Photo: Office Of Revere Mayor Brian Arrigo
REVERE, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — A Judge ordered the owners of Water's Edge Apartments to provide temporary housing for residents and life-safety improvements at the property on Friday, after a fire in June left residents homeless, according to the Mayor's Office.
"This order is a step in the right direction and a win for our residents," Mayor Arrigo said in a statement. "The City of Revere will continue to take every legal action available to hold the Carabetta company accountable for their continued disregard for their properties and tenants."
The City of Revere filed for injunctive relief on behalf of five residents who came forward about the unacceptable living conditions, many of whom were without housing and living in their cars. The Court ordered Water's Edge LP, the owners of Water's Edge Apartments, to provide housing for the displaced residents and to hire an outside Project Manager and/or Registered Design Professional to "complete the long-standing life-safety and remediation efforts necessary at the property," according to a statement from the Mayor's office.
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"This Court is unpersuaded that Water's Edge comes to this Court with fully clean hands. Many of the violations cited in the Order to Correct issued by the City suggest a pattern and practice of patchwork repairs (for example, the corroded fire pump platform and the semi-operational fire doors) and outright neglect (for example, the missing fire extinguishers, the open windows in the stairwells affecting the operation of fire suppression systems, and the overdue failure to replace the fire alarm system.) In this Court's view, the fire may not have been "caused" by Water's Edge, but there is significant evidence suggesting that the extent of the damages could have been mitigated if Water's Edge had maintained its fire systems in accordance with the applicable code requirements," the Court noted.
The Court ordered Water's Edge to provide residents with hotel accommodations with a kitchen included or housing in another building at the Water's Edge apartment complex within five days of the notice. By September 1, Water's Edge Partnership must pay for hotel accommodations for each resident through the month of September, or have moved each tenant into alternative housing. There will be a status hearing on October 20, 2022, according to the Mayor's Office.
About two weeks after the fire broke out on June 21, 2022, the Revere Inspectional Services and Health departments condemned the building. All residents in the 16- floor high rise were forced to leave their homes.
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The City is fining Water's Edge up to $30 thousand per day for code violations and intends to start inspections of the complex and other apartment buildings. Water's Edge will provide testimony from the Project Manager and/or Registered Design Professional regarding safety and remediation efforts that need to take place at the property on September 8, 2022.
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