DAVENPORT, Iowa — Four people have lost their home after the City of Davenport on Monday condemned a Davenport building.
Antonio Battle and Jerry Pinkston live in the lower and upper levels of a duplex at 2415 Farnam Street. Battle has lived there over a year and a half, while Pinkston moved in seven months ago.
The building is owned by Andrew Wold, who also owned 324 Main Street when it collapsed in May. Three men died in the collapse, another woman had her leg amputated and dozens lost their homes.
Battle started noticing problems with his apartment not long after moving in. Sewage had overflowed into his basement and up through his bathroom sink.
"We have brown water, there was a big hole in the ceiling," he said. "The door was always messed up."
The front door was broken when he moved in. He said the woman who lived there before him died and they had to break it down.
"(My girlfriend) tried to email him and let them know, 'hey, come over and help us with these things,'" Battle said. "No help. Promises, with no help. Take our money. No help."
He said he kept thinking things would get better.
Pinkston, who lives upstairs, complained of bed bugs, holes in the ceiling, mold under the kitchen sink and mice in the attic.
"It's disgusting, it's literally disgusting," Pinkston said. "There's previous tenant stuff up there. There's like crock pots, like someone was living up there."
He was told it would be cleaned out.
The two men ended up calling the city asking for an inspection. After no repairs were made, the city posted notices to vacate on Monday, Oct. 30.
"It wasn't just that one building," Pinkston said. "This entire company, that entire entity is treating people in the worst possible way. I mean, it's downright criminal."
They wanted to speak up to show people how tenants are being treated.
"At this point, it's like, you want to get some type of justice for the people that lost their lives," Battle said. "They went through way more than what we're going through. We're just being brave right now, and I don't feel like nobody deserves to live like that. It's a problem, definitely, and I think Andrew Wold needs to see this. He needs to see real people talk about real things in his properties. And the judges need to see this."