HOT SPRINGS, Ark. — Tenants at the Greenbriar Apartments in Hot Springs expressed their frustrations after management and the owner of the complex are forcing them to pay to have an A/C unit in their apartment. Some units are Project Based Section 8.
Keishon Hicks has been a longtime tenant, along with his grandmother.
He said that when he moved back into the complex, there were normal notes from management for small things— but in December, notes for the A/C started.
"When we were told in late December that we had to start paying for air conditioning because it wasn't included on the HAP contract, I was very confused," Hicks explained.
Receipts he shared with us showed that in June, Hicks paid $150 for his window A/C unit.
"How do you find it in your heart to be so cruel?" Hicks said as he stood in front of his window unit.
He also said that if tenants don't pay for those units, maintenance removes them. He even shared a video of maintenance kicking one out.
We spoke with Arkansas HUD, who told us from a federal perspective, A/C is not a requirement— if it's not in the lease, then it isn't legally required to be provided.
Neil Sealy with Arkansas Renters United shared that it's frustrating but true.
"Looking at local city codes, so Hot Springs did not have A/C," he said. "We're in the middle of a heat wave, it's awful darn hot in Arkansas."
On Thursday, temperatures in Hot Springs were at 98 degrees, with heat indices reaching 106, according to THV11 Meteorologists.
When our crews were at the Greenbriar Apartments, we asked if someone from management or ownership were able to comment on conditions reported by tenants.
We called the number provided by maintenance, and an automated message greeted us. It said to send an email, so we did.
We have not heard a response by the time of this article's publishing.
There is still hope for the tenants.
The Hot Springs City Board of Directors is set to discuss adding requirements for A/C. Those requirements would also have units keep at least one room 15 degrees cooler than the temperature outside.
"I don't know if we're going to do, like, the actual temperature or the heat index," Hot Springs City Director, District 2, Phyllis Beard, said. "There are still a lot of questions that need to be answered."
For Hicks, any help is good help— but he said he just can't keep living with the way things are.
"I'm fed up, I mean, my grandparents live here, you know, generations of my family, and they live here, and they're going through the same thing that I'm going through," Hicks said. "I can handle it only so much."
The Hot Springs City board is set to discuss that change in their meeting on Tuesday, August 1.