THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY,OCTOBER 13,2010
WWW.KANSAN.COM
VOLUME 123 ISSUE 40
RENTAL RANTINGS
City zoning in on landlady's violations
**From the source: I've attached three photos of flooding damage in the basement of our house. One of the two flooded nearly every time it rained. They tried to fix the flooding a couple times, but were unable to. After a while, when we emailed them for further help, they were late in responding and only put forth a minimal effort.
BY MEG LOWRY mlowry@kansan.com
Contributed photo
When Rachel Hagen, a senior from Kansas City, Kan., woke up in the dark to a bat flying over her face, she was petrified. When her landlady offered her a book of self-written poems rather than an exterminator's number, she thought surely she was dreaming.
Because of questionable practices, Hearn, who owns more than 25 properties in Lawrence has become infamous among renters, many of whom are KU students.
"She is absolutely trying to stuff as many kids into houses as possible."
Brian Markowitz, a senior from Leawood, said.
"She will do anything possible to make a buck."
"Just read the poem" her landlady, Serina Hearn, said. "Then you will feel better."
Markowitz and the five roommates he lived with at 1736 Louisiana St., are filing a lawsuit against Hearn.
If you suspect you may be living illegally in a rented home or apartment, you can contact the Lawrence City Zoning Commission at 785-832-7700
"She absolutely made an effort to hide how many people lived there that day," Markowitz said. "She put numbers on one bedroom door to make it look like a separate apartment and she put a fake closet in front of the attic door so they wouldn't go upstairs and see three bedrooms up there."
inspection, Hearn's assistant, Alicia Chance, e-mailed the six tenants and asked them to leave the house.
The house had been zoned by the city of Lawrence as a "single-family home," which means that no more than three unrelated tenants may live in it together. However, Markowitz, who had been unaware of the zoning code, claimed that Hearn knowingly allowed six unrelated people to live in one residence.
After their lease was up, Hearn did not refund the tenants their security deposit of $2,970. At that point, Markowitz discovered that and his roommates had been living in the home illegally. He then submitted their lease and e-mails to city inspectors.
On the day of the scheduled city
B r i a n Jimenez,acodes enforcement supervisor for the city,said the city's official
that," Jimenez said. "We have dealt with this particular landlord on many occasions, and I can confirm that we have heard stories similar to what has been told to you."
position is that 1736 Louisiana St. is a single-dwelling residence.
"We've given Hearn the opportunity to prove that her actions were not unlawful, and she has yet to do
"We can have this problem with any house," jimenez said. "It comes down to whether the landlord is going to be law-abiding."
These similar stories include ones such as Ben Cohen's, an MBA graduate student from Overland Park and former Kansan staffer.
Markowitz filed a complaint with the city, but the case has yet to be prosecuted. If city does not pursue the case, Markowitz said that he and his roommates will file a civil suit.
Ryan Wagner SPELL2/KANSAN
"I had heard rumors before I signed my lease that the security deposit should be considered a 13th month's rent," Cohen said. "To not give the security deposit back is just her practice."
At the address of 1736 Louisiana is the home of Brian Markowitz and five other KU seniors. Markowitz is heading a law suit against the landlord Serena Hearns who owns Rainbow Works, LLC
In addition to not refunding their security deposit of $3,960, Hearn charged Cohen and his eight roommates an additional $1900.
We haven't paid yet, and I refuse
to" Cohen said. "She won't verify where the money is going, and I know it won't go back into the house. Her rentals are literally run-down dumps."
However, Markowitz said the money isn't the main issue. "Our lease had signature spaces for up to seven people," Markowitz said. "She flat out led to us."
After the city received Markowitz's complaint in 2009, a second complaint was filed that more than three people were living in the house yet again. The property is currently vacant.
"I literally had no idea we were doing anything wrong," said Markowitz. "At this point, I just feel that beyond what she has done to
me, I guarantee she is going to do it to someone else"
After an initial attempt to contact Hearn, her rental website was taken
down. She was also unavailable for later attempts at contact.
Edited by Emily McCoy
CAMPUS
Funds for campus maintenance increasingly hard to find
BY STEPHEN MONTEMAYOR smontemayor@kansan.com
The University's to-do list of oncampus maintenance is long — and growing longer.
More than $225 million in repairs and renovations are expected to be included on the University's latest inventory of maintenance projects, which will be completed in November.
"We are far away from where we need to be," Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little said.
