Park Forest officials have set a firm deadline for the management of Autumn Ridge Apartments, demanding that the troubled property be sold by this Friday. If the current management company fails to comply, Village Manager Jon Kindseth announced that the village will seek court intervention to appoint a receiver to manage the complex and collect rents. This decision follows the village’s condemnation of one of the apartment buildings, where residents recently endured extreme cold without heat.
As the situation stands, the 17 tenants of the affected 80-unit building have been relocated to motels in Oak Forest and Matteson, with the management company covering the costs. In a statement, the village emphasized that the broken boiler represented a serious public safety issue. “The village cares and is concerned about its residents,” the release stated, highlighting ongoing issues with other buildings in the complex.
The condemnation reflects a broader crisis affecting the entire Autumn Ridge community, which comprises 388 apartment and townhouse units. According to village officials, around one-third of these units are currently occupied. During the summer, residents faced unbearable conditions as malfunctioning air conditioning units left them sweltering in temperatures exceeding 37°C. Talks of new ownership emerged then, but the recent developments indicate that the issues have persisted for over a decade, requiring urgent action from village authorities.
Park Forest Mayor Joe Woods expressed the community’s frustration, stating, “Residents at Autumn Ridge Apartments are furious and fed up—and they have every right to be. So am I.” Woods underscored the village’s commitment to holding property owners accountable, stating that the condemnation is merely the beginning of a series of necessary actions. He declared, “No one in Park Forest should be forced to live without dignity or basic respect,” pledging to monitor the situation closely.
Trustee Randall White echoed these sentiments, characterizing the situation as unacceptable and inhumane. “This is not neglect—this is a failure of responsibility,” he asserted, directing blame toward the property owners. He emphasized their legal and moral obligations to provide safe living conditions. Residents have reported numerous issues, including unheated apartments during winter, broken air conditioning, and persistent maintenance problems such as malfunctioning elevators and leaky roofs.
Compounding these challenges, the once-popular swimming pool has remained closed since the COVID-19 pandemic. In a recent article, a photograph taken by Mayor Woods depicted mushrooms growing in a waterlogged hall carpet. While residents pay their water bills to the management, the village is still owed $900,000 in water fees, which legally cannot be cut off due to health and safety regulations.
Local television stations have recently covered the ongoing struggles faced by residents, including a distressing account of a resident whose service dog tragically froze to death in an unheated apartment. The residents’ plight has drawn parallels to the film “Network,” in which a character famously urged viewers to voice their frustrations about societal issues.
The village’s decisive actions against Autumn Ridge Apartments signal a growing determination to address longstanding issues and advocate for the rights of the residents. With the deadline looming, Park Forest officials are prepared to take the necessary steps to ensure that the community is no longer subjected to living conditions that compromise their safety and dignity.
