Resident: Work upgrading Bridgeport housing complex is causing problems for seniors

LaFountain says her neighbors have felt like prisoners for almost half a year as the workers have left obstacles in the entrance to the apartments.

News 12 Staff

Oct 3, 2021, 11:17 PM

Updated 1,101 days ago

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There have been plenty of complaints from residents at housing complex for seniors and people with disabilities in Bridgeport.
For the past three years, senior citizen Roxann Lafountain has been a resident at the Fireside Apartments on the upper east side of Bridgeport.
She has quite a few complaints about her apartment like mold in her bathroom.
"I have COPD, emphysema, congestive heart failure,” says LaFountain.
However, she is most upset over what her neighbors are going through across the courtyard at the complex.
The housing authority has been working on some upgrades for the complex.
LaFountain says her neighbors have felt like prisoners for almost half a year as the workers have left obstacles in the entrance to the apartments.
Residents there are disabled, some visually impaired.
“I've made complaints, complaints, complaints and nothings been done,” says LaFountain.
"We can't have the inability for ambulances or emergency services to come and address the needs of seniors or those with disabilities,” says Councilwoman Maria Pereira.
In a statement, Park City Communities CEO Jillian Baldwin says, “This is a critical time for the housing authority as the new team seeks to preserve $65 million in housing subsidies for the most vulnerable among us. As a passionate proponent of vulnerable families in Bridgeport, I have been working diligently in my new role to meet the needs of all of our residents, including those Councilwoman Maria Pereira has brought to my attention."  
Baldwin says the Housing Authority has been responsive to the concerns raised. She hopes they’ll work with her to resolves the issues as quickly as possible.
Pereira says it is unacceptable for disabled seniors to put up with conditions like these for more than five months.
Pereira tells News 12 she has "the highest regard for Baldwin", who she says "inherited a disaster that only got worse when COVID struck."