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Page 3of 6 windows, needing to be fixed "for the safety, well She pleaded with management to eradicate the pests beinor to move her family to a new unit. Her daughters g and comfort for us and our families." suffered scarring from severe bedbug bites. "We feel neglect is present and ongoing in the Nyaundi's child care provider turned away the 2- complex," the Sept. 17 letter reads. "We ask, as year-old, fearing the girl would carry the bedbugs on her clothing and transfer them to others. And stated in the lease agreement, that these items be fixed in a timely manner." friends refused to visit, the documents show. "Maybe it's not a big deal to you, but if you see the Six weeks later, the problems remained, and the city deemed the building too hazardous for occupancy, pictures of the bites on my 2-year-old daughter city inspection records show. The Jaweeds made maybe then you will have some sympathy," Nyaundi just enough repairs within the inspectors' 72-hour wrote in a letter to the building manager in April 2008. deadline to allow residents to remain, but some problems were still unresolved in early January, said Vickie Schleuning, Brooklyn Center's director of The Jaweeds ignored Nyaundi's requests, which building and community standards.included maintenance problems in her unit, and never followed through on a promise to move the Tenants from several buildings said that while the family to another unit, according to the lawsuit Jaweeds didn't respond quickly to problems, they Nyaundi started in late 2009. were prompt in collecting rent. Nyaundi and another tenant, who sued at the same "All they wanted, boy, when the first day of the time, will each receive an undisclosed amount from month came around, they wanted their rent," said the settlement. Sue Hansen, who lived in Peters Place between 2007 Burnsville officials said in December that the and 2008. Jaweeds had provided documentation that they Inspectors from numerous communities say thetreated the building for bedbugs and there haven't Jaweeds are among a small number of landlords been any complaints since March. who don't respond within the usual 30-day window to remedy housing-code violations. The reason some unhappy tenants don't just leave is that moving can be expensive, particularly if they Inspection records for Peters Place, in Columbia have to buy all new furniture in order to prevent carrying bedbugs and cockroaches with them. Heights, show it has taken an average of 15 weeks for the Jaweeds to make city-ordered repairs. "I'll hear judges say to tenants, 'Well, why don't you BEDBUG SCARS move if it's so bad?' " said HOME Line's Hauge. "Well, advertisement While city officials worked to get the Jaweeds to comply, some residents took more extreme measures to get the landlords' attention. Laura Nyaundi, who lives in the Charleswood apartments in Burnsville, has fought for almost three years over the conditions in her apartment. She started by complaining to the property manager and then to the Jaweeds. When that failed, she contacted the city and filed a civil lawsuit, which was settled last month, according to court records. In March 2008, Nyaundi and her daughters, then ages 8 and 2, moved into Charleswood, unaware the p lace was crawling with bedbugs and cockroaches, according to court documents. htt://www.twincities.com/fdc?uniue=131842747276410/12/2011 ppq