At least 14 tenants at a St. Petersburg apartment complex could be at risk of eviction iftheir landlord, Lurin Real Estate Investments, fails to correct fire safety issues at the property. That’s according to an order issued by St. Pete Fire Rescue on Wednesday.
This is the second time this year residents there have been threatened with eviction through no fault of their own. Over the summer, the city nearly shut off the water after Lurin racked up tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid water bills.
On Monday, St. Petersburg Fire Rescue warned tenants living on the third floor of five buildings at the Morgan Apartments that they had seven days to move because their landlord had failed to correct certain safety violations.
In an order to vacate posted to tenants’ doors, Fire Rescue detailed a four-month effort to bring the property up to code.
Fire Rescue inspected the complex on July 15 and found no operational fire alarms in five buildings.
Management was told to repair the alarms and hire a third party company to monitor the buildingsuntil the alarms were working properly.
Follow-up inspections were performed on July 21, Aug. 5 and Aug. 14. Each time, the company observing the buildings was out of compliance.
On three occasions, the company told Fire Rescue that Lurin had failed to pay. Then finally on Nov. 10, the company discontinued services.
“Ownership has made no discernable efforts to initiate repairs for the fire alarm systems,” Fire Rescue’s order read.
On Wednesday morning, a spokesperson for Lurin, Ed Cafasso, said payments were up to date for the third party company hired to patrol buildings on the property.
By that afternoon, Fire Rescue had revoked its initial order to vacate, allowing tenants to stay indefinitely.
A new order from Fire Rescue has been issued, requiring Lurin to keep the third party observer in place and obtain permits for repair of the Fire Alarm system within 30-days.
If either of these requirements are not met, the effected units will have to be vacated.
“We appreciate the patience residents have shown as we work to keep the community compliant with fire regulations,” Cafasso said in a statement.
Tony Messina, a 66-year-old retiree living at The Morgan said he doesn’t want to move. He’s rented there since 2018 and pays around $1,200 a month for a one-bedroom.
“What I’m worried about is money,” he said. “It’s not cheap to move.”
Messina said he received no information about ongoing safety issues until Fire Rescue posted the notice to vacate on Monday.
If he had known in advance, he probably would’ve started looking for a new place earlier this year instead of renewing his lease in September, he said.
Lurin’s negligence nearly landed tenants on the street in August when the landlord and the city sparred over a delinquent water bill. Lurin paid the balance in full for its other property, The Elements on Third, but not for The Morgan. The city decided to keep the water on anyway, but urged tenants to relocate.
Since then, the city has filed suit against Lurin in Pinellas County court, claiming the company still owed $65,155.76 in unpaid charges as of Oct. 7.
Cafasso said the litigation is “moving toward a resolution.”