Fowl play: Broken elevators at public housing complex left residents stranded on Thanksgiving

Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn declared multiple elderly and disabled residents were forced to cancel their Thanksgiving plans due to broken elevators at a Boston Housing Authority masses housing complex that left them stranded in their homes Flynn commented elevators were down Thursday at Monsignor Reynolds Way in the South End one of several multi-story buildings that encompass the BHA s Ruth Barkley Apartments complex where elevators are frequently out of system We ve had problems with the elevator system here for years Flynn declared Thursday outside the complex in a video he posted to Facebook And once again the elevators are down here on Thanksgiving This is a major general safety issue It s a major obstacle and quality of life issue for these residents Multiple called me and petitioned me for backing during this Thanksgiving day They were supposed to be going out with their families for Thanksgiving dinner Now those plans are canceled because of the elevator breakdown and they re not able to leave their apartments Flynn explained he contacted Mayor Michelle Wu s office and the Boston Housing Authority about the issue which he mentioned constitutes a violation of city state and federal laws impacting people with disabilities If there was ever a fire here trying to get people down with disabilities would be a major challenge Flynn explained We can t accept this any longer I m asking for the BHA to treat residents here at Ruth Barkley with respect and dignity The status quo is no longer an option A Boston Housing Authority spokesperson refuted the councilor s declares saying that the elevator at Monsignor Way went down on Wednesday morning but was fixed by a m Thursday on Thanksgiving The BHA spokesperson Lydia Agro referred the Herald to an email BHA Administrator Kenzie Bok sent to Flynn at a m Thursday while adding We re a little confused as he has subsequently been posting and reporting that the elevator is not operational but that is not accurate Bok reported Flynn the outage was caused by a fire alarm triggering the regular built-in fire safety protocols for the elevator which as you know send an elevator to the ground floor until the fire alarm is cleared and a technician resets it The BHA has been reporting on the performance of this elevator for the past six months in which period it has had no mechanical outages Bok wrote We upgraded both the floor and the elevator pit of the Monsignor Reynolds elevator in September and the elevator passed its annual inspection in October So I want to reassure you that this elevator is in good working order for our elderly and disabled residents Bok added I am concerned that in this matter a shortage of third-party elevator technicians working due to the Thanksgiving holiday may have contributed to an unexpectedly lengthy delay for our residents in getting the elevator reset Flynn pushed back on Friday saying that by the time the BHA had communicated to residents that the elevator was up and running on Thanksgiving they had already called their family members and explained them not to pick them up or include them in their holiday plans due to the elevator breakdown He mentioned he visited the Ruth Barkley Apartments in the South End again on Friday morning and talked directly with residents about quality of life issues community safety challenges the status of the elevators pest control and trash pickup Residents expressed the following point to me they want to be treated with dignity and respect Flynn revealed in a declaration to the Herald Enough with the lame excuses and passing the buck from BHA leadership For the BHA administrator to downplay the significance of the elevator breakdown on Thanksgiving morning is disrespectful to the residents especially our seniors and persons with disabilities the councilor explained These residents are neither invisible nor insignificant They are our neighbors and deserve to live in a safe and healthy conditions It s about respect Flynn commented he will be filing a formal complaint with the Massachusetts Architectural Access Board on Monday The Boston City Council has held two formal hearings on elevator breakdowns at the Boston Housing Authority s Ruth Barkley Apartments Flynn disclosed The the greater part contemporary hearing on Oct led to an open meeting law complaint against the Council that was filed by Dawn Oates a disability advocate who works with BHA residents experiencing accessibility issues Related Articles Divided Boston City Council has Ed Flynn pushing for a civility committee Battenfeld Michelle Wu s lax record holding Boston police accountable Syringe City Boston hands out million needles to drug users during Mayor Wu s tenure Boston Mayor Wu says she has no interest in bromance with Trump after Mamdani meeting Boston announces donation of Thanksgiving turkeys directs residents to food materials Oates complained about unequal recovery and viewpoint discrimination by Councilor Liz Breadon who chaired the hearing Oates was a panelist and explained she received far less time to speak on the issue than Bok the BHA administrator As for the Thanksgiving elevator breakdown Oates refuted Bok s explanation that it first went down on Wednesday morning She mentioned the outage occurred Tuesday afternoon causing residents planning to tour Tuesday Wednesday or Thursday morning to cancel their holiday plans While it was fixed Thursday morning residents weren t notified until noon and only if they had opted into call system provision updates leading to further uncertainty Oates mentioned This is not just a technical failure It s a human one that s been ongoing for years Oates revealed Kenzie is the queen of making excuses for why the work is not done and it seems like she is helpless to fix the situation I have zero faith in the system at this point Oates disclosed the BHA residents are fed up and will be exploring legal options at this point because it s gross discrimination and neglect and living in a situation that violates city state and federal law