HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Some residents of a Huntsville apartment complex are suing the property's management group and owners, accusing them of unlivable conditions including flooding and a siren system that continually activates. A class action suit against City Centre Residential LLC. and Willow Bridge, Inc., owners of the Eclipse Apartment Residences, was filed Wednesday in Madison County Civil Court.
Documents filed with the court say the plaintiffs "continue to experience multiple maintenance failures, including random fire alarms, intermittent flooding, and extensive water shut-offs which severely impact the living conditions of the tenants."
Residents say they have repeatedly informed management of the problems, with no satisfactory solution. "Instead, they have provided a litany of excuses for why they are not responsible," the lawsuit alleges. This amounts, the plaintiffs claim, to a breach of contract.
One of the first items of complaint in the suit is about the fire alarm system, which residents claim "has gone off so many times over the last several months that residents no longer know if an actual fire is occurring which has now resulted in a situation where residents may not evacuate in the event of an actual fire." The suit claims the various alarms, many of which have occurred in the overnight hours, have been blamed on issues ranging from maintenance activity to human error.
The suit also claims "significant water supply problems," including five separate shut-offs since September 2023. The outages are claimed to last as long as 12 hours. There are also incidents of flooding throughout the complex, which plaintiffs say worsened over January's extreme winter weather.
With no satisfactory remedy, the suit claims, tenants have been given no options for compensation, rent reduction, or offers to break leases. "Tenants can only leave by paying seven months rent," the suit claims, "typically around $1,263 per month."
The class action suit is asking a judge to grant the plaintiffs damages relating to the cost of cleaning and repair to damaged items, as well as emotional distress related to the fire alarms. They also ask for an award of rent abatement and a contract reformation allowing the members of the suit who wish to vacate to do so without penalty.
A court date has not been set. FOX54 has reached out to the owners of the complex for comment.
