LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A new group is banding together to form The Louisville Tenants Union.

They said there are several people in unlivable housing situations in low-income housing which is through Louisville Metro Housing Authority, LMHA.

The group claims they've sent several complaints to LMHA and to its  Executive Director Lisa Osanka about the issues that it said are going unresolved, like black mold.

LMHA responded with a statement saying:

"Louisville Metro Housing Authority is limited by several privacy laws and therefore is not able to comment on specific reports. However, we take the concerns of the 14,000 families that we serve, seriously, and vow to investigate the alleged complaints that are reported to LMHA by its residents."

Louisville Tenants Union also said the regional manager Kathy Strom with The CT Group is their point of contact for several apartments, and the union claims she specifically has been mistreating several tenants. Now, the group wants her fired.

WDRB News has reached out to The CT Group for comment, but hasn't heard back.

Richard Faulkner lives at Sheppard Square in Smoketown. He said his apartment has split flooring and soft spots.

"This treatment that people had in public housing is ridiculous and it needs to stop," Faulkner said.

He also said he has problems with the electronic locks on the doors to access his side of the apartment building. He told WDRB News sometimes he gets locked out and management can't let him in during the weekend.

"It's like a jail in here," he said.

For mom Dominique Harris, she has made several complaints of mold with no help from management. She said the mold and water leaks have led to bugs.

"My cabinets is infested with roaches. My refrigerator barely works, gets infested in roaches," she said.

Harris claims regional manager Strom hasn't been agreeable to help.

In a document Harris received from Strom, Strom said she offered Harris two other places to live but Harris declined to move because the new locations were close to a past domestic assault offender.

In a news release, the Louisville Tenants Union said it received an Open Records Request from LMHA regarding tenant complaints against both CT Group and Strom.

"According to city records, from January 2020 to March 2022, there were 85 complaints filed specifically against CT Group. Of those, there were 29 complaints that specifically addressed Kathy Strom’s behavior, which ranged from verbal mistreatment to outright neglect," the news release said.

The Louisville Tenants Union said it is a tenant-led organization "dedicated to protecting and fighting alongside poor and working class tenants."

"We believe that housing is a human right, not a commodity! We fight for an end to all evictions, and for community control of housing through the building of tenant power," LTU said.

Louisville Tenants Union can be reached at loutenantsunion@gmail.com or on social media.

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