovations.
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After six months of waiting, a 73-year-old Crown Heights woman has finally returned home to her renovated NYCHA PACT apartment operated by Fairstead Management.
Angelina Ortiz, a cancer survivor, was forced out of her unit when management began much-needed renovations.
She spent those months living in a far smaller space with no air conditioning and no return date.
"It was so hot in my room, I couldn't even sleep at night," Ortiz said.
Despite paying rent the entire time, Ortiz says management gave her little information about when she could return.
Last month, she and her daughter stopped by to collect mail and discovered the door to the apartment wide open.
Inside, they found a mess allegedly left by squatters — but even with photos, they say they received no response from the management company.
She says she no idea how people were able to access the unit, and if they could return when she moves in.
"They just gave us the runaround," Ortiz said. "The whole time I'm paying my rent. They say 'I'll call you' but they never do."
But after News 12 reached out, management started reaching out to Ortiz, even offering her a walkthrough tour on the condition News 12's cameras could not see it.
Ortiz says she and her daughter were treated with a pleasant surprise when they walked in Friday, a fully renovated unit, with all signs of the mess they found gone.
"It feels so nice," she said. "It was disgusting the way they left the bathtub, everything. But now it's sparkly clean. I'm happy to be back."
Her daughter, Maria Ortiz, said she feared they'd return to find more damage or even squatters still inside.
"We are grateful to Channel 12," Angelina Ortiz said.
News 12 reached out to Fairstead, the property's management company, and is waiting for a response.
