Days after deadly Mason apartment fire, tenants complain of uncleaned remnants

MASON, Ohio — Walking into Cambridge Park II's 100-block common room, the overwhelming scent of house fire greets visitors and those still living in the six apartments.

The walls are streaked with black soot 10 days after a fire killed a man on the bottom floor.

Josh Oliver said he and other neighbors had tried to save the man's life, but the heavy black smoke drove them out of the building.

“Everything happened so quickly,” Oliver said. “I came in. I grabbed my cat. I went out.”

Oliver reached out to us after he said he heard little from property managers Dawn Management about efforts to clean and repair the common area for a week.

He said the black acrid powder lining the hall outside his door is a reminder of the life lost next door.

“Literally 20 feet from where I sleep, a man died in a fire, and then when I get up to go to work at night I'm right back at it,” Oliver said.

Oliver said the property wouldn't forgive rent or allow tenants to relocate to available units within the complex, and he said he doesn't have the resources to find another place to live.

“I live paycheck to paycheck,” he said. “How am I supposed to go search for another place?”

Once we reached out to Dawn Management, they sent the station a statement attributed to Cambridge Park II Management.

"The insurance company was contacted within five hours after the fire. The insurance adjuster was at the property for the first time today. Our team is set to begin work in common areas tomorrow," the statement read.

Nick DiNardo, Legal Aid of Greater Cincinnati's managing attorney, called the delay in remediation was "problematic."

"Frankly, most responsible land owners will start the remediation pretty quickly so it's a little unusual that it's taken this long," DiNardo said.

DiNardo said landlords have a legal responsibility to maintain common areas, and tenants have tools at their disposal to push landlords to address problems within a complex.

He said, first, tenants should attempt to speak with and negotiate directly with landlords to address any particular issue.

Second, DiNardo said tenants can reach out to local fire departments or building departments to request their inspection of problem sections of a property.

Finally, the attorney said tenants should approach the local municipal judge to begin a "rent escrow process."

The process allows tenants to place rent in an account inaccessible by property owners until an issue is addressed.

“The landlord generally has to complete those repairs before the money is released from the court to them. One thing a tenant shouldn't do is withhold rent,” Dinardo said.

Withholding rent to force a repair is illegal in Ohio, according to DiNardo.

Oliver said he held no animosity toward the complex he's lived in for 12 years, and only hopes the common area will be cleaned and repaired.