As our area is currently seeing some of the coldest temperatures this winter, tenants at a weekly and monthly motel say their units lack hot water and adequate heating. Residents at the Lake Mill Lodge say they're getting no help from the property's management.
Many tenants live there for longer than weeks or months. Tenants like Alan Cohen, who has lived there for a year, now. He pays $550 a month for his unit, a price he says is hard to find in the area. However, he says the conditions are less than desirable.
Those conditions start with the lack of adequate heating, which Cohen claims has been going on since he first moved in, "Last night it went down to 18 [degrees], I got up at 5 this morning, I'm willing to bet the room temperature didn't get to 45."
About six months ago, he says, lack of hot water became another issue, "With consistency, you can almost count on the hot water dissipating to nothing between 10, 11 o'clock at night and not reappearing until 10 to 12 the next morning."
He says it first would only happen two days a week, but now it happens four or five days a week. He adds, "One wonders if it's on a timer and they're trying to save money by not heating the water at night."
When Cohen brings it up to management, he says he doesn't get much help. Several other tenants we spoke with echoed similar sentiments, but did not want to go on camera. Cohen adds, "The fact that I'm standing down here with only two others is because everybody else I asked is scared of getting a 'no cause termination'."
Now, he's turned to the City of Reno for help. Over the weekend, Cohen reached out to the code enforcement division. Alex Woodley, the city's Code Enforcement Manager says they assigned an enforcement officer to the case, Tuesday.
In 2014, a code enforcement inspection at this same motel yielded several violations including rooms which lacked proper heating. Woodley says, "With all much older buildings, sometimes it's a boiler issue, sometimes it's a systems issue or a plumbing issue."
Woodley says the officer will inspect the unit by Wednesday, at the latest, "If it's necessary, we'll issue a citation, if not, we'll issue them a notice of violation and require them to get it fixed."
Hot water and heating is a main priority for code enforcement, who will require the motel resolve the issues, immediately, if they find them.
We tried to speak with management at Lake Mill Lodge, but they did not want talk to us.
Woodley says the city is working on a new ordinance which would require thorough, annual inspections of these motels.
The following is a list including what code enforcement hopes to accomplish with this ordinance proposal:
- New classification with a new business license
- Annual inspection of every unit and the exterior - ensures compliance with nuisance, building, and property maintenance codes (tied to the annual business license renewal)
- Require clean linen weekly; or Laundromat on-site
- Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) review from MIT
- Owners and property managers attend Crime Free Training and maintain Motel Crime Free Certification
- On-site manager available 24 hours
- Work cards for managers
- Proactive inspections prevent increased problems on-site and ensure properties are properly maintained