Every two years, the University reviews its unaddressed maintenance projects and reports them to the Kansas Board of Regents. The regents then release their report on deferred maintenance the following January. The 2008 report revealed a 24 percent increase from 2006 in deferred maintenance projects at the six Kansas universities.
Modig said the rate of deterioration at the University is about 2 percent of campus facilities replacement values per year. The University has about $1 billion in facilities.
STATE FUNDS FOR MAINTENANCE PROJECTS ON LAWRENCE CAMPUS
"I do not look for that number to go down much because the rate of the funding we get does not match the rate of deterioration of the campus," said Jim Modig, director of design and construction management.
Cynthia Rodriguez is an admin-ristrative assistant for pharmacology
Strong Hall HVAC Improvements: $2,867,000
Art & Design HVAC Improvements and Central Chiller: $1,601,415
Lindley Hall HVAC and Electrical Improvements: $600,000
Total: $5,068,415
UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS MEDICAL CENTER:
Helen Mubarak/KANSAN
Elevator Replacements: $1,350,000
Roof Replacements: $400,000
Mechanical/Electrical Infrastructure: $2,122,057
The University of Kansas:
Kansas State University:
Wichita State University:
Emporia State University:
Pittsburg State University:
Fort Hays State University:
Total:
TOTAL FUNDS ALLOCATED TO SIX STATE UNIVERSITIES
$7,190,472
$5,639,956
$2,071,128
$1,139,309
$1,392,700
$1,429,795
$18,862,730
Emily Cappo, a sophomore from Overland Park, said she would also like to see more maintenance on residence halls.
"It's just that everything is so old," Rodriguez said. "So even the little things, you know, are a headache."
"I think better living spaces are the first step in creating a better learning environment for students," Cappo said.
and toxicology in Malott Hall. She said the building's running water is constantly shut down for maintenance and elevators often present problems.
Watson Library, Learned Hall, Lippencott Hall and Bailey Hall are next in line to receive mechanical improvements. More than $225 million worth of maintenance is expected to be included on the University's inventory of deferred maintenance projects, which will be released in January.
Modig said projects are prioritized and that funding rarely keeps pace with on campus needs. He said those needs are primarily mechanical and electrical improvements.
Modig said funding is still needed for mechanical improvements on Watson Library and Learned Hall. Lippincott and Bailey also need mechanical improvements, Modig said, which will be paid for through the the University's repair and rehabilitation coffers.
In the past year, projects have been completed in Dyche, Haworth, Malott, Wescoe and Murphy halls and in the campus utility tunnel system.
"If one of those collapsed we could lose water or lose power," Martin said. "Now you don't necessarily think of it now that it is covered up."
Jack Martin, a University spokesman, said the tunnel repairs were less visible but crucial to campus operations.
Money for maintenance will be even harder to come by since regents allocated the last of its Federal stimulus funding in June. Through the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, the University received $12,853,922 for fiscal year 2011.
In September regents approved more than $5 million in state funds for projects to be completed in Strong Hall ($2,867,000 for heating, venting and air conditioning improvements), Art & Design ($1,601,415 for HVAC and central chiller improvements) and Lindley Hall ($600,000 for HVAC
The state legislature approved a five year program in 2008 for funding deferred maintenance at state universities. However the funding was on an annual basis and funds dried up, leaving no available money for the program in fiscal years 2010, 2011 or 2012 — the final years of the program.
Grants or donations also help fund maintenance projects. Dyche Hall received a $1.5 million federal stimulus grant from the National Science Foundation in September. In May, former Chancellor Archie Dykes and his wife, Nancy, provided $100,000 to support deferred maintenance projects.
and electrical improvements).
Edited by Joel Petterson
INDEX
Classifieds...7A
Crossword...4A
Cryptoquips...4A
Opinion...5A
Sports...1B
Sudoku...4A
WEATHER
TUESDAY
76 42
Partly Cloudy
WEDNESDAY
73 40
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2010 The University Daily Kansan
THE WAVE
Check out The Wave's preview for this week's Sunflower Showdown
Catch the Sunflower Showdown this Thursday at Memorial Stadium
CRIME12A
The first hearing is being held for the Delta Chi member suspected of rape. The incident occurred at the fraternity earlier this semester in August.
Delta Chi hearing begins
TECHNOLOGY | 6A
Approved grant revamps
The S22 million grant, the largest ever granted to KU by the government, will study how best to educate special education students.